What Is Wrong With My Pumpkins?

Question

See attached picture of my pumpkins. There is something wrong with the skin but I can’t work out what it is… A plant growing in the same garden last year had the same problem… Plants in a different garden bed are producing pumpkins that are perfect. Can anybody help tell me what is wrong? Something wrong with the soil I am guessing?

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Answer 1

If these were seeds kept from a previous pumpkin, then it could be luck of the draw on genetics. This behavior will be quite normal in many squash varieties, and can present itself in pumpkin planted from a harvested crop, due to cross-pollination from other species nearby.

Try a fresh packet of pumpkin seeds from a trusted producer to ensure that the seeds will grow true. Once this test is done, and if the issue is still present, then you can chalk this up to a virus in the soil. Usually it does not cause "netting" this badly on pumpkins, though.

Most plant viral infection cannot be killed off. You will need to avoid plants susceptible to pumpkin viral infection if this is the case.

Here is an article that will provide some useful tips to gardening pumpkins:

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/pumpkin/pumpkin-growing.htm