A PAIR of twins have set a new record for the UK's biggest pumpkin with a gourd that weighs as much as a Fiat 500.
Pumpkin lovers Ian and Stuart Paton broke their own record with their 2,656lbs monster squash (1,205kg).
The twin's new specimen is 63lbs heavier than the pumpkin they grew in 2020 that weighed in at 2,593lbs.
Ian and Stuart, 61, missed out on achieving a new world record by just 47lbs.
But the brothers from Lymington still have one "monster" left in the patch that will be weighed next week.
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Photographs of the their pumpkin show how enormous it is, with Ian's smiley twin granddaughters Polly and Etta, both one, perched on top of it.
The pair spend at least six hours a day tending to the squash.
The twins weighed their giant gourd at Wargrave Nursery, Reading, where they found out that they had achieved a new UK record.
They grow several large pumpkins to give themselves the best chance possible and last week suffered a setback when they lost their biggest one.
The brothers were anxious they might miss out on the record after their largest fruit developed a 'pin hole' in its cavity, Ian said.
The pair still hope to claim the world record - set in 2021 by Tuscan farmer Stefano Cutrupi who grew a 2,703lbs pumpkin after 14 years of trying.
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Ian said: "We're very happy to have beaten our UK record.
"We've put a lot of work in.
"This will probably be the biggest pumpkin in the world this year.
"Although we do have another monster that is going to be weighed at the weekend which will be in with a chance of winning the world record.
"I've got no intention of stopping until the world record is back in the UK."
The twins' other 'monster' will be weighed at Sunnyfields, Totton next weekend.
Ian thinks his other pumpkin will be 'right up in the mix' for the world record but admits it is 'always difficult to tell' when it comes to weight.
As there are only two pumpkin events in the UK, the brothers often have to drive one out to Europe for official weighing.
He added: "My brother's gone out there with a pumpkin to Spain.
"It's been on a pallet on the back of an open trailer. There will have been lots of photos taken I'm sure - it's not very often you see a pumpkin like that.
"Our competition is all over Europe, all over the world, literally."
The twins' pumpkins need around 300 litres of water a day to achieve their enormous size.
Luckily, the drought and resultant hosepipe ban had little impact on the pumpkin growth this year, as the pair recycle water from 'run-off lakes' from watering commercial plants they grow for the likes of Homebase, Waitrose and Marks & Spencer.
Asked if the brothers bother with 'normal' size pumpkins, Ian joked: "No, go big, or go home."
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