When to plant Pumpkins
Calendar windows
Dates shift with your latitude — they are calculated from your local last-spring-frost date, not from a fixed calendar.
At a glance
Killed by any frost — plant out only after the last one.
Practical notes
Gross feeders — plant on top of a compost heap and they will repay you. Slide a tile or board under each swelling fruit to keep it off wet soil.
Knowing when to pick
Ready when the skin resists a thumbnail and the stem has corked. Cut with 10 cm of stalk left on — a pumpkin without its handle rots at the shoulder.
Storing the crop
Cure ten days at 25°C to harden the skin, then store at 12–15°C. Winter squash keeps six months; keep them from touching.
Crop rotation
A hungry group — follow them with legumes and add compost before replanting the bed.
Grows well with
Keep apart from
Watch for
Full guide: pumpkins diseases and pests (4) → with spread routes, compost verdicts and the prevention this list justifies.