Two twin brothers in Hampshire, England have been growing pumpkins for over half a century. Recently, they have grown a giant pumpkin weighing 2,819 pounds and 4 ounces (1,278.8 kilograms), breaking the Guinness World Record for the heaviest pumpkin.
According to the Guinness World Records website on October 28th, Ian Paton and Stuart Paton, the twin brothers, have been cultivating giant pumpkins since their teenage years. Now at the age of 64, they have over 50 years of experience in pumpkin growing.
The brothers earned the title of the heaviest pumpkin in the UK’s history in 2022 with a pumpkin weighing 2,656 pounds and 9 ounces (1,205 kilograms). They have come close to breaking the world record multiple times, either falling short during the weighing process or being disqualified due to slight imperfections in the pumpkins.
However, on October 6th, their years of relentless effort finally paid off as they clinched the Guinness World Record title. Their pumpkin named “Muggle” was certified as the heaviest pumpkin in the world at 1,278.8 kilograms and also set the record for the largest circumference at 255.8 inches (649.8 centimeters).
The enormous pumpkin was officially weighed by Sebastian Suski, a Guinness World Records resident advisor and judge of the Great Pumpkin Commonwealth, at the Wargrave Nursery Giant Vegetable Weigh-Off near Reading.
Suski told the Guinness World Records website, “I am amazed to see this record being set in the UK. This is an exhilarating achievement for the twin brothers who have been growing pumpkins for over 50 years, as well as for all pumpkin growers in the UK.”
He added, “Ian and Stuart have always shared their secrets of growing giant vegetables with me, so witnessing their pumpkin break the record is particularly meaningful for me personally.”
Following the competition, the brothers displayed “Muggle” at Sunnyfields Farm near Southampton, where they were presented with the Guinness World Records certificate.
Coincidentally, this year, the farm attempted to create a Halloween-themed pumpkin mosaic. They recreated the likeness of the Prince of Darkness, paying tribute to the late rock star Ozzy Osbourne, using about 10,000 pumpkins. The pumpkin mosaic covers an area of 2,281 square feet (212 square meters), making it the largest pumpkin mosaic in the world.
When asked about their method for growing giant pumpkins, the Paton brothers mentioned that they found a way to mitigate the cold and unpredictable British weather by growing them in a greenhouse. This has been a key factor in their ability to produce colossal pumpkins in recent years.
Previously reported by Epoch Times, Vikram Baliga, an assistant professor of horticultural practices at Texas Tech University, pointed out that pumpkins can grow to such enormous sizes primarily because they are indeterminate plants, capable of continuous growth unlike determinate plants that stop growing after reaching a certain size.