We picked our beloved galeux d’eysines the other morning. It was time. Their stalks were all dead, and the one in the bikini sling remained hanging from the fence thanks only to the help of lycra, good sewing, and a strong knot.
We knew either this one or the one on the other side of the fence would be our biggest.
Gorgeous, non?
Here they are, the four of them.
As you can see, the one in the sling (upper left) is definitely the biggest. I’m thinking it had the best lighting, and maybe the sling helped with that, keeping it up above the jungle of squash leaves and tomato plants where it could get plenty of light.
The upper right is the one that was “on the other side of the fence” – that is, the yard side rather than the driveway side. I think this one started out as the leader in size, but the other plants eventually shaded it out.
The two smaller ones grew along the base of the fence, on the driveway (west-facing) side. The larger of the two started out hanging off the fence, and I made a sling for it, but the stalk had enough play that I finally just lowered the pumpkin to the ground and let it grow unassisted by foundation garments.
Speaking of…
My custom-made, original design pumpkin sling. It worked well, so I washed it and we’ll pack it away with the gardening things for next summer.
Oh, and speaking of bikini top slings and exposure to plenty of light…
It’s got tan lines!
