Minnesota gardener's pumpkin might break world record

Sept. 30 (UPI) -- A Minnesota gardener is taking aim at a Guinness World Record after spending more than 200 days growing a massive pumpkin.

Travis Gienger of Anoka said the pumpkin he has been growing for months started out as a seed from the current world record pumpkin, a 2,702-pound gourd grown by Stefano Cutrupi in Italy in 2021.

Gienger previously earned his own Guinness World Record when he carved a jack-o'-lantern from a 2,350-pound pumpkin in 2020.

Gienger said he will find out if his pumpkin took the record when it is officially weighed Oct. 10 at the Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in California. The grower's world record jack-o'-lantern was carved from a pumpkin he grew that won the contest in 2020.