ASPEE COLLEGE OF HORTICULTURE AND

FORESTRY
NAVSARI AGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY
NAVSARI-396 450

AN ASSIGNMENT ON
Pumpkin
SUBJECT : (PGS- 502) :-Warm Season Vegetable Crops (1+1)

SUBMITTED TO: SUBMITTED BY:

Dr. N. B. Patel Bambhaniya Kinjal Kalubhai
Associate Professor 2nd Semester, M.Sc. Horticulture (VSC)
Department of Vegetable Science. Reg. No.: 2020218004
ACHF., NAU, ACHF, NAU, Navsari
Navsari.

2
 Introduction
• Pumpkin is a nutritious vegetable vine plant

• Economically important part - Fruit

• Largest fruit in the plant kingdom

• Warm-weather crop

• Origin- Central America

 Scientific Classification

• Kingdom: Plantae
• Division: Magnoliophyta
• Class: Magnoliopsida
• Order: Cucurbitales
• Family: Cucurbitaceae
• Genus: Cucurbita
• Species: Cucurbita maxima(L)
 Morphology
 Stem
Vine
Cylindrical
Green colour
 Roots
Tap root system
 Leaves
lobed with 3 or 5 lobes
• Flowers
– Monoecious
– Bright yellow color
– 5 petals
– female flower has a little pumpkin at the bottom
• Fruit
– spherical shape
– thick peel
– orange & green colour, containing pulp & seeds
Nutritional value (per 100 g)
 Cultivation
• Pumpkin hills should be approximately 3 feet by 3
feet. (0.9 x 0.9m).

• Allow 5 to 6 feet (1.5 -1.8m) between hills, spaced

in rows 10 – 15 feet (3m X 4.6) apart.

or sow 2-3 seeds, 1 inch (2.54cm) deep every

30-40 inches (76cm-102cm) and in rows 6-8 feet
(1.8m – 2.4m) apart. Thin to one or two pumpkin
plants.
 Land Preparation

• Turn over the soil up to 20-30 cm depth

• Moderately rough texture is important

• Apply 5kg of decayed organic materials per pit and

mixed with top soil

• Fill the pits with this texture up to 10 cm height

 Seed Requirements

- Seed 1kg/ha
 Soil and climate
Soil : need fertile, aerated soil with a pH between 5.5
and 6.5. Well-drained, sandy loam or loamy soil in
organic matter is ideal for its cultivation.

Climate: Pumpkins are a warm season crop.

Season and months: Sowing time is February to

early March, late May or early June. Seeds can be
sown directly in the soil. Pumpkins grow best in
sunny areas.
 Varieties

Arka Suryamukhi, Pusa Vishwas. Queensland Blue

and Jarrahdale are two good keeping pumpkins. They
have a blue-grey skin and rich yellow or orange flesh.
The Butternut pumpkin is quite popular.
• Methods of cultivation - Plantation on ridges and
in pit also.
• Seed rate – The seed rate is (1.36-1.81 kg) per acre.
• Spacing: - Pumpkins may also be planted in rows 6
to 10 feet apart, spacing plants 2 to 3 feet apart in
the row.
• Land preparation- It is best to add nitrogen while
preparing soil for planting.
• Sowing / planting: The planting hole should be
about 2 feet apart and two seeds can be placed in
each hole at a depth of 1” with the pointed side of
the seed facing down. The seeds start germinating
after 7 days.
 Fertilizer Management
• Fertilizer rates should be based on the results of a
soil test and the nutrient requirements of the
pumpkin crop.

• Pumpkins respond well to ample dressings of

organic manure, and artificial fertilizers may be
applied at a rate of (272-363kg) per acre of a
5:10:10 NPK mixture.
 Application Methods
• During the growing season, most fertility needs of
pumpkins can be met by applying water-soluble plant
foods once or twice a week over the entire plant area.

• Give seedlings a fertilizer that stresses phosphorus, such

as 15-30-15. Shift to a more balanced formula, such as
20-20-20, once fruits are set.

• Once fruit set is evident, use a formula with a high

potassium percentage, such as 15-11-29.
 Interculture Operations : Weeding and hoeing
should be along and between the rows

• Applications of N and earthing up should be done

before emergence of tendrils

• Tall grass growing above the foliage should be

pulled up

• Trained to the veins to grow with bamboo or sticks

 Thinning / gap filling

• Gap filling is done for keeping 2 healthy seedlings

per spot. The gap filling is done in missing areas of
the planted main field to maintain optimum
population.\
 Water management
• Pumpkins need to be watered regularly throughout the
growing season. Pumpkins need lots of indirect water, and
the soil of the mound should be kept well moist but not
wet, at all times.

