i've grown pumpkins, mainly for autumn decorations, here in Colorado, USA, and I cure them outside in indirect sun for at least several days, and I've had them last up until the next April after harvesting in September, that is 6-7 months, crazy, can understand why they were an important food historically
I grew Jack Be Littles in texas, harvested in september, sat them on my stairs for fall deco. They stayed hard and intact till a hard freeze in january 'killed' them, they went mushy ater that. I didn't even clean them beforehand, like the skin with bleach to prevent rot. They would have lasted a good while i bet. Pumpkins are hardy!
@@dethmaul fibers are indeed broken once frozen, the whole fruit becomes mushy... Would they have survived the frostbite underwater? Food for thought 🎃💭
I'm so glad to hear from a third-party source that you give your produce away. I'm in Tennessee in the US, and I live just a 10 minute drive from my local food bank. I only have 10 fruit trees and 10 nut trees and a dozen berry bushes, but having volunteered at the food bank, I know that the majority of the produce they get from markets is already spoiled. So, I donate the majority of my crop to them, and I know it's greatly appreciated.
Thank you for your service to the community. Do you pick all the fruit you donate or are there volunteers from the food bank that help you? If you do the former, how much time do you dedicate to it? If the latter, how do you manage and instruct others when, what and how many fruits to pick per plant?
We've discovered that the Kent/Jap pumpkin cross pollinate really well with the Butternut. The result is a smooth skinned , Butternut shaped fruit with all the qualities of a Kent. As a note, we've dehydrated this product very successfully. Once dried, we put the 'chips' in the blender and once powdered,(with a pinch of bicarbonate of soda),vacuum sealed. Keeps for years. 'This may lose some of its nutritional value but retains its flavour and is a great addition to winter soups'. Cheers 🙏🕊
I never used to eat pumpkin but when posted to Singapore we were on british rations, they don't eat pumpkin. However, our Infantry Battalion down the road sent us a heap of them. I has been my favourite veggie ever since.
You are so right about the Kent pumpkin. A good story - I moved to Tasmania years ago from Qld & when my Dad joined me here, he bought some very old Kent seeds with him, as this was his favourite variety. I planted them in a compost heap and they grew madly. Sadly, for pumpkins 😃, there is a lot of frost here & just before ripening on the vine a frost hit and the vine died. I gathered the unripened pumpkins and stored in a dark cold cupboard. No joking they ripened, a year later, one took 18 months; but were absolutely beautiful. I would not have believed it unless I saw it. A fabulous pumpkin.
I take a large tarp and cover my entire pumpkin patch overnight when frost hits. I remove the tarp late morning and the vines continue to grow for a few more weeks since daytime temps are still fairly warmish.
We got about 150 kg and stored them in the pantry after curing them for about a week. Left the stalks on and we are working through them. Pumpkin everyday, yum.
A tip for colder climates or balcony gardeners is to look for the "baby boo" variety. The pumpkins stay around 1-2lbs each, but each vine can produce SEVERAL fruits. The leaves and stems stay smaller, and they start fruiting around a week or two after the courgettes start to, which means that you get plenty of time for them to ripen, and you can even get 2-3 flushes if you actively harvest them as they mostly ripen to eat fresh.
My pumpkin vine grew out of the garden and along an unreachable rock embankment. By the time I noticed the huge Peter Cundall pumpkin, it had been half eaten by I assume paddymelons. Glad to help them out as the dry weather in Tassie had left them without food and water. I think I will plant some more for them this year ❤️
And, sometimes you have a plant that's just not a survivor. 🤷♀️ If it gets too crowded you can always pull one out. It only cost you a few extra seeds.
@@Jillany that’s a very good idea. Just a few seeds don’t cost much. This year with my beans I’ve sowed 44 and got 7 in the ground now, don’t know if I get anything from them we will see.
Pumpkin is my fave ever. Roasts, pumpkin soup is my ❤ I throw mine in the slow cooker with x1 big potato, chicken stock, a largish onion and after it's cooked and blended I add sour cream. Easy delish recipe
Great video , love you had a nutritionist on., gut health is everything!!! Trust me I’ve learned through disease. Connecting gardening and good health is where’s its at!
Arvo Mark, have you tired dehydrating vegies, then blending into a powder. tomato, pumpkin powder then can be added to a cup of hot water and there you go your own great cuppa soup. also if you really dehydrate zucchini till extra dry, then ground blend you have your own spelt flour, use swap out a third of normal flours
Do like we did... let the grandchildren smash their Halloween pumpkins in the yard. Spring comes and we have multiple massive pumpkin vines and pumpkins. On our 3rd year of pumpkins growing in weird spots in our front yard. Large crop of pumpkins. My daughter (and her children) evidently has inherited my mother's green thumb.
Great video!! I am growing pumpkins for the first time ever this year. I love the relatively compact plants from the variety i got. I do heavily recommend it as well!! It's called white custard. It's a really pretty white pumpkin. I've tried one slightly underripe, it got a very well almost custardy texture and a very sublte flavor which is nicely nutty. Imo it sounds perfect for baking and eating in salads or other raw ways :)
I love squash/pumpkin too! This year, for the first time I’m growing N. Georgia Candy Roaster winter squash. I’m supposed to cure the mature ones outside for at least 2 weeks but here in my damp, often rainy climate, (Pacific NW Washington state) I was worried about leaving my ripe squash out in the rain. I’m glad you said it’s ok. You’re always a wealth of information! Thank you!
