An orange fruit harvested in October.
This nutritious and versatile plant features flowers, seeds and flesh that are edible and rich in vitamins.
Have been grown in North America for five thousand years, and indigenous to the western hemisphere.
In 1584, French explorer Jacques Cartier explored the St. Lawrence region of North America and found the 'gros melons'. The name was translated into English as 'pompions', which later evolved into the modern 'pumpkin'.
Used to make soups, desserts and breads, and many Americans include pumpkin pie in their Thanksgiving meals.
Usually curved into jack-o'-lanterns during Halloween.
Carving pumpkins into Jack-o'-lanterns is a popular tradition that originated hundreds of years ago in Ireland. The practice is said to come from the folklore of Stingy Jack.
Legend has it that the mythical Stingy Jack invited the Devil to have a drink with him, after which the thrifty Jack convinced the Devil to turn itself into a coin to avoid paying for the drinks.
The Devil obliged, but Jack pocketed the coin instead of paying what he owed. He placed the coin beside a silver cross in his pocket that magically prevented the Devil from changing back to his original form. Jack eventually let the Devil go, but made him agree not to bother him for one year and said that if he happened to die, the Devil could not claim his soul. The very next year, Jack tried to trick the Devil again, and again made him promise not to bother him for years to come. (What a lovely devil!)
When Jack eventually died, God refused to let his trickster soul into heaven. With neither God nor the Devil claiming him, Jack was forced to wander eternity with just a single burning coal -- which he placed into a carved out turnip -- to light his way. The Irish referred to the legend's protagonist as 'Jack of the Lantern,' which eventually became 'Jack-o'-lantern.'
▲ A traditional Irish Jack-o'-lantern carved into a turnip from the early 20th century, on display at the Museum of Country Life in Turlough, Ireland. Pretty terrifying, eh?
In the early times, turnips, beets and potatoes were used to carve out scary faces to scare away Stingy Jack or any other spirits of the night. And it wasn't until Irish immigrants arrived in America in the mid-1800s and discovered the pumpkin that a new Halloween ritual was born.
Pumpkins are native to North America, so while it's not known exactly when the first pumpkin was carved and lit, the first mention of pumpkins Jack-o'-lanterns comes at 1866, when the children's magazine Harper's Young People reported that 'a great sacrifice of pumpkins' had been made for that year's Halloween celebrations.
Pumpkin carving grew more and more popular as the years went on. By the 1920s, Halloween had been embraced throughout the United States. Parties and costumes became the norm, and 'trick or treating' soon followed in the mid-1930s.
As pumpkin carving grew into a multi-million dollar industry, American farmers began to examine the specific types of pumpkins they grew, and bred new lines of squash specifically for carving.
Massachusetts farmer John Howden developed the Howden pumpkin in the 1960s, and it is still the most popular carving pumpkin in America.
However, the very things that make the Howden perfect for Halloween (thick stem, shallow ribs, thin flesh in relation to size) make it less than ideal for eating.
Meanwhile, varieties like the Sugar Pie, Kabocha, and Carnival make for better eating, and are enjoying a renaissance at farmers’ markets and tables across the country.
Now, some creative folks have crafted hilarious designs out of their bright orange squashes and shared the results online.
▲ Yellow's close enough to orange when it comes to carving your pumpkin into a Minion.
▲ If you're mindful about scaring the kids, turn your pumpkin into a villain-busting super hero like Spiderman to keep the ghosts and ghouls at bay.
▲ Or you could just petrify everyone with a wicked witch.
▲ Just cut an extra-large mouth so it looks like they’re eating their offspring.
▲ The Little Mermaid get a spooky new edge.
Anyway, if you want to make a pumpkin carving for yourself, take care and don't get hurt. Promise me!
Editor: Jiao Jie
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