In the News -
November 2007
Monster melons and giant pumpkins awe fairgoers
SAGE, Ark. - Pumpkins and watermelons are family projects for the Brokaws of
Sage in Izard County.
Shelby Brokaw, 11, the oldest of four children born to Brian Brokaw and Mindy
Brokaw, took honors for both the second-largest pumpkin, at 156 pounds, and the
second-largest watermelon, at 102 pounds, at the Arkansas State Fair this year -
and she'll take home two $200 prizes as a result.
Shelby's siblings - Hayley, 9, Hunter, 8 - are 4-H'ers and they, along with
little sister Madison, 4, spent the summer watering, fertilizing and making
shade for the pumpkins and watermelons meant for the contest.
The largest pumpkin entered weighed in at 160 pounds, and the $300 prize for
it went to Justin Ivy of Hot Spring County. The largest watermelon, also
bringing in a $300 prize, was 109 pounds, and was grown by Cody Seals of White
County.
Dr. Craig Andersen, vegetable horticulturalist for the University of Arkansas
Cooperative Extension Service who doles out seeds to the 4-H'ers who want to
compete in the annual pumpkin and watermelon contest, says perseverance
evidently pays off in many cases.
"A lot of these kids have been here a number of times," says Andersen.
Several of the winners placed with both pumpkins and watermelons.
Cody Seals' pumpkin placed eighth, for an additional prize of $50; Justin
Ivy's watermelon took fifth place, and he won another $75.
The varieties grown for the contest are Carolina Cross, which has produced a
world's record-sized watermelon, and Dill's Atlantic Giant, which has produced a
world's record-sized pumpkin.
When county fair time rolled around this year, Brian Brokaw put four
watermelons in the back of his pick-up truck and took them in for judging; they
were large enough that they braced each other and didn't roll around on the
drive there. For the State Fair, says Brian Brokaw, a blanket or foam covering
for the truck bed is crucial for cushioning and stability of pumpkins as well as
watermelons.
A sheet, folded in half and held at the corners, works best for lifting the
gigantic produce from the truck bed and delivering it to the judging area.
Shelby's watermelon had rotted by the time it was ready to leave the State
Fair, having sat on a cold concrete floor late in the season at both the county
and state competitions, and her dad says it was thrown out the back door before
they left. But her 102-pound pumpkin was turned into a huge jack o' lantern,
just in time for Halloween.
She and her family chose the strongest fruits and worked hard to keep the
pumpkins and watermelons watered, even using misters timed to come on at regular
intervals through the hottest part of the summer to keep the pumpkins cool.
"Watermelons do well with the heat, but pumpkins do not," Brian Brokaw
explains.
They all hauled and shoveled fertilizer together, and they put two wooden
pallets together in a "V" over the watermelons to keep them from being
sunburned. To shade the pumpkins, they used a shelter made of PVC piping and a
tarp.
Those who will try for the prizes in next year's competition may think they
have plenty of time to prepare, but the Brokaws are losing no time. They've
already run soil tests and started thinking about how to improve the 2008 crop.
Shelby isn't sure what she'll do with the money yet, but her dad jokes that
she might use it to buy some fertilizer for next year's pumpkins and
watermelons.
For more information about 4-H or gardening, visit the extension's Web site,
www.uaex.edu, or contact your county extension
agent. The Cooperative Extension Service is part of the U of A Division of
Agriculture.
November 16, 2007
By Kimberly Dishongh
For the Cooperative Extension Service
Media Contact: Lamar James
Extension Communications Specialist
U of A Division of Agriculture
Cooperative Extension Service
(501) 671-2187 or (501) 753-0207
ljames@uaex.edu
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