Big Apple is Rebecca Chartier’s baby, tipping the scales at around 300 pounds and only 52 days old.

Chartier has poured months of care and attention into nurturing this giant wonder at home in Weare and is now ready to showcase her orange marvel at this weekend’s Hopkinton Fair.

“Every day, you’re taking care of it, you’re checking to see if there’s something wrong,” Chartier said, looking at the bright orange gourd she grew in her yard. “What does it need?”

“It’s my baby.”

Chartier’s journey into the world of giant pumpkins began three years ago. After 20 years as an interior designer, she she took a job at Green Thumb, a landscaping and garden center in Goffstown. That’s when her husband, Nate Chartier, suggested she try her hand at growing giant pumpkins.

Without hesitation, she dove right in. Her first attempt at the garden center yielded a 473-pound behemoth in 2022.

Last year, she tried growing one at home, but it only reached a puny 10 pounds.

Undeterred, she dedicated herself to growing Big Apple at home, starting with germinating seeds in April and planting them in May.

Chartier faced a barrage of challenges – stink bugs threatening the leaves, squash vine borers targeting the stem systems, and mushy spots requiring fungicide to dry out.

Even watering the pumpkin patch isn’t simple. It’s become a precise science for Chartier. She has come up with a system to track how many gallons of water are applied per minute. 

“Oh, it's a commitment for sure,” said Chartier. “You're starting with this small seed that is now a small little plant, and then you're babying the plant because the wind, the rain, the weather, everything is trying to kill your plant.”

After five months of labor and love, on Wednesday it was time to move Big Apple. Chartier had originally named the pumpkin “Colgate” because its squishy texture reminded her of toothpaste. It was finally ready for its grand debut.

“It’s no longer a growing pumpkin,” Nate Chartier said, as he wielded a blade to sever the stem, detaching the giant fruit from its vine.

Big Apple was covered with a blanket and secured tightly with a metal ring and straps as it was carefully lifted and placed in the back of a truck, ready to be transported to the fair that runs through the Labor Day weekend.

As Chartier and her husband watched the crane lift Big Apple onto a wooden pallet, Chartier was overcome with mixed emotions.

“I’m going to miss seeing it every day,” Chartier said, gently patting the pumpkin as if comforting it. “But at the same time, I can do other things. It would be nice to actually do something else.”

At various fairs, pumpkin growers sometimes get the chance to showcase their prized giants a second time if their pumpkins remain intact. Some even sell their pumpkins to hotels and businesses, where professional carvers turn them into elaborate works of art.

For those who avoid pesticides, pumpkins may find their way to soup kitchens or farmyards to be eaten.

Chartier isn’t concerned about whether Big Apple will win a prize at the fair. For her, the joy comes from bringing smiles to people’s faces when they look at her giant orange dream.

“I think people love fall and they love pumpkins and to see something that is big,” said Chartier. “It's one of those things where they're astonished. I like people and I like to see people happy.”

If you go 

For an event schedule and to buy tickets, go to www.hsfair.org. 

Sruthi Gopalakrishnan can be reached at sgopalakrishnan@cmonitor.com

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