The best part about October is the crisp, fall weather, even in the Antelope Valley, usually after 5 p.m. It is also a treat to visit the local grocery store or pumpkin patch to choose the perfect pumpkin for carving. No matter your fall passion, carving, creating harvest displays or cooking, there's a perfect pumpkin for the job. There is a method in selecting the best gourd for your fall decorating plans.
For the best selection and the most fun, visit a local farm to pick your pumpkin. Selecting pumpkins can easily become a family tradition when you find a farm that teams pumpkin fields with other autumn favorites, such as a corn maze and hayrides.
There might be a shortage of the latter activities since many of the farms have put a halt on the number of visitors that are allowed on site due to COVID-19 restrictions. Typically, going to an actual pumpkin farm offers more variety and often better quality.
Before you pick a pumpkin, decide how you'll use it.
For carving, look for pumpkins with flat walls – no deep ribs. The variety of Jack O' Lanterns was developed specifically for carving. Avoid tall, oblong pumpkins, which typically have stringy flesh that makes placing precise cuts difficult. White-skinned, orange-fleshed Lumina is also easy to carve.
If you are choosing a pumpkin for cooking, choose pumpkins specified for cooking or baking. These are usually smaller fruits (4-8 pounds) with higher sugar content and denser, more smooth flesh. Common varieties include Small Sugar and New England Pie Pumpkin. Look for newcomers Baby Pam, Ghost Rider and Lumina (white skin).
For seasonal display pumpkins, select a mix of pumpkin sizes and colors. Goosebumps has warty skin that adds a creepy effect to displays. Small pumpkins like Baby Bear (orange), Baby Boo (white) and Orange Cutie (bright orange with light orange ribs) complement larger fruit and are the perfect choice for small hands.
Pumpkin-Picking Checklist
U-pick farms provide the freshest choice. Supermarket pumpkins can be bruised from handling and traveling. When hand-picking a pumpkin, bring gloves and clippers. Leave at least one inch of stem on pumpkins.
When buying pre-picked pumpkins, look for a stem that's solidly attached. Green stems reveal a pumpkin that's just been picked.
Inspect pumpkins for skin damage (punctures, nicks, cuts), soft spots or mold – signs that spoiling will occur quickly.
Check the bottom of the pumpkin during your spot inspection, pressing on it with your thumbs. If it gives a little, the pumpkin isn't fresh.
Set a pumpkin you plan to carve on a flat surface to be sure it sits upright.
Old pumpkins have duller skin. This is fine for a cooking pumpkin, but not ideal for carving or display.
If you plan to carve, choose a design before choosing a pumpkin, especially if you are using stencils. Find a pumpkin shape that suits your design.
Storing and Displaying Your Pumpkin
Never lift a pumpkin by its stem. Once it breaks and falls off, it creates a wound that allows spoiling to occur.
Bring pumpkins indoors if frost is predicted. Cold weather damages pumpkins.
For indoor displays, protect surfaces by placing pumpkins on plastic, a platter or other impervious surface.
To preserve carved pumpkins, spray all surfaces with a pumpkin preservative or soak the carved pumpkin in a bleach solution one teaspoon of bleach per one gallon of water for eight hours. Before display, invert treated pumpkins to allow any liquid residue to drain.
Disposing your pumpkin is just as important as choosing it. Once your pumpkin turns to mush, toss it on your compost pile. Chopping up the pumpkin and burying it in the pile speeds decomposition. Alternatively, bury pieces in a fallow garden area. In warm regions, bury pieces in gardens near growing plants, taking care not to disturb roots.
Cheers to pumpkin season! Written by: Anaverde Magazine
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