For the fourth year in a row, a suburban Wheaton man has taken home the prize for Illinois’ largest pumpkin.
Joe Adkins’ gigantic gourd, which stands at more than 5 feet tall and weighs an impressive 1,258 pounds, received its coveted title from the Illinois Giant Pumpkin Grower’s Association.
Year after year, Adkins has grown the pumpkins right in his own yard. The secret to success, he said, is in the soil.
“It’s more of balancing your soil than it is fertilizing it heavily, you know all the time,” he said.
If there was one downside of growing a huge pumpkin, it would be that they’re not really made for flavor and taste.
Adkins’ said he has a difficult goal for next year; the ambitious grower hopes his next pumpkin will top the scales at more than 2,000 pounds.
But in the coming weeks, the suburban Wheaton grower mentioned he has other important plans, passing out full-size candy bars and pumpkin seeds on Halloween.
