A Place for Pumpkins and Jack-o’-Lanterns

On a blustery, Saturday morning in late April 2021, the twins and I trekked out to the back of the property where we normally have the pumpkin patch and we planted pumpkin seeds that we had kept from a pumpkin we grew in 2020. By early May, young plants had emerged from the ground, and we began our vigil of watching the vines mature, the blossoms open, the small bulbs form, the green pumpkins take shape, and finally the change in color from green to orange.

On a beautiful, sunny afternoon on October 10, the twins and I happily harvested a dozen pumpkins.

From history.com:

In the United States, pumpkins go hand in hand with the fall holidays of Halloween and Thanksgiving. An orange fruit harvested in October, this nutritious and versatile plant features flowers, seeds and flesh that are edible and rich in vitamins. Pumpkin is used to make soups, desserts and breads, and many Americans include pumpkin pie in their Thanksgiving meals. Carving pumpkins into jack-o’-lanterns is a popular Halloween tradition that originated hundreds of years ago in Ireland. Back then, however, jack-o’-lanterns were made out of turnips or potatoes; it wasn’t until Irish immigrants arrived in America and discovered the pumpkin that a new Halloween ritual was born.

I offer you the following pumpkin photologue.

May the delights of pumpkins and glow from Jack-o’-lanterns bring you joy throughout the remainder of 2021.

CPW

P.S.