Giant Pumpkins Grow in Silicon Valley
Story by Lina Broydo. Photos by Vince Zunino
You can add a new title to the picturesque town of Los Altos Hills, the gem of Silicon Valley. It is usually known as the residential home of the brilliant scientists, engineers, doctors, researchers, innovators, and Nobel Prize winners who have opened technology’s gateway to the world and who are the founders of the most renowned global companies. Now, thanks to the enthusiastic grower Vince Zunino, it’s “The Town of Great Pumpkins.”
While many in my neighborhood of Los Altos Hills grow roses, tomatoes, and persimmons trees, as in my case, Vince grows giant pumpkins. Wow, and they took my breath away! A perpetual winner and frequent competitor in the annual “Half Moon Bay Weigh-Off Competition,” Vince recently took second place in the “Most Beautiful Pumpkin Contest” with a shapely giant pumpkin named “Pliny the Younger” (and my favorite), who could easily serve as the inspiration for the designers of the famous “Pumpkin Carriage” staged by the San Francisco Ballet company’s next “Cinderella” production.
This newly introduced, as I call it, “beauty pageant” competition in Half Moon Bay does not include a “swimsuit” segment, but Vince educated me about how the criteria for winning it works:
“The prettiest pumpkins are hoisted over the crowd, one by one, and the pumpkin that receives the loudest clapping by the crowd wins.” Naming it “Pliny the Younger ‘’ was in honor of a Roman statesman who witnessed and chronicled the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79AD. It is also the name of a world-famous beer made in Healdsburg, CA. And now you know the rest of the story. Cheers!
Displayed proudly in front of his architecturally fascinating French-style home in Los Altos Hills, the three mammoth pumpkins add an unusually unique display of this year’s three winning orange-colored shiny trophies. They lounge majestically on the large patch where Vince grows his impressive giants for all passersby to view and capture in their photo moments.
After retiring from a very successful career in Silicon Valley's high-tech industry, Vince Zunino found a fulfilling and fruitful career growing larger-than-life pumpkins. And that’s why I call it a graduation, not a retirement…
Q & A with Vince Zunino:
Q: Why Silicon Valley?
A: A native of Susanville, CA, I grew up in Carson City, NV, and graduated from the University of Nevada at Reno with a degree in Engineering Science in 1974, during the recession. Silicon Valley was the one place an engineer could find a job. I landed at Memorex and later at Varian, where I worked for 15 years.
Q: When and how did you develop an interest in gardening?
A: My interest in gardening started when I was a kid and spent summers with my grandparents. My grandfather had a huge garden, and I helped him in the garden by pulling weeds and catching gophers (Hey Vince, do you want to help me catch some of the extra irritating gophers in my rose garden?). Gardening became a hobby when I was a teenager and I routinely planted a summer garden in my backyard as I was growing up. When my wife and I moved to Los Altos Hills in 1990, my childhood passion for gardening resulted and developed into a huge backyard garden where I wanted my kids to experience gardening as they grew up. Every year, I would plant a garden with all the “usual suspects,” including tomatoes, squash, corn, peppers, and such, and we had apricot, almond, and plum trees. At first the kids were not much involved in the growing part, just the harvesting part. That would come later with the giant pumpkins.
Q: Does your degree in engineering help you grow the winning champion pumpkins?
A: “Nope”…
Q: Are your kids and grandkids involved in your post-engineering venture?
A: No for grandkids yet. But the kids were very much involved and even picked up a couple of trophies and awards when they were young. But when the nest emptied a few years ago, I kept the hobby going.
Q: What is the size of your pumpkin patch on your property?
A: I have two patches. The front patch is about 1,600 sq. feet. The back patch is a little over 2,000 sq. feet. You need about 200 sq. feet to grow a decent-sized giant pumpkin.
Q: Do you grow anything else on your property?
A: I used to grow all the common garden vegetables. These days, I only grow heirloom tomatoes because they are much tastier than anything you can buy in the store, and my wife insists. She makes tomato soup and salsa to die for with fresh Pink Brandywine Tomatoes. (remember Vince, I like it too)
Q: Do you participate only in the Half Moon Bay Weigh-Offs Competition?
A: I’ve gone to many different Weigh-Offs in California, including Elk Grove, The Nut Tree, and the California Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Salinas.
Q: Name the 3 Mega Champions displayed in front of your home
A: “Ray of Hope” at 1,004 pounds; “Pliny the Younger” at 473 pounds; “Forever Young” at 1,366 pounds.
“Ray of Hope” the svelte 1,004-pound giant pumpkin was on display in front of the Los Altos Hills Town Hall as this year’s participant in the “Guess the Weight of the Giant Pumpkin” annual fun event.
Q: How long have you been creating these giant pumpkin displays in front of your house?
A: My kids have been having giant pumpkin adventures since 1998, when they were little. As they grew up, they had many giant pumpkin adventures each year, and the fruits of the harvest were displayed in our front yard. Our house has become a local landmark known as the “Pumpkin House.”
Q: What’s next?
A: For the last 15 years or so, I have been doing genetic crosses with giant pumpkins, trying to get the perfect shape and color in a giant pumpkin. This year I grew some beautiful controlled crosses. I hope to refine the linage further so my pumpkins are not only real big but also pretty.
Congrats and Good luck, Vince!
Photos courtesy of Vince Zunino
Lina Broydo
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