Kent pumpkins belong to the warmth loving Moschata species, same as butternuts, so can be difficult to grow in cooler areas. The Maxima species on the other hand thrive in the cooler climates. I’m in Launceston Tasmania. Being one of the warmer areas of the state, I can grow Moschata pumpkins, but only in a couple of warm spots on the propery. I always have some Maxima pumpkins growing - such as my favourite Lakota - to ensure I get a harvest.
Never too much pumpkin! I purée and freeze, I make muffins and bread (this can also be frozen). You definitely need to cure if you want to keep them long term. And don’t forget about the benefits from eating the seeds you don’t save for next year.
A good way of storing pumpkin is...cut it up to large single serve slabs, skin on. Put on baking papered tray and lightly spray with oil. Bake until cooked and caramalising. Take tray to freezer when cooled enough. When frozen, place in sealed bag. Great for taking out whenever for that snack or scrape off to add yo smoothies or make pumpkin soup.
Mark, the vinegrowers in the riverland South Australia, grow butternuts under tge vines. Those pumpkin are left for months after the vines have died off and as you drive by, you see pumpkin laying everywhere. I guess thats the curing. Oh and they are picked up and sold by the bag.
This was an awesome video. We had a mystery plant show up in our winter squash and pumpkin garden. As the fruit got bigger, we decided it might be an unusual type of pumpkin. This is it! We have several very large ones.
Great video! I am envious of your sub-tropical climate for growing. I live in the Pacific North-Western US, and I love growing Delicata Squash(my favorite variety is called "Honeyboat"). My squash finish in late summer/beginning of autumn , and I tend to leave my squash in the garden as long as I can through autumn, only taking them in when danger of a freeze is on the horizon. Curing in the garden really helps them store longer over our winter. The Delicatas are so good that I tend to eat the skins as well.
When I grow pumpkins, we get so many, so I search for as many different ways to cook them as I can. Some standout favourites are pumpkin and blue cheese pasta sauce, and a delicious pumpkin lasagne with walnuts or pecans
@@clairewright8153 Pumpkin Lasagne (serves 6) Ingredients: 1.2kg butternut pumpkin, peeled, cut into 2cm pieces 2 tbs olive oil ½ tsp dried chilli flakes 1 tbs chopped sage, plus 12 whole leaves to serve ¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg 350g ricotta 1 egg 1 cup grated parmesan, plus extra to serve 8 fresh lasagne sheets 100g unsalted butter 2 tbs chopped pecans Method: Preheat the oven to 190°C. Place the pumpkin on a baking tray, drizzle with oil, sprinkle with chilli flakes and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover with foil and roast for 25 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender. Allow to cool slightly. Puree pumpkin in a food processor with the sage and nutmeg. Set aside. Clean processor, then process the ricotta, egg, parmesan, salt and pepper. Lightly grease a 24cm-square baking dish. Lay 2 lasagne sheets over the base and spread with half the pumpkin. Add another layer of lasagne sheets, then spread with half the ricotta. Repeat process, then sprinkle final layer of ricotta with extra parmesan. Lay a sheet of baking paper over surface, cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake for a further 15 minutes or until golden. Stand for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the butter, sage leaves and pecans in a pan for 1-2 minutes over medium heat until the butter starts to foam. Remove from the heat. Serve the lasagne drizzled with sage butter, scattered with extra parmesan. Pumpkin Pasta (serves 4) Ingredients: 500g pumpkin 500g penne pasta 1 large onion, diced 2 cloves garlic, crushed 1tbsp olive oil Light cream Salt & pepper 1 tbsp margarine 2 tbsp chopped herbs (rosemary, basil, thyme or sage for example Shaved parmesan Method: Cut pumpkin into 2cm cubes. Place in a large saucepan of boiling water along with pasta and cook for as long as the pasta packet suggests. Meanwhile, fry diced onion and garlic in a saucepan with olive oil until softened. Drain pasta and pumpkin, set pumpkin aside in a bowl, return pasta to pan and leave off the heat. Mash pumpkin and add enough light cream to make a sauce consistency, season with salt & pepper. Add pumpkin, onions, margarine and chopped herbs to drained pasta, return to heat and mix thoroughly until heated through. Serve topped with shaved parmesan. Tip: Pumpkin and blue cheese are a match made in heaven. Try adding crumbled blue cheese to taste. Another good recipe for pumpkin gnocchi here www.vincenzosplate.com/pumpkin-gnocchi-recipe/
@@angelachouinard4581 Pumpkin Lasagne (serves 6) Ingredients: 1.2kg butternut pumpkin, peeled, cut into 2cm pieces 2 tbs olive oil ½ tsp dried chilli flakes 1 tbs chopped sage, plus 12 whole leaves to serve ¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg 350g ricotta 1 egg 1 cup grated parmesan, plus extra to serve 8 fresh lasagne sheets 100g unsalted butter 2 tbs chopped pecans Method: Preheat the oven to 190°C. Place the pumpkin on a baking tray, drizzle with oil, sprinkle with chilli flakes and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover with foil and roast for 25 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender. Allow to cool slightly. Puree pumpkin in a food processor with the sage and nutmeg. Set aside. Clean processor, then process the ricotta, egg, parmesan, salt and pepper. Lightly grease a 24cm-square baking dish. Lay 2 lasagne sheets over the base and spread with half the pumpkin. Add another layer of lasagne sheets, then spread with half the ricotta. Repeat process, then sprinkle final layer of ricotta with extra parmesan. Lay a sheet of baking paper over surface, cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake for a further 15 minutes or until golden. Stand for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the butter, sage leaves and pecans in a pan for 1-2 minutes over medium heat until the butter starts to foam. Remove from the heat. Serve the lasagne drizzled with sage butter, scattered with extra parmesan. Pumpkin Pasta (serves 