Is everything bigger in the United States? If we’re talking pumpkins, that may be the case.
American pumpkin farmer Charlie Bernstrom, of Lancaster, MN, set a new record at the Roland, MB, Pumpkin Fair Saturday.
Bernstrom’s pumpkin was a whopping 1,753.5 lbs, eclipsing his winning 2017 entry by about 255 lbs.
Growing such a massive plant – as well as two other mammoth pumpkins – is a labour of love for Bernstrom, who said maintaining his garden takes a few hours of solid work a day.
“I try to get up early in the morning, because I have a family, and my wife doesn’t appreciate it if I’m down there every night,” Bernstrom told 680 CJOB. “This year I grew three pumpkins and I used 35,000 gallons of water for the three because they were so dry. It took lots of water and fertilizer each day.”
As spectacular as Bernstrom’s pumpkins are, a big part of the excitement around them every year is the way they’re publicly destroyed. Bernstrom said he’s hauling the pumpkins out to a football field in Lancaster this year to dispose of the pumpkins in an interesting way.
“Last year we dropped it on the old duty-free van, and then on a 12,000 gallon swimming pool,” he said.
“This year we’re going to do the same thing on Oct. 20. We’re gonna drop one on two cars stacked on top of each other.”
The village of Roland is no stranger to large pumpkins. It’s home to the world’s largest (fibreglass) pumpkin, and hosts the annual fair and weigh-in each year.
A Manitoba record was also set Saturday, by second-place finisher Connie Banman of Schanzenfeld. Winnipeg’s Milan Lukes rounded out the top three.
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