wisconsingiantpumpkingrowers.com

What is Wisconsin Giant Pumpkin Growers?

Wisconsin Giant Pumpkin Growers (WGPG) is a nonprofit club for people who grow giant pumpkins and other oversized fruits and vegetables. Founded in 1984 by growers in central Wisconsin, it has since grown into an international membership organization. It describes itself as a social group focused on teaching, sharing growing information, and building friendships around the "art, sport, and challenge" of growing giant produce.

WGPG Home

What the club actually does

• Weigh-offs: Four club-supported weigh-offs are listed, held on Saturdays starting in late September, in Altoona, Nekoosa, Fond du Lac, and Mishicot, Wisconsin.
• Meetings and seminars: Spring meetings, a spring seminar, and a winter meeting give members structured chances to learn and compare notes.
• Competitions and awards: Club competitions, awards, and prizes recognize growing achievements.
• Patch tours and seeds: Members visit each other's growing patches and exchange seeds.
• Discounts: Current members get product discounts from several garden suppliers, and the club also offers reduced entry fees at its weigh-offs.

Who it is for

The club suits two main audiences. The first is complete beginners: the site offers a beginners guide, a weight estimation chart, and a typical weigh-off information page, so someone who has never grown a competition pumpkin can find a starting point. The second is experienced growers who want record tracking, competitive weigh-offs, and access to seeds and networking. Because the membership spans the world, geography is not a barrier, though the weigh-offs themselves are in Wisconsin.

How to get involved

Start with the beginners guide and the weigh-off details on the site, then decide whether to join as a member to access discounts and reduced entry fees. Membership questions go to the club treasurer by email, and the group also runs a Facebook page for more interactive discussion. If you are near one of the four weigh-off towns, attending one in late September is the fastest way to see whether the club fits your interest.

How do I join WGPG and what does membership cost?

Membership is handled directly by the Wisconsin Giant Pumpkin Growers club, not through an online checkout on the site. You join by signing up for the current-year membership and paying the club's dues; the site's membership page is the starting point. The club also notes that members get product discounts from listed suppliers and reduced entry fees at club weigh-offs, which can offset part of the cost if you plan to compete.

How to join

• Go to the membership section of WGPG Home and follow the current-year signup instructions.
• If you have questions or think your signup was missed, the club lists a treasurer contact email on the site.
• New growers can also use the club's beginners guide and newsletters to get oriented before their first season.

What it costs

The site does not publish a dues amount in the material provided, so treat any figure you see elsewhere as unverified. The practical way to confirm the current price is to check the membership page or email the treasurer, since dues and member benefits can change year to year.

Is it worth it?

If you are within driving distance of the club-supported weigh-offs in Altoona, Nekoosa, Fond du Lac or Mishicot, membership is mainly a social and competitive investment: meetings, seminars, patch tours, seeds and networking. If you grow casually and never attend events, the value is thinner, though supplier discounts may still help. A reasonable next step is to email the treasurer with your location and ask for the current dues plus which discounts apply to the supplies you actually buy.

When and where are the WGPG club-supported weigh-offs in Wisconsin?

The Wisconsin Giant Pumpkin Growers list four club-supported weigh-offs, each held on a Saturday, with the season beginning September 26:

• Altoona, WI — River Prairie Ginormous Pumpkin Festival
• Nekoosa, WI — GIANT Pumpkin Fest
• Fond du Lac, WI — Fondy FallToberFest
• Mishicot, WI — Pumpkin Fest

For exact dates, times and entry rules, check the club's weigh-off details page on WGPG Home — note the site's own listed dates have referred to different years in different spots, so confirm the current season before planning travel.

If you're deciding whether to attend or enter, weigh the trade-offs: club weigh-offs typically mean reduced entry fees for members, a local crowd and a shorter drive, while larger regional events draw more competition and bigger fruit. If your goal is a personal best or a state record attempt, ask which scale and judges are on site; if your goal is a fun family outing, the festival settings in Altoona, Nekoosa, Fond du Lac and Mishicot may matter more than the leaderboard.

How can I grow a giant pumpkin as a beginner in Wisconsin?

Start with a variety known for size, give it space and full sun, and treat the season as a long feeding-and-watering project rather than a casual garden crop. In Wisconsin, the calendar matters as much as the technique: the growing window is shorter than in warmer states, so you want strong transplants or early indoor starts, and you want your pumpkin pollinated and growing well before cool fall nights slow it down.

The Wisconsin Giant Pumpkin Growers WGPG Home is a natural first stop because it is built around exactly this regional problem. It describes itself as a social and educational club serving Wisconsin growers since 1984, with weigh-offs, meetings, seminars, a beginner's guide, newsletters and member discounts. That combination is more useful to a beginner than a generic seed packet: you get local timing, local disease pressure and people who have already grown in your climate.