4) Ingredients: 500g pumpkin 500g penne pasta 1 large onion, diced 2 cloves garlic, crushed 1tbsp olive oil Light cream Salt & pepper 1 tbsp margarine 2 tbsp chopped herbs (rosemary, basil, thyme or sage for example Shaved parmesan Method: Cut pumpkin into 2cm cubes. Place in a large saucepan of boiling water along with pasta and cook for as long as the pasta packet suggests. Meanwhile, fry diced onion and garlic in a saucepan with olive oil until softened. Drain pasta and pumpkin, set pumpkin aside in a bowl, return pasta to pan and leave off the heat. Mash pumpkin and add enough light cream to make a sauce consistency, season with salt & pepper. Add pumpkin, onions, margarine and chopped herbs to drained pasta, return to heat and mix thoroughly until heated through. Serve topped with shaved parmesan. Tip: Pumpkin and blue cheese are a match made in heaven. Try adding crumbled blue cheese to taste. Another good recipe for pumpkin gnocchi here www.vincenzosplate.com/pumpkin-gnocchi-recipe/
Thanks for the tip! I don't grow many gourds, because it's so humid and buggy in my area. So, it's a good thing to see an Aussie with similar environment doing it with success; give or take a rodent, or two. 👍
Love the Vids, i will have to try this one. But there is also a SEMINOLE Pumpkin, that is native to Florida , here in the US. It Does really good in the Hot and humid weather.
The "problems" I find with Kent is they grow so big that after we cut it we rarely finish it before some of it goes bad. That's one of the reasons I like Butter Nut pumpkins. Smaller, less goes to waste.
Cubes the size of a thumb, so you are able to break them apart in the freezer bag without unfreezing the entire thing. It helps cutting first the pumpkin in slices to remove/peel the skin like a banana 😉
Another good use for freeze dried pumpkin is substitute 1 cup of blended up freeze dried pumpkin for 1 cup of flour in a sugar cookie recipe. It adds a nice change to a classic cookie. Imagine it would work for other recipes as well. The cookies were a big hit last Christmas.
@@LostWhits wow! Lucky you! Look them up. I haven’t gotten more than 1 squash off any plant I’ve planted and usually I don’t even get one before they take out the plants. Except the pie pumpkins and I think they are the seminole kind that are more resistant to them.
I really enjoy your videos. Although I live in a colder climate, they are often informative and useful, and often entertaining! On a different note, does anyone know of a US supplier of Kent pumpkin seeds. Getting seeds to the US from Australia involves jumping through a number of Import hoops with the USDA. The "Japanese" pumpkins available here are a different variety. Thanks to anyone who has an answer.
My husband does not like most fruit or vegetables. I'll cook them up anyway for the nutritional value for him. I had a still edible but sad looking half butternut in my fridge. I looked through my cookbook collection and found that Stephanie Alexander has a chocolate and pumpkin cupcake recipe. Guess what hubby has for his work snacks this week? Pumpkin disguised as cake. I did add extra cocoa powder to make it a little more chocolatey
Being in Ballarat VIC at the moment there's just too many mice everywhere otherwise I'd be trying butternut pumpkin to see how it grows here. Great video guys and have a ripper!
I'm in Leland, NC....I haven't been able to find Jap pumpkins from any US suppliers. I used to live in Queensland and ate these pumpkins multiple times a week, they are so good. Looking for a replacement that will grow in our harsh environment on the NC coast. Acorn or butternut just aren't as good, or not the same, I should say.
Wow! I always grow pumpkins, squashes courgettes etc, but this year we had such bad time with SLUGS!!!! most of my toung plants were completely decimated. They even eat medium sized pumpkins as they ripen now! (We are in England). We plant the seeds in April, grow them in pots inside ethe house for the first two months, then plant out, protect from slugs, in Octover they dies out. Some varieties store for a YEAR - my favourite varieti3s are Uchiki Kuri, Blue Hubbard. This yesr I'm also growing Blue Banana Squash and Atlantic Giant.
It's official variety name is Just Another Pumpkin (JAP) or Ken's Special Kent Pumpkin it's Queensland bred in Townsville its not actually Japanese as many people think
@@justinarnold7725 Huey's cooking show started the assumption that JAP was short for Japanese, and it ran away from there. He did correct himself later but reputational damage was already done to this humble pumpkin
My mom would make a pumpkin sauce and can it, which is recommended not to do anymore. It was the consistency of apple sauce and she would make pies, cookies, and breads. Also, for a quick dessert she would just add spices and we would eat it straight from the jar.
Not sure how this is for the health, buuut... PUMPKIN PIE! :) Also, the seeds make great roasted snacks (spiced & salted w some oil), or you can add them to a soup you'll boil and blend for a nice nutty flavor. Rich in iron and fiber, I think. Had some growing out of a compost pile (as David the Good has suggested) and they went wild along the back and side of our small villa here (and I think the back of the one over), and gave at least 2 nice accidental pumpkins :) I think I heard Dr William Li talk about their ant-cancer property as well. Also, the leaves are edible, can add to a stew, have a thick & soft consistency when cooked. Be careful of the prickly stems while gathering :D
After working at Coles (supermarket chain) and cutting up thousands of kent pumpkins, I cannot stand the feel of the waxy coating on the outside. Might be different when they are my own :-) Also watch out for the stem as they can be very prickly. Great video as always! Enjoy the break too
We are in Canberra and Moschata Pumpkins are difficult to grow is much easier to grow Maxima pumpkins is cooler climates, also JAP pumpkin means Just Another Pumpkin because it was breed to have a plain flavour it's not Japanese as Queenslanders think
You could also donate extra to food banks or charities that help to feed poor people. Good to share with friends and neighbors too. I have never seen your variety of pumpkin up here in the US.
