Pumpkin

Pumpkin

- Jude and Michel Fanton

BOTANICAL NAME: Cucurbita maxima. This translates from Latin to largest (maxima) gourd (cucurbita).

ORIGIN: From the Andean valleys and northern Argentina.

DESCRIPTION: This group is the most vigorous of all the Cucurbits, with very long vines and large round leaves that have hairy stems. The stems of the fruits are round, thick and corky. The seeds are thick, yellowish and have a cellophane-like coating.

The group includes Buttercup, Banana, Big Max, Turban, Hubbards, Queensland Blue and Triamble. They are often called winter squash, because the fruits are harvested fully mature and eaten into the winter months (as opposed to summer squash which is usually eaten young during the growing season).