• Remember not to water the pumpkin foliage. As it gets

warmer you may need to water more than once a day. The
best indicator is the plants leaves. If they are green and
look healthy, they're probably getting enough water. If the
leaves look wilted, they need more water.
 Weed Management
• Weeding is the process of eliminating competition of
unwanted plants to the regular crop in respect to
nutrition and moisture. So that crops can be grown
profitably.
• It also facilitates other operations like irrigation and
fertilizer application.
• The advantages of weeding are
1.Conservation of soil moisture
2.Reduced competition for nutrients, sunlight, space and
water.
 Crop protection
• Pest : The main pests of pumpkins are aphids, pumpkin
beetles, Cucumber beetles, squash vine borers and squash
bugs and the leafeating ladybird.
• Dusting or spraying regularly before an infestation especially
during egg laying and hatching, crop rotation etc is
recommended.
• Aphids can move into pumpkin fields in large numbers from
surrounding vegetation, carrying viruses as it moves and
feeds from one plant to another. Aphids also cause problems
by weakening the plant through feeding, and both whiteflies
and aphids are also vectors of viral diseases.
• Damage usually becomes obvious on cucurbits after the
vines begin to run. Congregating on lower leaf surfaces
and terminal buds, aphids pierce plants with their
needle-like mouthparts and extract sap.

• When this occurs, leaves curl downward and puckers.

wilting and discoloration occurs.

• Aphid damage weakens plants and may reduce fruit

quality and quantity. Honeydew secreted by aphids
makes plants sticky and enhances development of black
sooty mold on plant foliage.
 Diseases
• Powdery mildew is a common disease of pumpkins. Downy
mildew disease can also affect pumpkins. At times, pumpkins can
become affected by watermelon mosaic virus.

• The symptoms are prominent mosaic patterns of light and dark

green on the leaves and fruits. Plants infected at an early stage
become stunted and their yield is decreased. Infected fruit show
irregular, raised blisters.

• The disease is spread by aphids. Unfortunately, no varieties are

resistant to this disease. Removing and burning all infected leaves
and crops will help to check the spread of the virus.
 Downy mildew

• Control:It is severe during rainy season. This can be

checked by spraying mancozeb 50 gm in 15 litre of

water(waiting period ofmancozeb is three days).

• Powdery mildew can be controlled by spraying

combination of Mancozeb and carbendazim 35 gm per 15

litres of water.
 Mosaic
• Control the vectors by spraying dimethoate 35 ml in
15 litres of water.

• Uprooting and destruction of affected plants and

collateral hosts should be done.

• Harvesting can be done only after 10 days (at least) of

insecticide / fungicide application.
Harvesting & post harvest processing
Method of harvesting – 55‐75 days after sowing
Rind of fruit is very tender
The color of fruits skin starts becoming red , fruit rind
hardens and seed coat also becomes hard and unfit for
eating
Yield : The average yield of pumpkin is between 20 to
30 tonnes/ha. In well-cultivated fields hence appropriate
accommodation for transportation and storage should be
made.
• Post harvest processing – Washed with water, Covered
with the paper in crate.

• Packaging : Neatly at the packinghouse, fruits are packed in

ventilated polypropylene bags weighing 50 lbs, an average
of 2-3 fruits; mesh bags or double walled fiberboard boxes
with dividers can also be used.

• Products:‐ Preparation of Bhaaji

• Market availability: Pumpkin is sold for distant as well as

for local markets, long root market.
 Flowering
• Cucurbita moschata, an obligate short-day flowering
wild squash.

• Flowering start 30-45 days after sowing and it follows

a definite sequence of male and female flowers
follows up to fruit set.

• The 1st 4-6 flowering nodes bear male flowers and

later female flowers.
 Breeding Methods
• It is highly cross pollinated due to monoecious
nature and entamophily.

• The main objectives of breeding are: High fruit

yield, early fruiting, first pistillate flower at early
node no., high femele to male ratio, yellow or
mottled skin of fruits, non-ridged fruit surface.
 Hybrid Breeding

• Pollination takes place early in the morning between

6- 8 a.m.

• The common methods of commercial f1 hybrid seed

production are :

• Manual pollination/use of insects and use of chemicals

products.
 Manual / Use of insects
• Male and female parents are planted in ratio 10:1
respectively.

• Since cucurbita flowers are large, male buds are

detected and removed several days before anthesis
from female rows.

• The female flowers are hand pollinated by male parents

or left for pollination by insects nature.
 Use of chemical product
• Production of male flowers on monoecious plants can
be temporarily suppressed,

• For 2-3 weeks by a repeated sprays of ethephon at

250ppm on young plants at 1st true leaf stage.

• SHANON and ROBINSON used 2 applications of

ethephon at 600ppm at the 2 and 4 leaf stage and
reported complete male suppression during the fruiting
stage.