Pumpkin Varieties to Grow

Pumpkins are one of the easiest fruits to grow in your home garden and the choice of pumpkin varieties to grow seems endless.

Pumpkins aren’t overly fussy, tend to be relatively pest free and provide a bumper crop that can be stored right through winter, with some varieties having a shelf life of up to six months. Let’s not forget how comforting a bowl of homemade pumpkin soup accompanied by crusty bread with lashings of butter is during the cold and dark winter evenings.

The pumpkin, originating from North America, is one of the oldest known cultivated fruits, rivalling maize. Although a dietary staple of the indigenous people of the Americas, the pumpkins popularity spread worldwide after its introduction to Europe thanks to early explorers.

Today, China is the biggest producer of pumpkins worldwide. Most countries have added their own signature variety to the ever growing family, each possessing different qualities and suiting a range of climates and culinary uses from savoury dishes to desserts.

Even though pumpkins come in a huge variety across the globe, supermarkets generally only stock a handful of them. Luckily for the self-sufficient pumpkineer, seeds for all the weird and wonderful can be procured.

Here are some of my favourite pumpkin varieties to grow:

The sugar pumpkin is a very old heirloom pumpkin variety, believed to date back to the 1800’s.

It is a small pumpkin, weighing only about 2kg, with bright orange smooth skin and an almost perfectly rounded shape. To me it looks like the typical pumpkin you would see in a kids cartoon.

As the name suggests, sugar pumpkins have very sweet flesh which is dense and fibre free making them the perfect choice for soup or pumpkin pie.

In parts of the world this pumpkin is grown in enormous numbers for canning and is often simply referred to as a pie pumpkin, inferring its likely use.

Sugar pumpkins store very well.

The Kent pumpkin, also known as the Jap (short for Japanese), has beautiful green mottled skin and firm flesh that hold up well to roasting. It’s perfect nutty flavour makes it my personal favourite to accompany a roast dinner. The skin, once cooked, is flavoursome and highly nutritious.

Kent is a long maturing variety and needs a long hot summer to ripen and develop their characteristic nuttiness. They are one of the top varieties to grow in poorer soils and store very well.

The Queensland Blue ia an Australian born and bred variety and are considered a medium to large variety with an average weight of 5kg. The smooth skin is a blue-grey colour with deep ribs; the flesh is a rich orange, with a pronounced sweet aroma.

The Queensland Blue aren’t fussy when it comes to soil type, growing in almost any sunny position. They are famous for their excellent storage quality; keeping for 6 months under the right conditions.

Another Aussie variety, the Jarrahdale is a grey, flat, ribbed pumpkin that grows on a sprawling vine. It will take over your garden quickly if not kept in check. The striking orange flesh has a smell similar to a melon with only a small seed cavity for a pumpkin of its size – a substantial 5kg.

Jarrahdale stores well and has dense flesh that holds together, making it a great pumpkin for roasting, steaming or boiling.

This is the pumpkin for the smaller garden. Unlike most of the pumpkin family which are renown for their immense sprawl, the Golden Nugget is a compact plant. It’s a member of a branch of the pumpkin family often referred to as ‘bush pumpkins’.

The benefits of growing Golden Nuggets are countless. The pumpkin itself is small, only 1kg, with orange skin and flesh which has a good nutty flavour. They are very fast maturing and very productive plants. The fruit is flavoursome and the skin thin making it palatable to roast whole. The plant being small means even gardeners working with small plots can find a suitable site.

This pumpkin needs no introduction. The easy to grow, quick to mature, productive nature of the butternut pumpkin (also known as the butternut squash) has turned this quirky, pear shaped variety into the cornerstone of the pumpkin world.

The bright orange dense, non-fibres flesh makes the Butternut a great all round variety that can be roasted, stewed or made into pie, cakes, bread and soup. It matures quickly, isn’t to fussy about growing conditions and fruits vigorously compared to other varieties. Under ideal conditions it can be stored up to 3 months.

If you want pumpkin with versatility, Butternut is the choice for you.

Pumpkins are a family favourite at Silverholme. Their versatility means they are always kept on hand.
Every season I add different varieties to my seed collection and as I grow, harvest and eat them I will expand this list to include more pumpkin varieties to grow at home.

If you’re ready to grow your own pumpkins see my Pumpkin Grow Guide.