Classification and Origin

The word pumpkin is derived from the Greek pepon, Latin pepo. From the various European roots, it has come to mean large or ripe fruit. In 1586, pumpkins were referred to as "melon" or "million" and gourds by the English and "courge" by the French. The word "courge" applies both to pumpkins and squash. The earliest travelers recognized in the pumpkin as a different fruit from the courge, the gourd, or the melon.

Cucurbita about 25 species. All are supposed to be of American origin. Monoecious

1. C. pepo L. Field pumpkin, winter and ornamental gourds, also summer squash (bush type plant).
2. C. moshata Duch. Winter squash and pumpkins.
3. C. mixta Pang. pumpkin and winter squash; found in Mexico and Central America.
4. C. maxima Duch. Autumn and winter squash such as ‘Hubbard’, ‘Banana’ and ‘Boston Marrow’

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Fruits of the Cucurbita genus can be stored up to 6 months under proper conditions. There is some confusion as to the names of pumpkins and squashes. Pumpkin: Edible fruit of Cucurbita genus, utilized when ripe as fodder or for human consumption as in pies. The flesh is somewhat coarse and strong flavored and is usually not served as a vegetable. Squash: Immature fruits of C. pepo, baking cultivars of C. maxima, and those mature fruits of C. pepo, C. moschata, and C. mixta used as table vegetables or pies and as livestock food. The flesh is usually fine grained and mild in flavor; suitable for baking.

Culture

Any good well drained soil will grow pumpkins and squash. A soil of medium texture is best but good yields can be produced on heavy or light soils if they are properly tilled and well fertilized. Pumpkins are moderately tolerant of acid soils and the preferred pH range is 6.0 - 6.8. Direct seeding should not be attempted until the soil has warmed up and is in good condition for germination (usually after May 15).. Use only treated seed. Seed may be planted either in hills or drilled with a planter. Seed should be planted at a depth of 1 inch. If a dry spell is expected or soil moisture is low at the surface, seed can be planted deeper to find moisture, but not lower than 1.75 inches.
Shallow cultivation just enough to control weeds is sufficient for this crop. The system of planting hills or rows and the spacing may be largely be determined by the width of the disc or cultivator that is to be used to cultivate this crop.

Pollination and Fruit Set

Although pumpkin plants produce a profusion of flowers throughout the life of the plant, however, as a rule of thumb, about 2 pumpkins per vine can be expected. The bush or semi-bush types such as Spirit will tend to yield more than the traditional types such as Connecticut Field or Howden. For a row spacing of 5 feet, 3 feet within the row, and a plant population of 2,900 plants per acre, should give about 4000 pumpkins per acre. Miniature pumpkins can easily yield up to 12-15 fruit per plant. With minimal production problems, you can expect 15 to 20 tons per acre. Under good conditions, yields of 25 tons can be expected. A typical range of yield under average growing conditions and fruit set would be 8 -18 tons with an average yield of 13-15 tons per acre.

All pumpkins produce separate male and female flowers on the same plant (monoecious). First male flowers begin to form allowing a sufficient supply of pollen before the appearance of the female flowers. The ratio of male to female flowers is usually 10 to one. Pumpkins are insensitive to photoperiod during the summer. Developing fruit will tend to temporarily reduce the occurrence of female blossoms further down the vine. Female flowers are short-lived and will tend to open in the morning and close a few hours later (10:00 AM to 3:00 PM). The female blossoms usually only last 24 hours and will fall off if not pollinated. In order for pollination to be successful, bees will have to visit the flower several times. For complete pollination, each female blossom should be visited by bees about 15 times, otherwise, small malformed fruit will develop. The more pollination that takes place the more seeds will develop. The production of seeds allows for growth regulating compounds to be formed allowing for greater fruit size The number of flowers on pumpkins, in general, are not overly attractive to pollinating bees. The bees must be in close proximity to the crop. Bees located a half mile from the crop are likely to be intercepted by a more attractive source of pollen. Avoid planting pumpkins too close to forages such as buckwheat, alfalfa and clover since bees are more attractive to these crops and less likely to enter the pumpkin field. In general, one strong hive for every 2 acres should be satisfactory.

Fruit Size. While fruit size is generally controlled by genetics, any factor that limits plant growth will adversely affect fruit size. This includes water, temperature, insects , diseases, pollination, fertility, soil type, plant population, weeds, etc. While irrigation is needed in more valuable crops, when plants are under moisture stress, extra water can help maintain or improve good fruit size.

Blossom-End Rot. It is not uncommon for some fruit to wither, or rot and die soon after flowering. This condition may be due to either to poor pollination or the natural tendency for a plant to abort fruit when it is already supporting a good fruit set. Other factors that contribute to abortion of fruit include overcrowding of plants, prolonged periods of cool and cloudy or rainy weather or drought.

