A giant pumpkin grown in Chelmsford has squashed the competition to become the biggest grown outdoors, weighing in at a hefty 1,333.8lb (605kg).
The fruit, grown by gardener Matthew Oliver at RHS garden Hyde Hall in Essex, set a new UK record when it was weighed at the annual autumn pumpkin festival in Southampton on Saturday.
#UKGiantPumpkin we've done it! 1333.8lbs new uk outdoor record pic.twitter.com/V7e2zAPvpe
— RHS Garden Hyde Hall (@RHSHydeHall) October 8, 2016
The pumpkin smashed competition from close to two dozen other giant examples. The winning entrant was spawned from a seed taken from a 2,323lb (1,054kg) pumpkin grown in Switzerland in 2014 that holds the world record, according to the Great Pumpkin Commonwealth. The seed itself set a record when Ipswich-based seed company Thompson and Morgan paid £1,250 for it at an auction earlier this year.
#pumpkins awaiting the big weigh in to see which one will be crowned #ukgiantpumpkin @MattOliver87 @RHSHydeHall @The_RHS pic.twitter.com/RaTHSsjbl8
— Thompson & Morgan (@ThompsonMorgan) October 8, 2016
Oliver was asked by Thompson and Morgan to grow the seed, which was planted in mid-April and took six days to come up.
The fruit, which has a circumference of about 4.5 metres (15ft), was loaded on to a truck and driven to Royal Victoria country park in Southampton for the weigh-in.
Ian and Stuart Paton took the UK record for a giant pumpkin for the seventh time with a gargantuan gourd that has a circumference of more than 19ft and weighs in at 2,252lb – just 71lb short of the world record.
Here it is the record breaking #ukgiantpumpkin. Find out more here https://t.co/TbuH5y2v0d pic.twitter.com/Ohjp9w4TFC
— Thompson & Morgan (@ThompsonMorgan) October 8, 2016
During its main growth spurt, the Patons, who run Pinetops Nurseries in Lymington, supplied the pumpkin with more than 100 gallons of water a day as well as fertiliser.
The brothers spent five hours a day nurturing the three giant pumpkins they entered into the competition as the weigh-in date approached.
They now have their sights set on the world record. Stuart Paton said: “We’ve always been confident of winning the world title eventually, and our new greenhouse has made a big difference with its better soil and light levels, an improved watering system and a larger growing area with a more consistent temperature. We’re well prepared to take on not only the Swiss, but the Americans too.”
Thompson & Morgan will harvest the seeds from the giant pumpkin and sell them (£9.99 for two) to allow any budding growers to follow in the winners’ footsteps.
