How to grow immense pumpkins

Excerpts from an article at the Telegraph:

The groundwork for a big pumpkin starts in February with a planting hole lavished with a minimum of one ton of well-rotted horse manure and the sourcing of “thoroughbred” seed from the internet. The best seed will cost from £5-£50 a pop...

As the plant grows, remove all but one pumpkin fruit so all the energy gathered by the leaves is focused on the development of one super-fruit....

When your chosen pumpkin reaches the size of a football, set the fruit on a 4in bed of straw to protect the skin from stones in the soil and spread the pumpkin’s weight as it swells...

Water is by far the most important influence on a potential prize-winner, accounting for a fluctuating 90 per cent of the weight. During dry weather, the leaves draw moisture out from the fruit to keep growing, which reduces the size of the pumpkin...

Early in the year, nitrogen-rich pelleted chicken manure is good for encouraging fast, leafy growth but when the days shorten, it’s time to switch to high-potash feeds to help fruit development. I use liquid tomato fertiliser – a can every other day...

Shade the skin with a screen during the day and keep it warm at night – it’s after dark that a pumpkin grows fastest. A polytunnel over the top is ideal, but if this is too high a price for pumpkin glory, second best are large, water-filled bottles placed around the fruit. These capture the warmth of the sun during the day and release it at night...