About 2 years ago rats starting appearing in our yard and kept eating my veggies. Within a week or the pumpkins pollinating they were too hard. You could see a bite mark here and there that were undoubtedly rat bites, but it must have been too tough to get through. Plan to fill my backyard with pumpkin vines this year 😅
I’ve tried so hard with this pumpkin, it sprouts but then it doesn’t go any further than that. I hear how easy it is but I’m doing something wrong, maybe using seeds from the pumpkins I get from the shops. Love the video Mark!
your not alone. I get small pumpkins forming then die. I have tried pumpkin seeds from farmers who do not spray with chemicals. My soil is not good, sandy, and bees have decreased to pollinate the flowers. I have even tried pollinating the flowers by using a cotton bud with no luck.
Buttercup pumpkins are the only pumpkins worth growing. All the other pumpkins I have tried do not taste good. Buttercups grow good in cold climates. I grow them in pots, raised beds and contractor bags. Need lots of fertilizer. 3 dollar rat traps work good.
If I leave ripe or even semi-ripe pumpkins out the rats and possums have a party with them. Lost 20 pumpkins to rats and possums last season, only got 8 for myself, it was similar the previous 2 seasons. It was still enough to be able to share them around with friends, but it's a shame I lost the majority of the crop. Not wasting that much space on them again this year, not enough return. They struggle in the shadier spots(sooty mildew) and are too exposed in the open sunny areas.
i've grown pumpkins, mainly for autumn decorations, here in Colorado, USA, and I cure them outside in indirect sun for at least several days, and I've had them last up until the next April after harvesting in September, that is 6-7 months, crazy, can understand why they were an important food historically
I grew Jack Be Littles in texas, harvested in september, sat them on my stairs for fall deco. They stayed hard and intact till a hard freeze in january 'killed' them, they went mushy ater that. I didn't even clean them beforehand, like the skin with bleach to prevent rot. They would have lasted a good while i bet.
Pumpkins are hardy!
@@dethmaul fibers are indeed broken once frozen, the whole fruit becomes mushy... Would they have survived the frostbite underwater? Food for thought 🎃💭
I'm so glad to hear from a third-party source that you give your produce away. I'm in Tennessee in the US, and I live just a 10 minute drive from my local food bank.
I only have 10 fruit trees and 10 nut trees and a dozen berry bushes, but having volunteered at the food bank, I know that the majority of the produce they get from markets is already spoiled. So, I donate the majority of my crop to them, and I know it's greatly appreciated.
Thank you for your service to the community. Do you pick all the fruit you donate or are there volunteers from the food bank that help you? If you do the former, how much time do you dedicate to it? If the latter, how do you manage and instruct others when, what and how many fruits to pick per plant?
We've discovered that the Kent/Jap pumpkin cross pollinate really well with the Butternut. The result is a smooth skinned , Butternut shaped fruit with all the qualities of a Kent.
As a note, we've dehydrated this product very successfully. Once dried, we put the 'chips' in the blender and once powdered,(with a pinch of bicarbonate of soda),vacuum sealed.
Keeps for years. 'This may lose some of its nutritional value but retains its flavour and is a great addition to winter soups'.
Cheers 🙏🕊
Interesting. Thank you.👍
Yes we have found that also
Thanks for the tip. I got a dehydrator end of season last year.
Heavy mindblowing 🤯🎃 tips, thanks for sharing! I love eating the boiled skin of the butternut, is it also edible in the hybrid species?
@andanssas : I haven't tried the boiled skin, but I do know the baked skin is very tasty.
I never used to eat pumpkin but when posted to Singapore we were on british rations, they don't eat pumpkin. However, our Infantry Battalion down the road sent us a heap of them. I has been my favourite veggie ever since.
You are so right about the Kent pumpkin. A good story - I moved to Tasmania years ago from Qld & when my Dad joined me here, he bought some very old Kent seeds with him, as this was his favourite variety. I planted them in a compost heap and they grew madly. Sadly, for pumpkins 😃, there is a lot of frost here & just before ripening on the vine a frost hit and the vine died. I gathered the unripened pumpkins and stored in a dark cold cupboard. No joking they ripened, a year later, one took 18 months; but were absolutely beautiful. I would not have believed it unless I saw it. A fabulous pumpkin.
I take a large tarp and cover my entire pumpkin patch overnight when frost hits. I remove the tarp late morning and the vines continue to grow for a few more weeks since daytime temps are still fairly warmish.
I love that u could save them. I bet they tasted incredible!
It's literally a freaking zombie pumpkin! 🧟🎃 Glad we're the ones eating them 😹
Chickens love pumpkins and it helps the deepen their yolk color.
That mouse in the pumpkin was just carb-loading before getting turned into a horse and pulling Cinderella’s pumpkin coach!
❤❤
😂 thank you for the smile!! ❤
😂😂😂
We got about 150 kg and stored them in the pantry after curing them for about a week. Left the stalks on and we are working through them. Pumpkin everyday, yum.
