Massachusetts man grows record-breaking 470.5-pound gourd

Oct. 21 (UPI) -- A Massachusetts man said a prize item from his garden could be headed for the Guinness Book of World Records after he grew a 470.5-pound bushel gourd.

Steve Connolly, who has been growing giant pumpkins for about 30 years and started working on growing massive bushel gourds for about four years, said his 470.5-pound behemoth is being submitted to Guinness as a new world record.

The current record holder is a 384-pound, 8-ounce gourd grown in Tennessee in 2018.

"Well for me, it's always a goal to grow the biggest and the best in all the land," Connolly told the Boston Globe.

Connolly said the key to growing giant gourds is extra attention

"I take 600-square-feet of land, and I let just one gourd grow," he said. "It really gives these things the best chance in the world to succeed."

The gourd is currently on display at Ward's Berry Farm in Sharon.