I'm certain this works with pumpkins because all the pumpkin patches I've ever been to just let 'em go. My only concern would be that they would seem to be more at risk of fungal stuff, but I think the tarp idea might put an end to that risk. Hopefully granny will chime in because she's got more info on that than I ever will. My experience with zucchini last year was that it grows a bit like a spider with sort of shortish branches. For me, trellising zucchini was a complete waste of time. Imagine taking a spider and putting all eight legs on a trellis, not so smart, eh? Maybe I just had a weird variety because Mel has great pics on his site of trellised zucch. I would trellis the squash. IMHO: long, viney plants make a lovely backdrop to the box. They look great and it makes them less likely to pick up fungal stuff.

Actually, Granny has never grown pumpkins! It's so easy and cheap to just buy it in a can. But this year, I am growing one hill of pumpkins, because Daphne (Daphne's Dandelions) sent me seed for small pie pumpkins. I had planned on putting it at the end of my indeterminate tomato bed and letting it grow over the side, but I'm having second thoughts about that. Now I've decided to plant it in a large container (one of those plastic milk crates, lined with landscape fabric or an old sheet...whatever), and let it sprawl. As with melons and winter squash, which I have grown, I'll just save up some coffee cans, bricks, flower pots, thick boards or whatever to set the pumpkins on to keep them from being in contact with the soil.

Granny

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

Let 'em run out into the yard...they'll be fine.

I'm trellising my pumpkins this year, because....I trellis everything! Ha! Ain't that right Granny?

EG

That's right, Poopy-head!

He just loves it when I call him that ;-) Don'tcha, EG?

Granny

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

You should be able to let that var. hang with a little support, no problem. We've been saving the mesh bags we get from grocery store produce for his purpose, as our melons get trellised (punkins we grow are too big for our trellises (trellisi?).

Dan

I just planted watermelon as Granny suggests above. My olan is to let them sprawl a bit. I love the idea of a brick to rest on. I can make that happen.

I'm trying not to get too excited about my experiments, hehe. Good ideas though!

Granny - I'm such a lucky person, to have someone such as you frequently reminding me who I am. Thanks!

EG

We let ours run the yard. Extending out several feet. Sometimes trying to invade other boxes. SO we have to re route them around. I told the kids " once the vines make it out to the road, (bout 20 feet away) we'll have to turn them around or cut em." j/k First time last year growing pumpkins. Made lots of delicious pumpkin bread. Froze some of them.

You got my interest. I think of pumpkins as being planted later in the summer. Help me, when can I plant pumpkins? I have a sfg, 1st time this year. I have cantaloupe and watermelon planted in two squares. I plan to let them go up a trellis. Talk to me about the pumpkin. I have room in my garden to put them in a 5 gal bucket or a large flower pot and let them trail over the back side of my garden. The garden drops over a bulkhead and goes down about three foot to another part of the yard. Would that also work better for the cantaloupe and watermelon?

Planting time for pumpkins will depend on where you are. In some areas (like here in central Texas, zone 8b), you get two planting opportunities a year - early season (March-April) and again for fall harvest (July planting). See the planting schedule below for Travis County:

http://www.co.travis.tx.us/agext/garden/veggies/planting/peasshal.asp

In other areas with shorter growth seasons, you might only have one time window for pumpkin planting. You should be able to get planting time advice from your local county extension office, a good nursery, or a local gardening club or association.

I planted my pumpkins in the non-square foot portion of my garden, where (due to space limitations) they will be allowed to roam into the yard and among the other plants in the garden.