I'm thinking Ed picked the bags that were nicely chopped and mixed so he could work the material into his garden in the fall. I know he didn't compost his old pumpkins because he sent some out for me to compost. As a disclaimer, I never actually saw his set up so I'm just speculating on how he used the leaves/grass. All I know for sure is that he'd get a half-ton load of bags every fall, he was particular as to what he took and he grew some pretty impressive pumpkins. Lloyd

Premature pumpkin harvest here. Heard a large crack in the back yard yesterday, and went outside to find my largest Big Max lying on the patio with a big gouge out of it. Either it got too heavy for the stem to support or the squirrels were playing with it. Anyway, it broke off and rolled down a slight slope and over the retaining wall fence. Decided it was nature's way of telling me to harvest and get the vine into the compost pile. The big pumpkin weighs 43.5 pounds and has a 54 " circumference. The smaller one is only 13.3 pounds with a 31" circumference. Loved growing these this year and will probably grow them again next year. 3 New England Pie pumpkin plants have produced 5 good sized pumpkins and I have 6 more that should be ready in a few weeks!

Each time you till you cut the rhizomes of that Johnson Grass which then produces even more plants to grow in your field, seeds are the least of your problem. Thistle may do the same thing. Given the size of your operation repeated cultivation, tilling, may be your only option unless you want to use plant poisons which are not very good at controlling either of those unwanted plants and can, very easily, kill your money crop.

Hi Sharlene, I have Pumpkin Patch. I'm in zone 6 (Martinsburg, WV in the States) and it has survived two hard winters (polar vortex!) with extended periods of wind and daytime temperatures in mid-teens/low 20s and nighttime temperatures between 0 to 5 degrees F. The winter of 2013-2014 was snowy and windy with those cold temperatures so there was some insulation. The winter of 2014-2015 was windy and cold but not very much snow to protect any of the roses. I find it very hardy, since mine is not protected except for a thin layer of mulch. The color starts a strong tannish-orange and finishes a pale pink. I have posted quite a few pictures of my roses on my Facebook page and this link shows new and old flowers on my Pumpkin Patch: Pumpkin Patch Photo on my Facebook Page (Apologies if this is frowned upon!) Mine blackspots if I don't spray regularly. I discovered that this year when, due to a knee injury, I couldn't get around very well to actually do my spray program. No mildew, but that's not usually an issue for me. It bloomed very well the first year I had it, practically non-stop all summer. The past two years it has bloomed well in the spring and then sporadically throughout the summer. It earns its keep, in my opinion. It will set hips like crazy so deadheading is a necessity or flower production is very limited. Chris