Northern Ontario man wins competition for largest pumpkin in the province

Jeff Warner has been growing giant pumpkins for years, and now he can say he has Ontario's biggest pumpkin this season.

Warner, who is from Englehart in northern Ontario, won the giant pumpkin competition at Pumpkinfest, in Port Elgin, with a 892-kilogram gourd – or 1,966 pounds. 

"It's about six feet wide and makes most tractors tip over," he said.

Warner credits a warm, sunny summer and the right seed for his giant pumpkin.

He says he bought several giant pumpkin seeds at online auctions throughout the winter. He planted them all and waited to see which one had the most potential to become an award-winning giant.

"I just got out there a little more this year," he said. "Maybe I got the right seed and this was finally sort of my turn."

Although he has this year's crown for largest pumpkin in Ontario, Warner says he's still looking to grow a rare pumpkin that exceeds 2,000 pounds., or roughly 907 kilograms.

Don Crews, of Lloydminster, Alta., holds the record for the largest pumpkin ever grown in Canada. His giant pumpkin measured in at 2,537 pounds, or 1,150 kilograms.