Parade of the Pumpkins

Traditional, Heirlooms and New Hybrids Converge at Halloween

Oct 26, 2008 Arlene Marturano

This Halloween the selection of pumpkins is as varied as the trick or treaters' costumes. From creepy to charismatic, there is a pumpkin for every persona.

The traditional large ribbed orange pumpkin with thick sturdy stem remains a popular pick for jack o’ lanterns. Two varieties, the Connecticut field and Howden, have defined Halloween pumpkins for nearly forty years.

Connecticut field is one of the oldest pumpkins in existence. Native American cultivated them before Europeans arrived.

In the 1970s John Howden of Massachusetts introduced an improved cultivar of Connecticut field, the ‘Howden’ pumpkin. The somewhat egg-shaped cultivar weighing 20 to 30 pounds became a classic orange jack o’ lantern.

The resurgence of interest in heirlooms and introduction of new hybrid varieties bring competition to tradition by adding more colors, shapes, sizes, textures, flavors and expanded opportunities for decorating, crafting and cooking with pumpkins.

Super Freak™series

Siegers Seed Company has introduced the Super Freak™ series of pumpkin with warty growths on the orange skin. Two new kids on the block, Knucklehead and Goose Bumps, were bred to look creepy. They can be carved or used in decorative displays.

Cinderella Pumpkins

A Cinderella variety of pumpkin originating in the 1880s in France, Rouge Vif D’Etampes, is shaped like Cinderella’s carriage. The reddish orange skin and deep ribs makes an ideal ornamental. In France Cinderella is the choice for making pumpkin soup. Fairytale pumpkins follow in the footsteps of Cinderella but are even more deeply ribbed.

Ghost Pumpkins

The ghost pumpkin is a decorator’s dream. Its smooth porcelain doll patina takes easily to paints. The white exterior and orange interior create an awesome jack-o-lantern. The uncarved white doorstep decorations at Halloween can transition to make handsome holiday decorations with red ribbons and greenery in December.

Cheese Pumpkins

Long Island cheese pumpkins resemble flattened wheels of cheddar. Their color is butternut like their close squash cousins. A smooth skin, stringless interior, and sweet flesh are characteristics prized by cooks.

Dickinson Pumpkins

Libby’s® popular canned pumpkin puree comes from the same pumpkin species as the cheese pumpkins, C. moschata, but a different crème colored cultivar, ‘Dickinson.’

Libby’s® grow acres of the very productive pumpkin in Morton, Illinois. Home gardeners may obtain seeds for the excellent baking pumpkin through Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah, Iowa.

Jarrahdale Pumpkins

Jarrahdale pumpkins are native to Australia and New Zealand. The beautiful blue-green or grey-green finish of the drum-shaped fruit makes them ideal for decorating. The sweet deep orange stringless flesh gives a nutty flavor to breads and muffins.

Whatever variety of pumpkin arrives at your home, yours will add pizzazz to the parade of pumpkins this fall.

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