Pumpkins

WHAT ARE PUMPKINS?

Pumpkin is a member of the gourd family. Its fruit is a large round lobe with a thick orange rind and edible flesh.

WHERE ARE PUMPKINS PRODUCED IN BC?

Pumpkins are grown in the Lower Mainland, on Vancouver Island and in the Okanagan Valley.

HOW MANY PUMPKINS DO WE PRODUCE?

BC produces about 3 million pounds of pumpkins a year. These are valued at almost $400,000 per year.

HOW ARE PUMPKINS PRODUCED?

Pumpkin plants like warm weather. Pumpkins are usually seeded in late May after all danger of frost has past. They can take 100 to 120 days to mature. Pumpkins are harvested in the late summer and fall. Once pumpkins have started to turn colour they will continue to do so after being picked. Pumpkins are windrowed in the fields after the leaves have died down and picked up by hand and loaded onto trucks or wagons.

WHAT DOES A PUMPKIN LOOK LIKE WHEN I USE IT?

Pumpkins are used as jack-o-lanterns at Halloween and the flesh is used for pie filling. Seeds are edible and can be roasted, salted and eaten like sunflower seeds.

WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THE PUMPKIN LEAVES THE FARM?

Most of the pumpkins grown in BC are used for Halloween jack-o-lanterns. Many people, especially school children, go out to a U-pick farm to select their own pumpkins. Many farms hold special pumpkin tours and festivals. They even give lessons in carving and painting jack-o-lanterns! Farmers also sell their pumpkins in large bins to stores and roadside stands. Pumpkins keep very well at room temperature if fully ripened and cured.

WHAT CHALLENGES DOES THE PUMPKIN PRODUCER FACE?

The greatest challenge facing pumpkin growers is controlling weeds. Growers in BC are fortunate in that there are very few pests and diseases which afflict pumpkins so they do not need to be sprayed with insecticides or fungicides.

WHO'S INVOLVED IN PRODUCING PUMPKINS?

• Pumpkin grower
• Pickers
• Seed suppliers
• Jack-o-lantern carvers

Interesting Fact About Pumpkins:

Pumpkins originated in southeast North America and were a staple food for Indians for thousands of years.

Contacts and other resources:

 

BCMAL - Field Vegetable Information

Direct Marketing Associations/Guides:

   Fraser Valley

   Vancouver Island

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