For a pumpkin that’s only going to be on display for one day, there’s a lot of work involved to make a giant gourd come to fruition. Once again, local pumpkin growers are preparing for bragging rights at the 15th annual Southern New England Giant Pumpkin Championship on Saturday, Oct. 11. The public is invited to the event, which will be held at Frerichs Farm in Warren. Unloading of the biggest pumpkins grown in the area will begin at 10 a.m. with the weigh-off scheduled for 1 p.m. In case of rain, the championship will take place on Sunday, Oct. 12.

Refreshments will be available, a "pumpkin coach" will shuttle people around, and corn and hay bale mazes will challenge the skill of attendees. In addition to viewing the giant pumpkins, smaller pumpkins will be for sale. It is recommended that the public bring lawn chairs or blankets on which to sit during the weigh-off.

The Southern New England Giant Pumpkin Growers Association and the Department of Environmental Management’s Division of Agriculture sponsor the ever-popular event.

Last year, club member Joe Joutras of Scituate set a new world record of 1,689 pounds at the Topsfield competition, smashing fellow club member Ron Wallace’s previous record of 1,470 pounds. Rumors have been flying of a possible new record to be set on Saturday’s competition, with a pumpkin grown by Growers Association member Steve Connolly of Sharon, Mass. His pumpkin, nicknamed “the beast from the East,” estimated to weigh around 1,900 pounds and still growing, was featured on the Today Show and MSNBC online on Oct. 6. The pumpkin’s weight is estimated by measuring the “over the top and circumference” with a measuring tape – Connolly’s had been growing up to 20 pounds a day in August. “It’s going to be a circus,” said Norm Gansert, a Johnston resident entering for his second year. He entered a pumpkin in last week’s Topsfield competition weighing in at 755 pounds, and has another still growing in his garden to enter in Saturday’s competition in Warren. Last year one of his pumpkins weighed in at 1,077 pounds. “My neighbor is going to help me move it to flat ground,” he said on Wednesday, Oct. 8. His pumpkin patch is on a hill behind his house on Greenville Avenue. His neighbor has a jeep to help move the giant gourd, and then a tripod will be used to lift the pumpkin into a truck for transport. Gansert started off with six pumpkins, but lost three; another pumpkin was entered into a competition at Durham, but was disqualified because it had a “rot spot,” something that he says happens quite often. To avoid these kinds of problems, the pumpkins have to be covered with blankets each time the temperature dips at night. Another Johnston resident, Steve Sperry of Hopkins Avenue, also started with six pumpkins, and has only one left to enter in the competition, estimated to weigh more than 1,200 pounds. He won first place in the Topsfield all-New England competition in 2004 with a 1,253-pound pumpkin. Connolly, Joutras, Gansert and Sperry now have to make sure their pumpkins arrive safely, in one piece, at Saturday’s competition, especially since pumpkins are susceptible to cracks. Some 3,000 people from throughout New England are expected to attend the event, including representatives from Guinness World Records.

Those interested in competing in this year's event or receiving additional information should contact Barbara Frerichs at 245-8245 or Ron Newman of DEM's Division of Agriculture at 222-2781 ext. 4518. In case of rain, call Frerichs Farm to confirm the date of the event. For more information on club membership, visit the club’s Web site at http://www.bigpumpkins.com/NEPGA/.