A tip for colder climates or balcony gardeners is to look for the "baby boo" variety. The pumpkins stay around 1-2lbs each, but each vine can produce SEVERAL fruits. The leaves and stems stay smaller, and they start fruiting around a week or two after the courgettes start to, which means that you get plenty of time for them to ripen, and you can even get 2-3 flushes if you actively harvest them as they mostly ripen to eat fresh.
Great tip, Already found a place i can buy seeds for next year! Such a cute variety
My pumpkin vine grew out of the garden and along an unreachable rock embankment. By the time I noticed the huge Peter Cundall pumpkin, it had been half eaten by I assume paddymelons. Glad to help them out as the dry weather in Tassie had left them without food and water. I think I will plant some more for them this year ❤️
Always plant extra! There's a saying that goes something like... One for me one for the birds and one for the bugs! 🥰
Love it 👌🏻
That’s where I’m going wrong
And, sometimes you have a plant that's just not a survivor. 🤷♀️ If it gets too crowded you can always pull one out. It only cost you a few extra seeds.
@@Jillany that’s a very good idea. Just a few seeds don’t cost much. This year with my beans I’ve sowed 44 and got 7 in the ground now, don’t know if I get anything from them we will see.
@@cherylhowker1792 you can always speed up the process by soaking them in water for 24 hours before planting too. Hugs
Pumpkin is my fave ever. Roasts, pumpkin soup is my ❤ I throw mine in the slow cooker with x1 big potato, chicken stock, a largish onion and after it's cooked and blended I add sour cream. Easy delish recipe
Great video , love you had a nutritionist on., gut health is everything!!! Trust me I’ve learned through disease. Connecting gardening and good health is where’s its at!
Queensland Blue is my all-time favourite.
Same
Same here
A few years ago on one of my pumpkin crops I ended up with a 16kg blue, it fed my family and my mates and neighbours lol.
I love your shirt Mark!
Arvo Mark, have you tired dehydrating vegies, then blending into a powder. tomato, pumpkin powder then can be added to a cup of hot water and there you go your own great cuppa soup. also if you really dehydrate zucchini till extra dry, then ground blend you have your own spelt flour, use swap out a third of normal flours
Spelt is a grain. Zucchini is a vegetable flour.
Grew my first pumpkins last year, doing it again this year and picked up this variety based on this channel, can't wait to set started soon
Do like we did... let the grandchildren smash their Halloween pumpkins in the yard. Spring comes and we have multiple massive pumpkin vines and pumpkins. On our 3rd year of pumpkins growing in weird spots in our front yard. Large crop of pumpkins. My daughter (and her children) evidently has inherited my mother's green thumb.
That sounds like fun! What did the kids think when new pumpkin plants grew up?
@@angelachouinard4581 They were extremely excited.
I did the same when my Grands were small. Grew loads of pumpkins out of the lawn.💝
Love pumpkin! You can make it many different ways!
I've always enjoyed pumpkin pie and climates with plenty of rain, so this pumpkin sounds like the perfect one for me!
ahhhh, Flo's scones. Best I've ever tasted.
Great video!!
I am growing pumpkins for the first time ever this year. I love the relatively compact plants from the variety i got. I do heavily recommend it as well!!
It's called white custard. It's a really pretty white pumpkin. I've tried one slightly underripe, it got a very well almost custardy texture and a very sublte flavor which is nicely nutty. Imo it sounds perfect for baking and eating in salads or other raw ways :)
I love squash/pumpkin too! This year, for the first time I’m growing N. Georgia Candy Roaster winter squash. I’m supposed to cure the mature ones outside for at least 2 weeks but here in my damp, often rainy climate, (Pacific NW Washington state) I was worried about leaving my ripe squash out in the rain. I’m glad you said it’s ok. You’re always a wealth of information! Thank you!
0:05 I thought that crack in the corrugated iron was a hair on my screen
So say we all
Kent pumpkins belong to the warmth loving Moschata species, same as butternuts, so can be difficult to grow in cooler areas. The Maxima species on the other hand thrive in the cooler climates. I’m in Launceston Tasmania. Being one of the warmer areas of the state, I can grow Moschata pumpkins, but only in a couple of warm spots on the propery. I always have some Maxima pumpkins growing - such as my favourite Lakota - to ensure I get a harvest.
I saw those in your tour the other day. Those are fantastic in Thai recipe stews. Chickens also love them. Thank you for covering them 🤙
Sounds interesting and I’m sure delicious, how do you do yours?
Never too much pumpkin! I purée and freeze, I make muffins and bread (this can also be frozen). You definitely need to cure if you want to keep them long term. And don’t forget about the benefits from eating the seeds you don’t save for next year.
A good way of storing pumpkin is...cut it up to large single serve slabs, skin on. Put on baking papered tray and lightly spray with oil. Bake until cooked and caramalising. Take tray to freezer when cooled enough. When frozen, place in sealed bag. Great for taking out whenever for that snack or scrape off to add yo smoothies or make pumpkin soup.
What does the oil do? Thanks for sharing! 🎃
I wish I could garden like this man. He makes it look effortless. I live in central Florida so I will go out search for these seeds.
Im in Crystal River, love watching Mark. He does a really good job explaining everything.
Did you see his talk on Everglades tomatoes and using the Florida weave?
Seminole pumpkins are supposed to grow good in your area also. They are the only ones that will survive the squash vine borer in my garden.
Just buy an organic one and take the hundreds of seeds from the inside 😂
Seminole pumpkin grows well! I live in central Florida too.
