My husband grows Big Max pumpkins. That's what we have this year. In the past, he's grown Atlantic Giants, too. When the pumpkins are still small, he carefully stands them up, and as they grow bigger, he carefully lifts up the vine from the top so the pumpkin has more room to grow. So far so good that none of the vines have broken off. We mulch the pumpkin patch with old hay before the vines get out of hand, so we haven't had a problem with rot. Not that it would be a problem this year. We live in west central Wisconsin, and it is very hot and very dry this year. Over the past month, we've gotten a half inch of rain total.
Good luck with your pumpkins!
LeAnn
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