H3 What a beginner actually needs to do

• Choose a giant-type seed. Ordinary jack-o'-lantern varieties will not get you to competition size. Look for seeds described as giant or competition lines, and ask club members what performs in Wisconsin.
• Start early and protect the plant. A short season rewards indoor starting and careful hardening off. Cold soil and late frost are bigger risks here than heat.
• Give it room and sun. A single giant pumpkin plant can sprawl across a large patch. Plan for full sun and enough space that leaves are not crowded.
• Feed and water consistently. Giant pumpkins are heavy feeders. The club's resource list points to soil and fertilizer suppliers, which is a sign that serious growers treat nutrition as central, not optional.
• Manage pollination deliberately. Once female flowers appear, hand-pollinate in the morning and label the date so you know the pumpkin's age.
• Thin to one pumpkin per plant. Letting several fruits develop usually means none reaches full size.
• Watch for disease and pests. Wisconsin's humidity and temperature swings favor problems. The site links a Wisconsin pest bulletin and disease bulletin, which are worth checking through the season.
• Track weight. A weight estimation chart lets you judge progress without lifting the fruit, which matters once it is large.

H3 A realistic first-season scenario

Say you live near Fond du Lac or Nekoosa and want to enter a local weigh-off. You start seeds indoors in spring, transplant after the last frost into a sunny, amended patch, and hand-pollinate in midsummer. You keep one pumpkin per plant, water deeply, and check the pest and disease bulletins when leaves look off. By late summer you estimate weight from a chart. In September you take it to a club-supported weigh-off and compare notes with growers who have done it for years. Even if your pumpkin is modest, you leave with seeds, contacts and a plan for next year.

H3 Where the club helps most

The WGPG page lists four club-supported weigh-offs in Wisconsin, along with spring, summer and winter meetings, patch tours, seeds, newsletters and product discounts for members. For a beginner, the value is not just competition. It is access to:

• Local weigh-off dates and entry details
• Beginner-oriented guidance and typical weigh-off information
• Experienced growers willing to share seed and technique
• Discounts on soil, fertilizer and garden supplies
• A member list and treasurer contact for membership questions

If you are deciding whether to join, ask yourself whether you want a solo experiment or a season with feedback. The club is explicitly described as "growers helping growers," so the social side is part of the product.

H3 Practical decision criteria

A useful next step: read the beginner's guide on the WGPG site, then email the treasurer about membership and ask which seeds and planting dates work in your part of Wisconsin. For broader competition rules and results, the Giant Pumpkin Commonwealth Giant Pumpkin Commonwealth is the larger organizing body, and the club page links to its results.

What is the Wisconsin state record for the largest giant pumpkin?

The Wisconsin state record is a 2,551-pound pumpkin grown by Ford in 2024. The club lists this figure on its records page, so it reflects the heaviest Wisconsin-grown entry the organization recognizes as of that season.

If you are trying to beat it, treat the number as a benchmark rather than a target you can plan around. Weather, seed genetics, soil preparation and luck all move results by hundreds of pounds, and a single record can stand for years. A realistic first goal is simply finishing a pumpkin that makes it to a weigh-off intact.

For context on how records are verified and what current standings look like, the Great Pumpkin Commonwealth is the sanctioning body behind most official weigh-offs: Great Pumpkin Commonwealth. To see how the Wisconsin record sits against other states and countries, that is the place to look.

To put your own fruit in contention, the practical next step is to get it on a certified scale at a club-supported weigh-off. The WGPG site lists its weigh-off dates and locations, along with a weight estimation chart you can use at home to guess where you stand before the official measurement.

What discounts and resources does WGPG offer to its members?

WGPG members get both a small set of product discounts and a larger set of growing resources and club benefits. Discounts come through partner vendors and are tied to current membership; the site lists Ohio Earth Food (10% off), Kelp4Less, Down to Earth Garden Center, Carlin Horticulture Supplies, AgriEnergy Solutions, and BIG PUMPKINS.COM among its resource and discount partners.

Member discounts

• Ohio Earth Food: 10% off, stated on the site.
• Other listed vendors (Kelp4Less, Down to Earth Garden Center, Carlin Horticulture Supplies, AgriEnergy Solutions, BIG PUMPKINS.COM) appear as resources with product discounts available to current members.
• Reduced entry fees at club weigh-offs.

Resources and club benefits

• A beginners guide, typical weigh-off info, and a weight estimation chart.
• Newsletters, spring meeting, spring seminar, winter meeting, patch tours, and networking.
• Club competitions, awards, and prizes, plus a member list and seeds.
• Links to Wisconsin disease and pest bulletins, GPC results, and the GPC website.
• The current Wisconsin state record: 2,551 pounds, grown by Ford in 2024.

If you are deciding whether to join, check the membership page and the vendor list first, then compare the discount you would realistically use against the entry-fee savings at the weigh-offs you plan to attend. For example, a grower buying soil amendments in bulk may save more through the Ohio Earth Food discount than through a single weigh-off entry, while a first-time grower may get more value from the beginners guide and seminars. For official giant pumpkin records and competition rules beyond Wisconsin, see Great Pumpkin Commonwealth.