From Jack O’ Lanterns and pumpkin pie to Cinderella and Camarão na moranga, pumpkins and winter squash have caught the attention of cooks, gardeners, and everyday folk worldwide. At SESE, we love the stories and flavors that come with heirloom pumpkins and winter squash. In honor of the season, we’ve decided to take a deep dive into these incredible plants including bits of history, folklore, and culinary use.

Pumpkin Versus Winter Squash

What’s the difference between pumpkin and winter squash? Are they the same species? 

All winter squash and pumpkins are members of the Cucurbita genus, which is Latin for “gourd.” Depending on who you talk to, there are 13 to 30 species within this genus. The main ones we talk about are Curcurbita pepo, C. maxima, C. moschata, and C. mixta.

Pumpkins are generally what we call pumpkin-shaped winter squash, though they do come in many different shapes and sizes. While there are “pumpkins” in several of these species, people generally carve Curcurbita pepo pumpkins for Halloween.

Curcurbita pepo contains delicata winter squash, most summer squash and zucchini cultivars, and classic autumn pumpkins like the Connecticut Field Pumpkin and Small Sugar Pumpkin. These squashes tend to be more susceptible to vine borer damage, and the winter squashes and pumpkins don’t have a very long storage life. However, they sweeten up faster.

C. maxima contains many large, hard-shelled varieties that are great for storage, such as the Big Max Pumpkin, Buttercup, Rouge Vif d’Etampes (Cinderella) Pumpkin, and Candy Roaster varieties. They have delicate flesh and excellent flavor but perform best where the nights are cool and are somewhat susceptible to wilt.

C. moschata includes many long-keeping favorites, such as Magic Cushaw, Seminole Pumpkin, Old Fashioned Tenessee, and Butternut varieties. These varieties tend to have sweet, often fragrant flesh ideal for baking. They also have good resistance to vine borers and cucumber beetles but perform best in areas where nighttime temperatures remain above 60°F.

C. mixta (Also known as C. argyrosperma) tends to have coarser, less sweet flesh. They’re traditional southern crops that have fallen out of favor. Their large seeds are often ideal for roasting, and their flesh is excellent in savory dishes. We carry two varieties, Green-Striped Cushaw and Illinois (White Crookneck Pumpkin). Like moschata varieties, these have excellent resistance to vine borers and cucumber beetles. They also tolerate drought well.

The Origins of Winter Squash

So, where are these species from? By Earth’s standards, the Cucurbita genus is relatively new on the scene, dating back to the Holocene, a geological period that began roughly 11,700 years ago. Scientists believe that in the wild, they likely originated in what’s now southern Mexico, south into South America, and North into what’s now the Southwestern United States. During the Holocene, megafauna ate the fruits and distributed the seeds.

Humans were quick to see the benefits of these species, and there’s evidence that Native Americans domesticated Cucurbita species at least 8,000 years ago, with different groups growing different species from southern Canada down through western South America.

C. pepo is particularly widespread, and the domesticated cultivars like yellow crooknecks, pumpkins, and scallops are likely ancient. They were probably domesticated in several times and places. Native people have grown C. pepo in Oaxaca, Mexico, for 8,000 to 10,000 years and in the United States for at least 4,000 years.

C. maxima was less widespread. These varieties have been cultivated for at least 4,000 years in South America and were likely first domesticated in Argentina or Uruguay. Interestingly, it appears these varieties weren’t present in North America until the 16th century, although Native Americans quickly adapted them along with their C. pepo varieties.

C. moschata has been more challenging for scientists to pin down. It may have originated in many regions of Central or South America, though they know that it has been present in Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and Peru for 4,000 to 6,000 years. Native Americans were growing one of our favorite C. moschata varieties, the Seminole Pumpkin, at the time of European contact.

C. argyrosperma is also less widespread than C. Pepo. The wild form grows from Mexico south to Nicaragua. Native Americans spread this species from the Southwestern United States south to Panama, likely focusing on them for their large seeds, which are high in protein and oil. 

Over the years, folks have continued cultivating winter squash varieties and incorporating them into their own culture and cuisine worldwide. However, all of the groundwork and many of the varieties we still know and love, like Connecticut Field Pumpkins, Yellow Crookneck Summer Squash, and Seminole pumpkins, began with native farmers. 

