Even though my pumpkins are taking over a garden bed, they are not producing as many flowers as I would like. The plants are looking healthy and great, but the vines are spreading and spreading and well spreading.
This tells me that all the plants energy is being put into growth at the tips of the vines, which is suppressing any other lateral growth where flowers can be produced so that the fruit can follow.
To stop this, the auxin levels at the tip of the vines need to be reduced, and the easiest way to do that is by simply cutting the tips off the vines to suppress the auxins and encourage the cytokinin levels to rise. Cytokinin will encourage the lateral growth, followed by flowers and then hopefully by the fruit.
At least that is one simple solution in the garden!
Enjoy
Peter