From Jack O’ Lantern to Pie We Love our Pumpkins
We grow lots of variety of pumpkins at our house each year. Initially I used them to cover up bare ground until I had decided what I want to plant in the area. The big leaves of the pumpkins shaded out the weeds and ended up creating lots of giant pumpkins for the neighborhood kids to pick. This year we made a hoop house to grow our pumpkins on, which got them off the ground and gave us more space for other plants.
We have large rock retaining walls around our house so big and little pumpkins cascade off the walls. It is really fun to see the “waterfall” of pumpkins in the fall along our property edge.
We share our pumpkins with friends, neighbors and nature. Whatever we did not use for pies, soups and stews, puppy treats, chicken food and more were put out in open spaces where deer gather to help them though the winter.
The pumpkins last a long time in the cold room in our basement. We were able to store them well into the winter. When I am ready to process the pumpkins for food I cut them open, scoop out the seeds (which I save to roast) then I bake the pumpkins cut up into pieces in the oven. Next I scoop out the “meat”, compost the skins and puree the pumpkin in a food processor. Once it is smooth I put the pureed pumpkin in a colander lined with cheesecloth and let as much liquid drain out as possible for 4 or 5 hours. Once drained the pumpkin puree is ready for what ever recipe you want to make!
This will be my last post for Country Gardens Nursery, if you have questions or want to contact me, use janetsocean@gmail.com. Happy Gardening! - Janet Johnson
