Ron Wallace grew the world's heaviest pumpkin in his first season under glass

The scale at Frerichs Farm in Warren, Rhode Island, settled at 3,156lb. That is 1,431.5kg, and nearly 300lb more than the world record set in England seven days earlier.

The pumpkin belonged to Ron Wallace, 60, of Coventry, Rhode Island, who sells gardening supplies online. He weighed it on Saturday 10 October at the Southern New England Giant Pumpkin Weigh-Off. Guinness World Records now lists him as the holder of the heaviest pumpkin title, for the third time.

“I was just ecstatic, the place just exploded.” — Ron Wallace, to The Associated Press

He took home $3,500 in prize money, Boston 25 News reported.

The record that lasted a week

On 3 October, Ian Paton, a plant nursery owner from Hampshire, had brought a pumpkin he called Bagheera to the Wargrave giant vegetable weigh-off in Berkshire. It weighed 2,856lb 12.8oz (1,295.8kg), beating the record of 2,819lb 4oz that he and his twin brother, Stuart, had set the year before.

The Patons grew giant pumpkins together for more than 50 years. Stuart retired from the sport in 2025, so this season Ian worked the patch on his own.

“There was a lot more work to do as I was on my own – up to six hours a day in the patch for two months.” — Ian Paton, to Guinness World Records

In a heatwave his greenhouse reached 40C (104F), and the plants were taking up to 590 litres (130 gallons) of water a day. A giant can gain up to 70lb (32kg) in a day, he said, and it takes about 120 days to grow from the size of a golf ball. He told Guinness World Records he wanted to grow a 3,000lb pumpkin. A week later, someone did.

Glass and patience

Wallace was the first person to grow a pumpkin of more than 2,000lb, in 2012, Boston 25 News reported.

“This was my first year growing in a greenhouse and the weather was near perfect for most of the season.” — Ron Wallace, to Guinness World Records

He told Guinness World Records he had had “a few off growing years” while he took a more scientific approach. He is now thinking about taking next year off to finish some projects on his farm.

Why this matters

Few people will want a pumpkin that size. But growing any of it, giant or small, gets you outside, moving and eating what you grew.

A randomised trial run by the University of Colorado Boulder, published in The Lancet Planetary Health in 2023, gave 291 adults who had never gardened a community garden plot, seeds and an introductory course, while a second group waited a year. By autumn the gardeners were eating about 1.4g more fibre a day than the others, were active for about 42 minutes more a week, and reported significantly less stress and anxiety. The participants averaged 41, and the trial was of community gardening; it is a reason to dig, not a promise.

Grow your first pumpkin

Pumpkins are tender: frost kills them, so the calendar is set by the last frost of spring and the first of autumn.

• Now (October to winter). Pick a warm, sunny, sheltered spot and mulch it with compost at least 5cm (2in) deep, as the RHS suggests.
• Mid-to-late April. Sow one seed per small pot indoors, at 18 to 21C (64 to 70F).
• After the last frost. Plant out in late May or early June in the UK, or once frost danger has passed and the soil has warmed in the US. Trailing kinds need about 1.5m (5ft) each.
• Summer. Water well at the roots, and set each fruit on a tile or board so it does not rot. For bigger pumpkins keep two or three per plant; for a giant, keep one.
• Autumn. Cut before the first frost with 10cm (4in) of stem, let the skin harden in the sun for a week to 10 days, then store somewhere cool, at 10 to 15C (50 to 60F).

For what to do with the harvest, our guide to fibre and gut health has the reasons to eat more vegetables. If you would rather grow among other people, see men’s sheds, walking groups and clubs.