Growing pumpkins is awesome
Mark, the vinegrowers in the riverland South Australia, grow butternuts under tge vines. Those pumpkin are left for months after the vines have died off and as you drive by, you see pumpkin laying everywhere. I guess thats the curing. Oh and they are picked up and sold by the bag.
It's also possible to ferment your extra pumpkin, and make *Pumpkin Wine!* It really is a thing!! Best wishes!!
the farm is looking fantastic Mark, 10/10 bro
So timely! I'm just looking at seeds for this year & a good pumpkin is top of my list!
This was an awesome video. We had a mystery plant show up in our winter squash and pumpkin garden. As the fruit got bigger, we decided it might be an unusual type of pumpkin. This is it! We have several very large ones.
Great video! I am envious of your sub-tropical climate for growing. I live in the Pacific North-Western US, and I love growing Delicata Squash(my favorite variety is called "Honeyboat"). My squash finish in late summer/beginning of autumn , and I tend to leave my squash in the garden as long as I can through autumn, only taking them in when danger of a freeze is on the horizon. Curing in the garden really helps them store longer over our winter. The Delicatas are so good that I tend to eat the skins as well.
When I grow pumpkins, we get so many, so I search for as many different ways to cook them as I can. Some standout favourites are pumpkin and blue cheese pasta sauce, and a delicious pumpkin lasagne with walnuts or pecans
Yum!
Could you please share this recipe, it sounds delicious
I second Claire's request. Those recipes would be appreciated
@@clairewright8153
Pumpkin Lasagne (serves 6)
Ingredients: 1.2kg butternut pumpkin, peeled, cut into 2cm pieces 2 tbs olive oil ½ tsp dried chilli flakes 1 tbs chopped sage, plus 12 whole leaves to serve ¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg 350g ricotta 1 egg 1 cup grated parmesan, plus extra to serve 8 fresh lasagne sheets 100g unsalted butter 2 tbs chopped pecans
Method: Preheat the oven to 190°C. Place the pumpkin on a baking tray, drizzle with oil, sprinkle with chilli flakes and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover with foil and roast for 25 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender. Allow to cool slightly.
Puree pumpkin in a food processor with the sage and nutmeg. Set aside. Clean processor, then process the ricotta, egg, parmesan, salt and pepper.
Lightly grease a 24cm-square baking dish. Lay 2 lasagne sheets over the base and spread with half the pumpkin. Add another layer of lasagne sheets, then spread with half the ricotta. Repeat process, then sprinkle final layer of ricotta with extra parmesan. Lay a sheet of baking paper over surface, cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake for a further 15 minutes or until golden. Stand for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat the butter, sage leaves and pecans in a pan for 1-2 minutes over medium heat until the butter starts to foam. Remove from the heat. Serve the lasagne drizzled with sage butter, scattered with extra parmesan.
Pumpkin Pasta (serves 4)
Ingredients: 500g pumpkin 500g penne pasta 1 large onion, diced 2 cloves garlic, crushed 1tbsp olive oil Light cream Salt & pepper 1 tbsp margarine 2 tbsp chopped herbs (rosemary, basil, thyme or sage for example Shaved parmesan
Method: Cut pumpkin into 2cm cubes. Place in a large saucepan of boiling water along with pasta and cook for as long as the pasta packet suggests. Meanwhile, fry diced onion and garlic in a saucepan with olive oil until softened.
Drain pasta and pumpkin, set pumpkin aside in a bowl, return pasta to pan and leave off the heat. Mash pumpkin and add enough light cream to make a sauce consistency, season with salt & pepper. Add pumpkin, onions, margarine and chopped herbs to drained pasta, return to heat and mix thoroughly until heated through. Serve topped with shaved parmesan.
Tip: Pumpkin and blue cheese are a match made in heaven. Try adding crumbled blue cheese to taste.
Another good recipe for pumpkin gnocchi here www.vincenzosplate.com/pumpkin-gnocchi-recipe/
@@angelachouinard4581
Pumpkin Lasagne (serves 6)
Ingredients: 1.2kg butternut pumpkin, peeled, cut into 2cm pieces 2 tbs olive oil ½ tsp dried chilli flakes 1 tbs chopped sage, plus 12 whole leaves to serve ¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg 350g ricotta 1 egg 1 cup grated parmesan, plus extra to serve 8 fresh lasagne sheets 100g unsalted butter 2 tbs chopped pecans
Method: Preheat the oven to 190°C. Place the pumpkin on a baking tray, drizzle with oil, sprinkle with chilli flakes and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover with foil and roast for 25 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender. Allow to cool slightly.
Puree pumpkin in a food processor with the sage and nutmeg. Set aside. Clean processor, then process the ricotta, egg, parmesan, salt and pepper.
Lightly grease a 24cm-square baking dish. Lay 2 lasagne sheets over the base and spread with half the pumpkin. Add another layer of lasagne sheets, then spread with half the ricotta. Repeat process, then sprinkle final layer of ricotta with extra parmesan. Lay a sheet of baking paper over surface, cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake for a further 15 minutes or until golden. Stand for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat the butter, sage leaves and pecans in a pan for 1-2 minutes over medium heat until the butter starts to foam. Remove from the heat. Serve the lasagne drizzled with sage butter, scattered with extra parmesan.
