Category: All Things Pumpkin

“Pumpkin seeds can be started indoors in early May,” Erwin Goldstein wrote in his column for the Norwich Bulletin. “Or we can plant them outdoors in late May.”

In areas where the ground is still cold in late May, he recommends warming the soil first by placing black plastic over the bed for a few days.

And, if you live in an area where woodchucks also live – watch out for them! Woodchucks “enjoy pumpkins,” he says.

For more advice, visit www.norwichbulletin.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060727/LIFESTYLE/607270307/1024.

In July, Half Moon Bay in California unanimously appointed an award-winning pumpkin farmer to City Council.

“Good leaders step up when they’re needed and I’ll find out if I have something to offer,” John Muller, owner of Farmer John’s Pumpkin Farm and Daylight Farms, told the San Mateo Daily Journal.

I just think that’s cool. For more information about Farmer John’s story, visit www.smdailyjournal.com/article_preview.php?id=61478.

Photo: Farmer John Muller, from Half Moon Bay, Calif., holds his 127-pound square Atlantic Giant that won the Most Beautiful Pumpkin division in the annual Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay. (Source: photos.signonsandiego.com/gallery1.5/index.php.)

The Half Moon Bay Art & Pumpkin Festival has launched a nation-wide art contest to find the perfect poster for the 2007 festival.

“The contest will open up a universe of creative possibilities,” said Cameron Palmer, chair of the Half Moon Bay Beautification Committee.

Not only that, but now the Coastal Arts League (CAL) can play a more integral role in the festival.

In the past, CAL hasn’t played much of a role in the event. “This is a marriage of two nonprofits,” said Shirley Kellicutt, CAL member and the person who came up with the idea for the poster. “We’re putting art into the Art & Pumpkin Festival.”

The winner of the contest will receive $1,000 and their work will be used for the 2007 festival and promotional material. A second place prize of $500, third place prize of $250 and fourth and fifth place prizes of $125 each, will also be awarded.

Kellicut advices that entries should have these four key characteristics:

• Be something that everyone can identify with,
• Have broad appeal,
• Capture the “orange orb essence” of the festival, and
• Be applicable to a variety of uses beyond a poster, such as T-shirts, wine glasses, etc.

In addition, she advise, “be prepared for lots of personal recognition,” if you win the contest.

For more information, including guidelines and rules, visit www.coastalartsleague.com/Pumpkin_Festival_Poster_Contest.htm

Half Moon Bay is beach town in Northern California known for its arts, surf and wildlife. It is about 25 miles south of San Francisco and 45 miles north of Santa Cruz, California.

Even though pumpkins are commonly associated with autumn, they are really warm-season plants. Pumpkin seeds cannot germinate in cold soil, and seedlings are easily injured by frost. So, the best time to plant your pumpkin, at least in the United States, is from late May to early July depending on your location. If you want to use them for Halloween, don’t plant them too early — otherwise the fruit may soften and rot before you are ready to use them.

Bees are necessary for pollinating pumpkins, so be careful with insecticides. If you use them, apply only in late afternoon or early evening when the blossoms have closed for the day and bees are no longer visiting the blossoms. Since new blossoms open each day and bees only alight upon open blossoms, they should be safe from contact with any potentially deadly sprays.

Don’t be worried if your plant’s first blossoms don’t develop into fruit. It is common in cucurbits (the family to which pumpkins belong) to have first blossoms that are male. These flowers attract the bees and help establish their route to the blooming vine. Then, once the female flowers bloom, the bees will already be regular visitors to the vine and will pollinate them.

For more information on growing your own pumpkins, check out:

www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/veggies/pumpkin1.html
www.organicgardening.com/feature/0,7518,s-2-28-274,00.html
www.sadako.com/pumpkin/growing.html
www.pumpkinnook.com/growing.htm

Or use “grow pumpkins” as key words in your favorite search engine.

If you love pumpkins, you might want to visit New Hampshire. On April 20, 2006, the state’s Senate approved HB 1111, which designated the pumpkin as the official New Hampshire state fruit. Governor John Lynch signed the bill into law during a ceremony held the first weekend of May.

Apparently, third and fourth graders at the Wells Memorial Elementary School in Harrisville created the bill, learning about civics in the process. The “class took on a bill head on and pushed it the entire way through,” said . Sen. Bob Flanders (R-Antrim), whose district includes Harrisville. “They ran into staunch opposition, those [who] favored the apple and blueberry, and they pressed on nevertheless.”

Now, just in case you are wondering, pumpkins are, biologically speaking, fruits. However, due to legal mumbo jumbo, they are classified as vegetables, just like tomatoes.

Miniature pumpkins are often seen at the super market with faces painted upon them. Their small size and bright orange color make them perfect for autumn decorating. Combined with exotic corn and small gourds, they make a lovely harvest center or mantle piece. With a quarter-sized hole scooped out of the top, they make great candle holders. But did you know they can also make great serving dishes?

First, select fresh pumpkins that are about three to four inches in diameter. You want them big enough to hold a decent sized serving. Always buy more than you think you’ll need, especially if you haven’t worked with them before. You want extras in case you goof up while cutting them, and you’ll want some extra dishes incase someone wants seconds or to take a sample of your creation home!

Wash of the pumpkins and let them dry.

Cut the top off, as you would for a jack-o-lantern, and scoop out the seeds and pulp. (Keep the lids intact, you may want to use them later.) It is also a good idea to scoop out some of the meat, as well. But don’t over do it – you need the walls of the pumpkin to be thick enough that the sides don’t sag.

Depending on the recipe you’re using, you’ll either want to bake the mini pumpkins before or after stuffing them. If you are baking them before, place the scooped out pumpkins and their lids in a baking dish with about an inch of water. Bake for 30 minutes at 350°F. Don’t cook them for as long as you would to make puree – you want them to be firm to act as a dish.

The options for what you can stuff into your little pumpkin dishes are many. Here are some suggestions:

• Pumpkin pudding
• Corn pudding
• Sautéed vegetables
• Corn bread stuffing
• Wild rice stuffing
• Apple sauce (hot or cold)
• Pumpkin soup
• Corn chowder
• Brightly colored Jell-O
• Custard
• Ice cream

Use your imagination and enjoy!