Is this normal with pumpkin seedlings?

15 years ago

Ok, two things I'd like to inquire about. First, some background:

I've never gardened before but thought it might be a neat idea to do it for funsies, and since I've been trying to eat healthier the thought of eating my own home-grown greens and veggies is delightful. Also for funsies, I purchased a packet of Burpee Pumpkin seeds - "Early Sweet Sugar Pie" is the variety. It was one of the first seeds to sprout and is definitely the largest of all my small plants now (about half of them are one month old now). I originally decided that my foray into gardening would be an indoor one, however, since the Pumpkin plant actually sprouted (and looks very good) I am going to do one small 4 foot above ground planter outside. I am hoping to get that completed in the next few days as this is about the time for my area to plant outside (I've been told by gardeners in my area that most people wait until after Good Friday for most gardening-related things here in NWI/lower Michigan).

ANYWAYS. Since I'm a nub, my first question is this: when do pumpkin plants lose their baby/first leaves? I only ask because the ones on my pumpkin plant have, for the most part, turned a yellow-ish color and there are some brow spots on them. From other information I've gleened throughout my reading of this website, I could self-answer and say it was over-watering, however, none of the true leaves have either of these symptoms.

My other question is, how long does it normally take for the pumpkin plant to start creating its first flowers? I see (as of yesterday morning) small buds accompanying the newer, smaller leaves (not the three original true leaves that sprouted) which I can only think are tiny flowers starting to form.

I kinda thought that was impossible under the current grow lights I have (4 t12's per shelf, two 6500k and two redder spectrum grow lights) but then again, this plant has surprised me just by being alive, har har!

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Comments (4)

noinwi
15 years ago
A photo would help, but here's what I(a gardener, but non-expert)think. The first leaves, cotyledons, 'feed' the plant until the true leaves appear, then they usually yellow and fall off, so you shouldn't worry about those. Pumpkins need a lot of root space and above the ground space, too. If it's still in a small container and is putting out flowers, it may die on you before you can get it properly hardened off(don't skip this step)and planted outside. Once you get it outside, it may still stay stunted, so save a few seeds to direct sow into your planter just in case. They will sprout and grow quickly, which is why most growers wait until warmer weather to start squash and melon seed outside. That said, there's nothing wrong with experimenting to learn things for yourself. Let us know how things progress.
veriria
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks very much for your answer, noinwi. I still have plenty of seeds from the packet. I just wish it would stop raining! I was going to go to Menards for what I needed to create the above-ground planter, but it is all grey skies again. I am just going to wait until I get home from work on Tuesday now, and hopefully this rainy weather will be long gone.

As for my current plant, I do have much larger pots to transfer it into, which is what I was planning on doing anyways until I got it outside. As of right now all my plants also have a fan on them to help harden them off, but I definitely plan on putting them outside once I finally decide which ones will have the luxury of growing in real sunlight (aside from the pumpkin, of course).

I can't directly link to the picture (if it is available through flikr, the knowledge is apparently beyond me). But the link below is to a picture on my photostream of said pumpkin plant. I will apologize in advance for the quality of the photo; it was taken via an iPhone.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pumpkin plant slash seedling
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noinwi
15 years ago
The pot is larger than I had imagined...it's a very healthy looking little plant...but it won't stay little for very long...the sooner you can pot it up(or plant outside)the better. Nice job.
veriria
Original Author
15 years ago
I came home from work today (every five days I'm at a hotel a state away for work) and the "baby" leaves have dropped even more, but it looks like the plant grew some while away. Looks great.

Funny that; I am home for several days in a row and see no changes in the plants. But I'm gone for one night and it seems they've grown quite a bit :)