Varieties

Howden

Pro Gold 510

Pro Gold 500

Aspen

Spirit (15 lb average)

Autumn Gold

Jackpot

Jumpin Jack

Lime and fertilizer

Maintain soil pH at 6.5

Apply per acre 75 pounds of actual Nitrogen (N). Apply phosphate (P2O5), and potash (K2O) according to soil test. Broadcast 50% before plowing and if applicable to the situation, band 50% 2 inches below the seed and 2 inches to the side of the row. Sidedress an additional 30-40 pounds of nitrogen per acre just as the vines begin to run. If leaching rains occur, an additional sidedressing may be necessary.

Seeding and Spacing

Rows: 5, 6, or 8 feet apart.
In-row: Hills of 2 or 3 seeds; 2, 3 or 4 feet apart.

Plant seed 0.75-1.25 inches deep, depending on soil texture and moisture.

Seed Required: 2-4 lb/acre for winter squash and pumpkins.

When pumpkin fruit in fields to turn orange early and Halloween is still many weeks away, the suggestion has been made to move Halloween up several weeks. The good news for some growers is that pumpkin demand seems to be earlier than in previous years. In many places, the fall festival decorating season starts right after Labor Day. Here are some pointers on curing, handling and storing pumpkins and winter squash.

Harvest fruit as soon as they are mature and prior to frost. Both squashes and pumpkins should be well matured before harvest and storage. In some years when maturity is late, pumpkin fruit with at least 40-50% of the fruit surface with orange color will continue to ripen. Use care in handling fruits to avoid wounds. Cuts and bruises in the rind are open to decay organisms that may cause a great deal of loss in the short run. Under proper conditions wound areas can heal over by producing cork tissue. The protective tissue seems to develop best at relatively high temperature and in moist atmosphere.

A 10 to 20 day curing period at 80 to 85 degrees and about 80% humidity before storage is often recommended for pumpkins and winter squashes. For pumpkins, many times this can be done in the field, in wind rows, in order to avoid excess handling and costs. At the end of the curing period, the humidity should be lowered to about 70 percent and the temperature kept between 50 to 60 degrees F. It is essential to keep the surface dry during the storage period. Any dry place where as close as possible to the desired storage temperatures can be maintained is suitable for storage of pumpkins and squashes. They keep best when not piled on top of each other but this is not practical for most operations. Try to keep stacks at minimum heights leaving room for good air circulation. Pumpkins will not keep so well as the hard winter squashes but pumpkins in good condition can be held 2 to 3 months without problems.

Pumpkin and Winter Squash - Post Harvest Rots

By Charles Averre and Jonathan Schultheis North Carolina State University

Pumpkins, gourds and other cucurbit fruits with ‘hard skins’ and firm starchy rinds may rot while still on the vine, after harvest, and in storage. In North Carolina these rots are typically caused by fungi such as Fusarium, Alternia, Pythium and the anthracnose, Colletotrichum, and gummy stem blight, Mycosphaerella fungi. On occasion, other fungi and soft rot bacteria may cause rots, especially during hot, wet weather. Infection of fruit usually starts in injuries on young or mature fruit. In the fall, growers often inquire about methods to control these rots. The following suggestions and comments come to mind to minimize rots.

1. Maintain a good fungicide and insecticide spray program during the growing season to manage foliar diseases and insect problems.
2. Avoid blossom-end rot of fruit by fertilizing and liming fields according to recommendations from soil test reports.
3. Do not injure fruit while on the vine.
4. Harvest the fruit when it is mature and the rind is hard but before night temperatures are below 40 degrees F and well before frost or a hard freeze.
5. Harvest fruit when it is dry. Do not handle wet fruit.
6. Harvest fruit by cutting the peduncle, (leave 3-4 inches) with pruning shears or loppers.
7. Harvest, handle and store fruit carefully to avoid injuries.
8. Discard all fruit that is immature, injured or has rots or blemishes. These fruit should not be harvested or stored.
9. Do not pick up freshly harvested fruit by the stem since many will separate from the stem.
10. Do not stack fruit higher than 3 feet.
11. Do not permit harvested or stored fruit to get wet.
12. Usually these fruit are not washed, but if washing is necessary, be sure the water is chlorinated (at least 50 ppm).
13. For better keeping, some growers cure pumpkins for 10 to 20 days at 80-85 degrees F with good ventilation.
14 Harvested fruit should be stored with good ventilation at temperatures from 50 to 55 degrees and relative humidity between 50 to 75%. Refrigeration temperatures (35-40 F) may cause chilling injury and shorten shelf life. High temperature storage will result in excessive loss of weight, color and culinary qualities. High humidities may promote rots.
15. Storage life without significant loss in quality is typically two or three months.