Pumpkin Pasta (serves 4)
Ingredients: 500g pumpkin 500g penne pasta 1 large onion, diced 2 cloves garlic, crushed 1tbsp olive oil Light cream Salt & pepper 1 tbsp margarine 2 tbsp chopped herbs (rosemary, basil, thyme or sage for example Shaved parmesan
Method: Cut pumpkin into 2cm cubes. Place in a large saucepan of boiling water along with pasta and cook for as long as the pasta packet suggests. Meanwhile, fry diced onion and garlic in a saucepan with olive oil until softened.
Drain pasta and pumpkin, set pumpkin aside in a bowl, return pasta to pan and leave off the heat. Mash pumpkin and add enough light cream to make a sauce consistency, season with salt & pepper. Add pumpkin, onions, margarine and chopped herbs to drained pasta, return to heat and mix thoroughly until heated through. Serve topped with shaved parmesan.
Tip: Pumpkin and blue cheese are a match made in heaven. Try adding crumbled blue cheese to taste.
Another good recipe for pumpkin gnocchi here www.vincenzosplate.com/pumpkin-gnocchi-recipe/
Thanks for the tip! I don't grow many gourds, because it's so humid and buggy in my area. So, it's a good thing to see an Aussie with similar environment doing it with success; give or take a rodent, or two. 👍
Pumpkins? Oh heck yeah, now we're talking!
Nice information Mark, thanx. Im going out to plant some pumpkins.
Love the Vids, i will have to try this one. But there is also a SEMINOLE Pumpkin, that is native to Florida , here in the US. It Does really good in the Hot and humid weather.
The "problems" I find with Kent is they grow so big that after we cut it we rarely finish it before some of it goes bad. That's one of the reasons I like Butter Nut pumpkins. Smaller, less goes to waste.
You can cut it into pieces and put them in the freezer. This is the method I use with big pumpkins here in Italy
@@giulianaebasta72 Cheers, I'll give it a try.
Cubes the size of a thumb, so you are able to break them apart in the freezer bag without unfreezing the entire thing. It helps cutting first the pumpkin in slices to remove/peel the skin like a banana 😉
I 've grow pumpkin, mainly for autumn decoration
Another good use for freeze dried pumpkin is substitute 1 cup of blended up freeze dried pumpkin for 1 cup of flour in a sugar cookie recipe. It adds a nice change to a classic cookie. Imagine it would work for other recipes as well. The cookies were a big hit last Christmas.
My Dad always cured the pumpkins on the shed roof that got morning sun and then stored them on racks in the old laundry under the house.
Very informative. Thank you.
Look at the benefit's of the pumkin seed. They are amazingly
Squash vine borer take out every pumpkin/squash/zucchini plant except 1 pie pumpkin I bought years ago and save seeds.
I was going to ask if it is vine borer resistant.
Try moschata varieties. They are borer resistant
I've never heard of a vine borer.
@@LostWhits feel blessed. They are a destroyer.
@@LostWhits wow! Lucky you! Look them up. I haven’t gotten more than 1 squash off any plant I’ve planted and usually I don’t even get one before they take out the plants. Except the pie pumpkins and I think they are the seminole kind that are more resistant to them.
Thanks. I ordered some. I'm gonna try.
I really enjoy your videos. Although I live in a colder climate, they are often informative and useful, and often entertaining!
On a different note, does anyone know of a US supplier of Kent pumpkin seeds. Getting seeds to the US from Australia involves jumping through a number of Import hoops with the USDA. The "Japanese" pumpkins available here are a different variety. Thanks to anyone who has an answer.
A family of blue birds were pecking at one of my young pumpkins today.
This is my first year growing pumpkin. Only got one pumpkin from the wine I grew. Next year I will try hand polination
My husband does not like most fruit or vegetables. I'll cook them up anyway for the nutritional value for him.
I had a still edible but sad looking half butternut in my fridge. I looked through my cookbook collection and found that Stephanie Alexander has a chocolate and pumpkin cupcake recipe. Guess what hubby has for his work snacks this week? Pumpkin disguised as cake. I did add extra cocoa powder to make it a little more chocolatey
Freeze dried pumpkin is the bomb
Being in Ballarat VIC at the moment there's just too many mice everywhere otherwise I'd be trying butternut pumpkin to see how it grows here.
Great video guys and have a ripper!
Very nice, thank you very much
Great post, pumpkin thumbs up!
I'm a big fan of Kent pumpkin. It has a lovely flavour too :-D
Roast pumpkin very well cooked 🤤
This was my most successful harvest one year, and I didn't plant it. It popped up in my compost heap!
I’ll try it here in NC.
Hey Neighbor, I’m in SC. 😊😊😊Sharon in SC
Hey there! I'm here in coastal SC! Definitely subtopic climate like Mark's.
Where did you find seeds?
I'm in Leland, NC....I haven't been able to find Jap pumpkins from any US suppliers. I used to live in Queensland and ate these pumpkins multiple times a week, they are so good. Looking for a replacement that will grow in our harsh environment on the NC coast. Acorn or butternut just aren't as good, or not the same, I should say.
Thank You!
Is this also known as kabocha squash ? Those are extremely tasty.
Wow! I always grow pumpkins, squashes courgettes etc, but this year we had such bad time with SLUGS!!!! most of my toung plants were completely decimated. They even eat medium sized pumpkins as they ripen now! (We are in England). We plant the seeds in April, grow them in pots inside ethe house for the first two months, then plant out, protect from slugs, in Octover they dies out. Some varieties store for a YEAR - my favourite varieti3s are Uchiki Kuri, Blue Hubbard. This yesr I'm also growing Blue Banana Squash and Atlantic Giant.
