Question
Mike-

Plan on planting pumpkins this year for Halloween. Saved some seeds from last year from a good sized pumpkin (variety unknown) and bought a packet of "Connecticut Field" seeds to plant in case the seed I saved do not germinate. A co-worker saves seeds and he told me how to do it but no guarantees!

Can I plant these 2 different varieties in the same patch? Do I need to worry about cross pollination and end up with "runt" pumpkins? Would planting them a few weeks apart help. Limited space so I can't separate them very far.

Thanks,
Josh

Answer
Josh, there is a good chance that cross-pollination will affect the characteristics of the plants. The other issue you have is the possibility that the unknown seeds are from a hybrid plant.  Hybrids seldom produce offspring from seed with the same characteristics as the parent plant.

Unless you can plant the two varieties 50 feet apart or more, I would not recommend planting them together. The results are too unpredictable.  Personally, I would play safe and only plant the Connecticut Field seeds.

I hope this answers your question.  Good luck, and feel free to write if you ever need further assistance.

Regards,

Mike