NEW RECORD: Minnesota's largest pumpkin weighs in

OTSEGO, Minn. (KMSP) - Minnesota has a new record for the largest pumpkin: 1,918.5 pounds. Chris Qualley, an Otsego resident, planted the record-breaking seed back in April.

Chris said the pumpkin required about 100 gallons per day, a heated pumpkin patch, 20 hours of work each week — and some beginner’s luck. It was the first time Chris grew a giant pumpkin.

“Believe it or not, this is the first year I grew pumpkin, giant pumpkins. Yeah, I went all in,” Chris told Fox 9.

Chris said he learned the secrets of giant-pumpkin growing from the state’s previous record holder, the pair exchanging hundreds of texts.

Chris also grew two “smaller” pumpkins, if you can call a pumpkin where a human can crawl inside it - "small."

Chris said his family has enjoyed his new hobby, as well as his neighbors.

“Most of them think you’re kind of crazy, but it’s crazy cool. Not many have a neighbor that grows giant pumpkins,” said Chris.

So what’s the secret? Genes, apparently.

“If you take it from a people standpoint, if you take a tall person and a fat person, and you’re hoping for a big, tall, fat person,” Chris said. “You take a big pumpkin and a fat pumpkin and you breed them together for a big, fat, tall pumpkin.”

Chris had his pumpkin declared the state’s largest at the Stillwater Harvest Fest. The pumpkin will be on display at the Monster Dash in St. Paul.

“That’s what I love about it; you cannot look at it and not be happy,” Chris said.