Pumpkins for many purposes

Pumpkins grow in a south-
facing bed with strawberries
(Photo credit Carl Wilson)

Pumpkins, Cucurbita pepo, are easy to grow if you have room. A 10 to 15 foot vine spread is typical although there are a few bush type varieties (see Wee-B-Little below). Plant from transplants as soon as the weather is warm because they require 90 to 120 days to harvest.

In the photo a home entry walkway is bordered with a bed used to grow strawberries in early summer and pumpkins for fall. A few tulips come through in spring to add some color to this garden. Talk about making good use of garden space for many purposes!

You may want to grow pumpkins for one or many uses including decoration, cooking and baking. Fruit size may also be important to you. Know that there are pumpkins to fit most any requirement.

Baby Bear 

Baby Bear is a small, 3.5 to 5.5 inch pumpkin weighing in at 1.5 to 2 pounds. It is just the right size to use for decoration and sweet so it can be used for pie fillings.

Hijinks

Hijinks is slightly larger at 7.5 inch diameter and 7 to 9 pounds. It's blocky round shape makes it ideal for carving.

Cinderella's Carriage

The pink-red color of Cinderella's Carriage variety will fulfill the fairy-tale dreams of any child. Vines grow flat fruit up to 18 inches round and weighing up to 20 pounds.  The yellow flesh is mildly sweet and ideal for soups and baking.

Pepitas

Pepitas is a new 2016 twist in pumpkins with it's yellow-orange fruit striped with green. Twelve inch round fruit weigh in at about 12 pounds. The hulless seeds can be slow roasted for nutritious snacks and yellow flesh eaten or baked.

Wee-B-Little

Finally, if you have 6 to 8 feet of space try growing Wee-B-Little, a bush type. Fruit is 3.5 inch in diameter and skin a smooth, deep orange. It can be used for decoration, crafts and makes a tasty vegetable when baked as a mature winter squash.

All five varieties mentioned are All-America Selections winners that should grow well in the Intermountain West.

Photo credit - All-America Selections unless noted

Pumpkin hints

Many pumpkins seemed to mature early this year due to September heat. Pumpkins should be kept on the vines as long as possible IF the vines are healthy. If vines go down due to powdery mildew or frost, cut the handles from the vine to reduce shrinkage. This also avoids sunscald. Use hand pruners or long handled loppers.

Although we have had an extended period of warm weather, it will undoubtedly end soon. Pumpkins exposed to freezing conditions don’t store well. They should be harvested and brought indoors. You may have already brought them inside if they turned a solid orange and the rind was hard – a good move.

As long as pumpkins are starting to turn color, they will ripen and color off the vine. Recommended curing conditions are seventy degree days and sixty degree F nights. The area should be shaded, dry and well-ventilated. Remember that pumpkins for decoration are used through Thanksgiving so fruit late to color will still be useful. Cooking types can be cooked and frozen for later use.

Should you save seed from a particularly attractive pumpkin? Probably not since pumpkins cross readily with summer squash. Bees can carry pollen from as much as a mile away even if you don’t grow summer squash in your garden. Pumpkins don’t cross with fall squash.

Keep in mind that the pumpkins used for pies and eating, called sugar or pie pumpkins, have less water and better flavor than the strigy, Jack-o-lantern types. Most are a different species (Cucurbita moschata) as opposed to the decorative carving Jack-o-lantern varieties which are Cucurbita pepo. Grow different types of pumpkins for different purposes.

Check this “Pumpkin Eater” article by Shirley Perryman in the Food Science and Human Nutrition Department at Colorado State University for ideas about some novel uses of pumpkins and their health benefits.

What experiences did you have with growing pumpkins this year?

Photo credit: Pumpkin display, Pumpkins in garden, Just turning pumpkins harvested, Same green pumpkins ripened 3 weeks later - All Carl Wilson

Winter squash and pumpkin fun

As summer moves into fall, peek in your neighbor’s gardens and see what type of winter squash and pumpkins they’re growing. They are often standouts for their color and size. I ran into this pumpkin and Turks turban squash arbor (photo) that looked like a space saver. Grow vines vertical rather than horizontal! The centuries old, flat, French “Cinderella” pumpkins (Rouge vif d'Etampes) are also fun (see photo). Now is probably the time to remove any new fruit set on winter squash and pumpkins so existing fruit can mature.

These vines need lots of space to have the many leaves needed to produce enough energy to grow these large fruit and generally require 90 to 120 days to grow. The gardener in this photo is fighting to keep her window wells from being covered by a pumpkin vine. Certain winter squash do come in bush or semi-bush varieties (acorn, butternut, delicata). Vine tips can be pinched to keep vines in bounds but will limit production and quality. It’s better to find a spot with room such as this streetside gardener (photo).

Winter squash differs from summer squash in that it is generally harvested and eaten in the mature fruit stage. Vegetable spaghetti (photo) is probably an exception often being harvested in a semi-mature stage (harvest when the skin turns from green to buff). Pick most winter squash when the skin has hardened into a tough rind not easily dented with light fingernail pressure. The seeds within should have matured unlike the young tender seeds in summer squash. When ripened to maturity, fruits of most varieties can be stored for use throughout the winter.

Winter squash are harvested in September or October, before heavy frosts. Carefully cut squash from the vines, leaving two inches of the often-woody stem attached if possible. Avoid cuts and bruises to the fruit when handling. Fruits that aren’t fully mature, are injured, have had their stems knocked off, or have been subjected to heavy frost won’t keep. Use as soon as possible or compost (watch for seedlings in the compost).

Squash are best stored dry at a temperature between 50 and 55°F. Don’t pile squash more than two fruits deep. Single layers that don’t touch prevent rots from spreading through fruit.

Don’t forget that squash and pumpkin seeds can be dried in a dehydrator or roasted for a healthy snack. When scooping out seeds to use the fruit, wash clinging fibers from the seed and dry or roast.

Photo credits: Squash arbor, Turks turban squash, Cinderella pumpkin, Pumpkin vines over window well, streetside pumpkin garden, vegetable spaghetti squash – Carl Wilson