Fairytales & Traditions

It’s easy to see how these big, colorful crops tend to catch the imagination. It’s hard to imagine at the beginning of the season how much food a few plants can produce. Native Americans used them as a staple crop, often drying them in mats or spirals for winter. 

They also used them as medicine. Reportedly, the Cherokee and Menominee used squash seeds as a diuretic, the Catawba chewed them for kidney issues, and the Aztecs used them to treat worms. The Mayans also used pumpkin juice as a burn salve. 

European colonists and explorers quickly added pumpkins and squash to their gardens and practices. They also sent seeds back to the old world, where the large, colorful squashes were incorporated into local cuisine and medicine. 

In many cultures in the Americas and abroad, pumpkins and winter squash were associated with fertility and abundance, perhaps because of their productive nature. 

Though it’s impossible to pinpoint the fascination with pumpkins, it’s still present in today’s stories and legends. Especially during autumn, you may run into these crops in stories like Cinderella, The Legend of Sleep Hollow, The Marvelous Land of Oz, and The Great Pumpkin.

Jack O’ Lanterns

So when did we start carving them, and why? The tradition begins in Ireland and Scotland with the Celtic festival of Samhain. Like Halloween, it marked the beginning of the colder months and was usually celebrated on November 1st. People believed that on Samhain, the world of the gods was visible to humans and that souls that had died in the previous year would move onto the otherworld while some would return to visit their old homes.

Samhain was also associated with the tale of Stingy Jack. He was a drunken miser that loved to play mean tricks on his family and friends. One day, he also plays a trick on the devil. When Jack eventually passed, both god and the devil turned him away. He was sentenced to roam the earth for eternity.

In Ireland, folks began carving faces into turnips to Jack’s wandering soul away. When Irish and Scottish colonists made their start in North America, they found a perfect turnip substitute, the pumpkin. Pumpkins are much easier to carve and offer a charming orange glow. It’s no wonder they’ve stuck around!

Pumpkin and Winter Squash Recipes Worldwide

In the United States, we often focus on pumpkin and winter squash for sweet, seasonal dishes like pumpkin pie, pumpkin spice lattes, and other baked goods. However, pumpkins and winter squash are wonderful in a wide variety of recipes from around the world. Consider trying a few of these with your harvest to mix things up a bit:

• Camarão na Moranga (Brazilian Shrimp Stuffed Pumpkin) from Olivia’s Cuisine
• Nhopi (Pumpkin Porridge from Zimbabwe) from Eat Well Abi
• Mexican Calabaza en tacha (Candied Pumpkin for Día de Muertos celebrations) from Mexico in My Kitchen
• Kabocha Dango with Mitarashi Glaze (Japanese Pumpkin Recipe) from Chef JA Cooks
• Olad’i iz Tykvy (Russian Pumpkin Pancakes) from Tara’s Multicultural Table
• Burmese Pumpkin Curry with Mint & Tamarind from Krumpli
• Indian Kaddu ka Halwa from Swasthi’s Recipes
• Ghapama (Armenian Stuffed Pumpkin) from The Armenian Kitchen

You’ll find carrots on nearly any guide to fall gardening or storage crops. When managed, harvested, and stored correctly, carrots can have a great storage life, staying cool and crisp for months. Enjoy carrots well into the winter with these harvest and storage tips.  

Best Storage Carrots

While you can store any carrot, not all varieties are well suited to long-term storage. Some varieties were bred with long-term storage in mind. At SESE, we carry a few heirlooms that were specifically bred for root cellar storage at a time when most people still relied on homegrown produce. If you want to store carrots for a long period, we recommend Danvers 126, Oxheart, Yellowstone, or Purple Dragon.

When to Harvest Carrots

Small carrots are often ideal for salads and fresh eating, but you want well-developed carrots for storage. The tips should be starting to fill out and become more blunt. It is essential to get them seeded on time. Using shade cloth to cool the soil can help you get them growing even if it’s still hot.

Plan and plant so that you will be able to harvest fully developed carrots around your first frost date. Before harvesting your bed, pull a few carrots to check on their size and flavor, as days to maturity can vary with growing conditions. Fall brings shorter day lengths, so sometimes carrots that normally take 70 days to reach maturity could take as much as 100 days. 