Dope shirt mark! 🤙
What was the name of this Japanese pumpkin? I couldn’t understand. Thanks! To late for this year but maybe next.
Kent
It's official variety name is Just Another Pumpkin (JAP) or Ken's Special Kent Pumpkin it's Queensland bred in Townsville its not actually Japanese as many people think
It's not Japanese. It's "just another pumpkin", JAP was shorthand
@@justinarnold7725 Huey's cooking show started the assumption that JAP was short for Japanese, and it ran away from there.
He did correct himself later but reputational damage was already done to this humble pumpkin
My mom would make a pumpkin sauce and can it, which is recommended not to do anymore. It was the consistency of apple sauce and she would make pies, cookies, and breads. Also, for a quick dessert she would just add spices and we would eat it straight from the jar.
Hello, I’m your 32nd Thumbs up. This is a Great Share!!! 😊😊😊Sharon in SC
I am also from Sydney Central.
Not sure how this is for the health, buuut... PUMPKIN PIE! :)
Also, the seeds make great roasted snacks (spiced & salted w some oil), or you can add them to a soup you'll boil and blend for a nice nutty flavor. Rich in iron and fiber, I think.
Had some growing out of a compost pile (as David the Good has suggested) and they went wild along the back and side of our small villa here (and I think the back of the one over), and gave at least 2 nice accidental pumpkins :)
I think I heard Dr William Li talk about their ant-cancer property as well.
Also, the leaves are edible, can add to a stew, have a thick & soft consistency when cooked. Be careful of the prickly stems while gathering :D
After working at Coles (supermarket chain) and cutting up thousands of kent pumpkins, I cannot stand the feel of the waxy coating on the outside. Might be different when they are my own :-)
Also watch out for the stem as they can be very prickly.
Great video as always! Enjoy the break too
Thank you for chopping the pumpkins for us all
@@TheKrispyfort no worries. I did it despite my managers telling us not to and telling customers to buy a whole one!
Very interesting video! 😊🌱💚🌻🐝🐓
TO. Mark self-sufficient me you know you can have a pumpkin feast with all of those pumpkins you've got 😋 yummy.
Loveee your channel!!!! 😊
We are in Canberra and Moschata Pumpkins are difficult to grow is much easier to grow Maxima pumpkins is cooler climates, also JAP pumpkin means Just Another Pumpkin because it was breed to have a plain flavour it's not Japanese as Queenslanders think
wow, people are fast in the comments!
I have been wondering what variety these pumpkins were for a while now. I am going to have to get some seed and try them.
Love the channel Mark!!!
RPM - Roasted Pumpkin Magic!!! 😅
You could also donate extra to food banks or charities that help to feed poor people. Good to share with friends and neighbors too.
I have never seen your variety of pumpkin up here in the US.
Great 👍 video
About 2 years ago rats starting appearing in our yard and kept eating my veggies. Within a week or the pumpkins pollinating they were too hard. You could see a bite mark here and there that were undoubtedly rat bites, but it must have been too tough to get through. Plan to fill my backyard with pumpkin vines this year 😅
I’ve tried so hard with this pumpkin, it sprouts but then it doesn’t go any further than that. I hear how easy it is but I’m doing something wrong, maybe using seeds from the pumpkins I get from the shops.
Love the video Mark!
your not alone. I get small pumpkins forming then die. I have tried pumpkin seeds from farmers who do not spray with chemicals. My soil is not good, sandy, and bees have decreased to pollinate the flowers. I have even tried pollinating the flowers by using a cotton bud with no luck.
I enjoyed the videoy
Have you tried growing Naples pumpkins, she are beautiful
Gonna need you to sell me one of those shirts Mark 😂
My jap/Kent on Cape York is one year old and still producing
How does the Kent compare to Queensland Blue in regards to flavour?
JAP stands for Just Another Pumpkin. It was bred in Queensland and has nothing to do with Japan. Japanese pumpkins are completely different.
Mark, how do we get our hands on one of that amazing shirts you are wearing in this video, cant see them in your store, cheers, be good.
I was the 248th one to click thumbs up. :)
Also pumpkins don't need to be ripe to eat them - only if you want to store them
Green pumpkin curry is delicious
@@TheKrispyfort yes totally agree
Pumpkin don't get rotted. Just keep in a dry place where sunlight is there. You can have it during winter too.
have had better results with butternuts personally, Adelaide, South Australia. cheers Mark
In Adelaide too, I'm growing 2 vines of butternut and 2 of jap this year to test it
Does pureeing the pumpkin affect the fiber benefits at all? What about roasting it? I love pumpkin soup but always wondered about that
No, fiber content doesn't change during processing like that.
There was a pear-shaped Kent pumpkin in the veggie store on Friday.
Me: that's different
Pumpkin 🎃 👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽💋
Buttercup pumpkins are the only pumpkins worth growing. All the other pumpkins I have tried do not taste good. Buttercups grow good in cold climates. I grow them in pots, raised beds and contractor bags. Need lots of fertilizer. 3 dollar rat traps work good.
If I leave ripe or even semi-ripe pumpkins out the rats and possums have a party with them. Lost 20 pumpkins to rats and possums last season, only got 8 for myself, it was similar the previous 2 seasons. It was still enough to be able to share them around with friends, but it's a shame I lost the majority of the crop. Not wasting that much space on them again this year, not enough return. They struggle in the shadier spots(sooty mildew) and are too exposed in the open sunny areas.
Hey mate, what is growing behind you there when you guys were chatting? The large fruit on the tree there.