What Resources and Blog Posts Does Giant Pumpkins NZ Recommend?

Updated

Giant Pumpkins NZ (giantpumpkins.co.nz) points visitors to four specific blog posts and a set of on-site tools, plus external resources for growers. The site's own "Blog Posts You Should Read" section names four articles directly: Top Ten Reasons to Grow a Giant Pumpkin, How I got Started Growing Giants, Top Ten Giant Pumpkin Websites to Check Out, and Resources for the Giant Pumpkin Grower. If you want a starting point for growing a giant pumpkin, those four posts plus the site's How To, Blog, Free Downloads, and Estimation sections are the main entry points.

The blog posts the site highlights

The homepage lists these four posts under "Blog Posts You Should Read," each with a direct link:

Blog post What it covers (based on its title and placement)
Top Ten Reasons to Grow a Giant Pumpkin Reasons to take up the hobby
How I got Started Growing Giants A first-person account of getting into giant pumpkin growing
Top Ten Giant Pumpkin Websites to Check Out A curated list of other giant pumpkin sites
Resources for the Giant Pumpkin Grower A roundup of resources aimed at growers

The site presents these as recommended reading rather than as a ranked or dated list, so treat them as suggested starting points for a new grower.

On-site sections worth using

Beyond the blog, the homepage's "Explore the Site" area links to four sections:

  • How To — described as covering "all stages of the giant pumpkin season," so it's the instructional core of the site.
  • Blog — framed as following along with the author's growing season, including "updates, reviews and more."
  • Free Downloads — downloadable resources for the growing season. The site calls these free; no pricing or login terms are stated on the page.
  • Estimation — a weight estimation calculator for your pumpkin.

If your goal is to actually grow a pumpkin this season, the How To section and the Estimation calculator are the two most task-oriented parts of the site.

External resources and world records

Two of the highlighted posts point outward: "Top Ten Giant Pumpkin Websites to Check Out" is the site's own recommendation list for other giant pumpkin sites, and "Resources for the Giant Pumpkin Grower" gathers grower resources. The homepage also links to a "Giant Pumpkin World Records" page, separate from the New Zealand record.

New Zealand record and event guidance

The site states the current New Zealand giant pumpkin record was set by Tim Harris on 28 March 2021, with a pumpkin weighing 844.5 kg, and links to a "View Past NZ Records" page. It also offers guidance for running your own pumpkin event, listing topics such as timing, categories, attractions and activity ideas, prizes, volunteers, moving pumpkins, registration, and photos — framed as helping support GPNZ.

How to use this if you're new

A practical order: read "How I got Started Growing Giants" for context, work through the How To section for the season stages, download the Free Downloads for reference, and use the Estimation calculator once you have a pumpkin growing. Use "Top Ten Giant Pumpkin Websites" and "Resources for the Giant Pumpkin Grower" when you want sources beyond this site.