Ian and Stuart Paton from Pinetops Nursery in Lymington hopeful of breaking Guinness Record for world’s heaviest pumpkin
SUPER squash growing duo Ian and Stuart Paton from Lymington have their sights firmly on achieving world record status with this year’s crop of giant pumpkins.
The twins, who have been growing the supersized veg for the past 40 years, have successfully produced four monster specimens this year in the hope that one will exceed 2,749lb – the current Guinness World Record for the world’s heaviest pumpkin set by Travis Gienger in the US last year.
Cultivating at the family-run Pinetops Nursery on Milford Road, the pair spend around six hours a day tending to their pumpkin patch. Ian and Stuart cloned a monster pumpkin they grew two years ago to produce a crop of four potential record breakers.
Ian said: “This year we have two absolutely massive pumpkins that are definitely in with a decent chance of beating the world record – we are pretty confident they will come in at over 2,600lb (1.1 tonnes).
The twins will weigh their largest specimen at Wargrave Nursery in Reading as part of the Great Pumpkin Commonwealth which involves national contests all around the world including Alaska and Australia.
The Commonwealth was established to cultivate the hobby of growing giant pumpkins, as well as other super-sized vegetables, by establishing standards and regulations that ensure quality of fruit, fairness of competition, recognition of achievement, fellowship and education for all participating growers and weigh-off sites.
Ian and Stuart plant the seeds for their supersized pumpkins every April to grow a crop of six plants, which are then used to grow one pumpkin each.
The plants are pollinated in mid-June and it then takes around 110 days for the pumpkins to reach their maximum size.
During their peak growing period, the super squash can gain more than 70lb a day for 21 days straight.
Ian said: “We started growing pumpkins half a century ago, when our biggest weighed 54lb, and it is absolutely incredible to think that the pumpkins we grow now can gain more than that in weight each day.”
“We are absolutely hooked and have no intention of giving up until we get the world record. With the pumpkins we have produced this year – it really could be our year.”
In previous years the Patons’ pumpkins have been displayed on Oxford Street in London, in New York, and in Spain and Belgium. Other pumpkins have been carved into small boats, and donated to various charities.
Although the pumpkins are edible, both Ian and Stuart admit they aren’t the best for eating. The three biggest gourds will be weighed at events across the UK over the next fortnight when the pair will learn whether they have finally achieved their long held ambition to grow the world’s heaviest pumpkin.
