Having a 'three-some' with your plant

HAND POLLINATING FLOWERS:

By pollinating your pumpkin by hand, you assure a number of things. First, you use pollen from a male pumpkin from a plant you select. It significantly increases the likelihood of successful pollination of the female flower, although nothing is an ironclad guarantee. It will also increase the likelihood of pollinating all segments of the female flower.

Step by step:

1. Time pollination for the day that a female flower opens it's bud. With a little experience, you can usually tell the night before when it is ready to open.
2. Pollinate the plants in the early morning. The female flowers will close later in the day.
3. Select a male flower. Pull off the petals to expose the stamen which contains the pollen.
4. To make sure the pollen is mature. Touch the stamen with your finger and see if tiny yellow specks(the pollen) come off on your hand.
5. Using the stamen itself (some growers opt to transfer it to a soft paint brush). Gently rub the pollen onto the inside stigma of the female flower. Make sure to come in contact with all segments of the stigma. I leave the stamen inside the female flower. It is not necessary.
6. Hand pollination is now complete! Was it good for you?(Ooops. Sorry, but I could not resist!).
7. You should plan on pollinating several fruit on each vine. Later on, you can  select which ones to keep. The best fruit are those with five or six sections to the stigma in the female flower.

Tip: To increase the likelihood of hand pollination by the desired pollen, put a nylon stocking, fine screen, or other cover over the female flower the night before pollination. After pollination, recover the flower. Be careful not to damage the flower, especially the stigma.

- From "Pollination" on  www.pumpkinnook.com