Fall storage carrots are often tastiest when harvested after a few light frosts, but heavy frosts can damage any exposed shoulders. According to the National Weather Service, light frosts occur when temperatures dip to around 34°F (-1.1°C), and hard frosts occur when temperatures dip below 28°F (-2.2°C).

Watch the forecasts and try to hit your ideal storage window. Pull them before a hard frost when they’re still easy to dig.

Harvest & Preparation

Stop watering a few days before harvesting to let the soil dry out a bit. Moist soil is fine; you just don’t want to deal with overly wet soil.

If possible, harvest your carrots on a cool, cloudy fall day. The hot sun hitting your roots as you harvest them can shorten their storage life.

To avoid breaking your carrots, especially in heavy clay soil, gently lift them from the bed with a broad fork or garden fork.

Gently shake or brush off any excess dirt. 

Cut the green tops off about 1/4 to 1/2 inch above the shoulders of each carrot.

Avoid cutting root hairs or trimming the roots, as cuts can cause decay.

Set aside any cracked or damaged roots for immediate use and organize roots by size.

How to Store Carrots

Before storing your carrots, you can wash them if desired. They must be handled gently to avoid any damage. If you decide to wash them, you must also allow them to air dry before storage. Washing ahead of time means they’re ready to go when you need them, but it isn’t required. 

Carrots can be stored for several months as long as they are mature, undamaged roots that you keep in the proper conditions. Ideal storage conditions include a temperature range of 32–38°F (0–3°C) and a relative humidity of 98%. This can be tough to achieve on a home scale but the closer you get, the longer your carrots will keep.

Smaller roots tend to start rotting more quickly, so it’s best to roughly organize your carrots by size and use up the smallest first. Check all your carrots every one to two weeks and remove and use or compost any that are starting to show signs of decay.

Storing Carrots in the Fridge

You can store carrots in the fridge if you’re working on a small scale. Place them in plastic bags in single layers and lay them in your crisper drawer.

Storing Carrots in a Basement or Root Cellar

A root cellar or basement is a traditional option, offering high humidity and cool temperatures. To store your carrots in a cellar, you’ll need sand and a container. This method allows you to store more carrots than in the fridge.

When finished, your containers will be extremely heavy, so it’s best to put them in place first, especially if they’re large. Plastic totes or wax-lined cardboard boxes work well for this. 

Place a layer of moist sand in your container, followed by a single layer of carrots. Then, cover the carrots with a layer of sand, repeating this process until your container is full and you have a layer of moist sand over the top.

Storing Carrots in the Ground

Many oldtimers also left their carrots in the ground and you can do the same. Keep in mind that if temperatures are still warm in your area, carrots can continue to mature and become woody, so this may not work well everywhere.

In cooler areas, your carrots may be fine for several months. We recommend covering the tops of the carrots with a thick layer. 

In areas with cold winters where the ground freezes, cover carrots with 12 to 18 inches of mulch like old hay or leaves. Push it aside to harvest. Row cover or low tunnels over the mulched-in carrot beds can offer additional protection. 

Keeping carrots in the ground all winter gives you a fresh supply of produce and can allow you to harvest seed next spring.

Canning or Freezing Carrots

A final option is to can or blanch and freeze your carrots. It’s not the same as having fresh carrots, but crisp storage carrots generally hold their texture and flavor quite well in both the freezing and canning process. 

Keep in mind that carrots are a low-acid food, so to water bath can them, you’ll need to pickle them. If you want to can plain carrots, you’ll need to use a pressure canner. The National Center for Home Food Preservation offers guidance on pressure canning carrots.

 

Carrots are an excellent storage crop that can last for months when cared for properly. Handle your carrots with care and follow these tips to enjoy a steady supply of fresh carrots this winter. 

Season extension is a fundamental element of small vegetable farms across the nation, but we’re beginning to see it more and more in backyard gardens and homesteads, too! Hoophouses, high tunnels, low tunnels, row covers, cold frames, and mulches can offer amazing benefits no matter your growing scale. 

In much of the Southeast, hot summers limit the production of cool-weather crops like kale, spinach, pak choi, cauliflower, and spring radishes. Using season extension can allow you to grow more of these crops during the fall, winter, and spring.

