Missouri Man has Green Thumb for Pumpkin Growing

(Republic) A southwest Missouri man who has been growing pumpkins for about 25 years has shattered the state record for heaviest pumpkin.

Richard Bottorf of Republic grew a 1,798-pound pumpkin and the second heaviest weighing in at 1,677 pounds.

He says growing his giant pumpkins has been a lot of trial and error.

Bottorf says he will not be making a bunch of pumpkin pie because his giant orange fruit is not the edible type.

His family carved the smaller pumpkin into a jack-o-lantern and placed it in his front yard for passerbys to enjoy.

Bottorf says the secret to creating his record pumpkins is good seeds he buys from auctions and aged cattle manure.