With Halloween quickly approaching, pumpkins are beginning to appear on doorsteps everywhere. We took a trip to our local pumpkin patch to pick out a few beauties of our own. I admit, I've never had any luck growing my own pumpkins. The first time my effort yielded a green, melon-sized pumpkin that was separated from the stem before it could grow any bigger. The second time I tried, I ended up with a pumpkin the size of a tennis ball before something ate through the stem. I don't know what kind of critter likes to eat my pumpkin vines, but I'd appreciate if they leave them alone.

If you want to know how the experts grow their giant pumpkins, check out this article at CanadianGardening.com. 10 tips to growing giant pumpkins.