‘King Kong’ the giant pumpkin grows on in Kitsilano

A Kitsilano family is growing a giant pumpkin in their front yard, and say they’re hoping King Kong will be a strong competitor in a contest this weekend.

This giant pumpkin has been growing at Collingwood Street and West 1st Avenue since the seed was planted in May, and according to Joey King and his wife, it grew up to 40 lbs higher every single day this summer.

“People ask if it’s fake, if it’s just a decoration, it doesn’t seem like something that belongs in the yard, and really it isn’t – you see them more often in much larger spaces,” he said.

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King says — aside from spending 45 minutes to an hour watering it daily as it grew — taking care of a giant pumpkin isn’t that different from other vine crops.

“This year we sourced our seeds from the United States so we did more research and we focused on genetics. Most people are like, oh so crazy how’d the pumpkin get so big? It’s mostly you use the seed of a giant pumpkin and you get a giant pumpkin,” he said.

Meanwhile, Kitsilano residents tell CityNews the sheer size of King Kong the pumpkin is surprising.

“I have never seen anything that big before,” one said.

“It’s kind of overwhelming, really,” another added.

“I think it’s amazing!”

The Kings will be entering King Kong in B.C.’s annual Giant Pumpkin Weigh-Off event at a Langley farm on Saturday.

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The event’s master of ceremonies says it’s been a huge event for 20 years and people — who aren’t farmers — growing sizable pumpkins in their front or backyards is becoming more common.

“We have people coming all the way from the island, we have a few growers from Pemberton, Maple Ridge, Hope, and Agassi as well… It’s pretty fun to get a 500-600 lb pumpkin in your front yard — you just become the talk of the town,” Jeff Pelletier explained.

The Kings are also running a guess-the-weight contest for neighbours walking by, who’ve pitched in $5 each into the pot. Whoever guesses it correctly wins it all.

The couple hopes King Kong will weigh over 500 lbs, but King says the orange behemoth still makes for great lawn decor even if it doesn’t win a prize.

“We’ll carve it and just make a really big jack-o-lantern for Halloween.”