Question
I have 5 acres that has only been used for hay. What do I need to do the ground to plant pumpkins?How many pumkins whould I expect per acre? Any advise for me?

Answer
Ruth, pumpkins require fertile soil in order to produce a bumper crop of large fruit. Usually I recommend amending the soil with organic matter, including manure, peat moss, and compost. The size of this area may make that impractical depending on your accessibility to these materials. If you do not have access to these amendments at this time, you will need to till the soil thoroughly and then add a granular fertilizer high in phosphorus.

Phosphorus is the middle nutrient on the front of fertilizer packages. It promotes blossoms and large fruit. A good fertilization ratio would be 10-20-20. Avoid fertilizers with high nitrogen content. These tend to promote lush foliage at the expense of fruit production.

The only other thing you need to be concerned with are squash bugs. These insects are notorious for infesting pumpkins and squash. Unfortunately, the only way to control them is by spraying. They can do damage to the fruit and vines, so control is essential once they hatch their eggs.

Otherwise, just be sure that the area receives a minimum of 1" of rain per week. Pumpkins can withstand dry conditions, but the size of the fruit will suffer.

I hope this answered your question. Please write again if I can ever be of assistance.

Regards,

Mike