Growing on these “off-seasons” comes with other benefits, too. Crops growing in these cooler seasons may struggle less with pests, diseases, and drought. It can also be more enjoyable for you. Instead of working in the garden on muggy summer mornings when it’s 80°F in the shade, you can enjoy fall’s cool, crisp days. 

While frost dates become less critical with season extension, you still need to think about day length. No matter how warm your soil stays, your plants won’t grow at the same speed with fewer hours of sunlight. You may see a dramatic difference in growth rates as you dip from 12 hours of daylight in early fall to 9 hours in December.

Sow your bulb onions in cold frames or under row cover between September and February.

In the Southeast, getting good production from bulb onions is challenging. We’ve found that giving them time to put on growth in the winter and early spring is critical to large bulbs. They need plenty of time to bulb up before the heat of summer signals them to go dormant for the season.

Continue sowing cold weather crops in hoops and high tunnels throughout the fall and winter.

It’s possible to have a four-season garden. You can continue sowing cool-season crops like mustard greens, spinach, and chard right through the winter. Their growth is slower due to the limited daylight, but it will pick up as the days lengthen.

Depending on your zone, your crops will need different levels of protection. Growers in the deep south may get away with light row cover, while those in northern areas and the mountains will need additional protection. For very cold areas, sowing in a high tunnel or hoop house and then adding row cover on hoops over the crops within the high tunnel provides an excellent buffer.

Lay shade cloth over beds for a week to cool the soil before sowing cool-season crops.

In the Southeast, summer temperatures rarely cool off when we think they should. Often, it’s still hot when we’re trying to sow certain fall crops that take a bit longer to mature. It’s a balancing act between temperature and available day length. 

Laying shade cloth over the beds for a week or two can help cool the soil and encourage crops to germinate. We may use this technique with crops like lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, and carrots. 

Start early spring greens under low tunnels and switch to shade cloth later.

Low tunnels or row cover over hoops can allow us to enjoy salad season a bit early and keep enjoying it longer. Start your spring greens beneath plastic or thick row cover when the weather is still cold. This can be removed as the season warms, but don’t remove the hoops yet!

As spring heats up and turns to summer, you can use shade cloth over the hoops to provide a bit of heat protection. This will help you get more season from your greens before they bolt. 

Overwinter biennial vegetables in a hoop house or low tunnel for seed production.

We usually recommend that new seed savers start with easy annual crops like corn, beans, cucumbers, and tomatoes. As you move along your seed-saving journey, you may want to work with biennial crops, too. Biennials are crops that produce seed in their second year of life. Therefore, they must survive the winter to produce seed. Some common biennials include hollyhocks, beets, carrots, and leeks.

We give these crops some winter protection to help ensure that they survive to produce seed the following year. Growing them in a high tunnel or placing a low tunnel over them in the fall can help ensure success. 

Use high tunnels or hoop houses to start seeds.

While some crops are highly sensitive to temperature and need to be started somewhere warm, other crops can be started in a hoop house and transplanted into other beds later. Good examples are cabbage, bunching onions, and lettuce. 

You can also use your tunnel to harden off seedlings, such as peppers and tomatoes, that you plan on transplanting into it anyway.

Grow early flowers.

We often think of season extension for vegetables, but flower farmers use it, too. Planting into hoop houses or low tunnels can provide an abundance of early blooms for bouquets. 

Plant fall root crops into high or low tunnels for easy harvest through the winter.

Many dream of eating fresh from the garden year-round. Root crops like fall radishes, beets, and carrots planted in later summer and early fall can help make this a reality. They can be left in the ground and harvested as needed throughout the winter. Unlike summer roots, which may turn woody and tough if left in the ground too long, winter roots will stay sweet and crisp for months. 

Keep row cover on hand for unpredictable frosts.

Frosts don’t always come on schedule. Keeping row cover on hand can help you cope with early or late frosts. It can be draped over stakes or hoops to protect crops or even draped over fruit trees to help protect early blossoms from a late freeze. 

Plant warm-season crops one month early in your hoop house.

Many farmers find that they can plant cucumbers, tomatoes, and other warm-season crops into high tunnels or hoop houses a month before they can transplant them into the field. Setting up a small hoop house this fall may help you achieve early production of your favorite summer vegetables.

 

Using row cover can improve production in various ways. Learn more about how we use row cover to protect our crops from pests and diseases and isolate pollination, too!