10/19/2009

Ohio Has Great Pumpkin Crop Despite Weather

Writer:

Mauricio Espinoza
espinoza.15@osu.edu
(330) 621-6541

Source:

Bob Precheur, Horticulture and Crop Science, OARDC and OSU Extension
precheur.1@osu.edu
(614) 292-3857

Brad Bergefurd, OSU South Centers at Piketon
bergefurd.1@osu.edu
(740) 289-2071

• Ohio State research, outreach help growers deal with cooler weather, diseases

COLUMBUS, Ohio — An unusually rainy and cool summer devastated pumpkin crops in northeastern states. But this year’s quirky weather conditions did spare Ohio’s would-be jack-o’-lanterns, with Ohio State University experts saying the 2009 harvest is even expected to be above average in some areas.

Brad Bergefurd, a horticulturist with the OSU South Centers at Piketon, said pumpkin harvesting in the Buckeye state has been excellent since it started in southern counties in mid-August.

“Some of the plantings made at the end of the planting window (from around Memorial Day to the Fourth of July) grew slower with the cooler than normal August and September temperatures,” Bergefurd explained. “But with most areas receiving the first frost late in the season, these green pumpkins have been turning orange nicely and the size is great.”

Ohio pumpkin growers were not exempt from disease problems, which are aggravated by cold and wet conditions. But those who “were on their toes and adopted technologies and production practices researched by OSU pumpkin experts were able to produce a good quality crop,” Bergefurd pointed out.

Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) scientists and OSU Extension specialists continually work with pumpkin producers throughout the state to guarantee they have the best production techniques and disease-management information available.

This not only helps farmers but also ensures consumers have access to a quality product at affordable prices.

“At our research plots, fruit size has been good for the larger types, with average fruit sizes between 25-30 pounds apiece,” said Bob Precheur, an expert with both OARDC and OSU Extension. “Retail prices in central Ohio seem to be about the same as last year, but some stores were selling pumpkins a dollar down from 2008.”

Among other research projects, Precheur and colleagues are looking for a way to make pumpkins resistant to Microdochium blight or white speck — a highly destructive disease that has killed up to 60 percent of the crop on some farms, killing young plants and causing disfiguring lesions on mature fruit.

The researchers have found that a type of pumpkin, called Cucurbita moschata, is very resistant to white speck. So they are examining the possibility of crossing C. moschata with C. pepo field pumpkins to create a hybrid that can fight off disease and still make great jack-o’-lanterns. This would cut the need for pesticides, reduce costs for farmers, and guarantee the availability of pumpkins at affordable prices for many autumns to come.

Development of such a hybrid would also be great news for Ohio’s economy. The Buckeye state is No. 2 in the country in pumpkin production, with 931 million pounds of the fruit harvested from 6,100 acres in 2008 — for a total value of $22.5 million.

OARDC and OSU Extension are the research and outreach arms, respectively, of Ohio State’s College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.

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