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Produce => Edible Plants => Topic started by: tricia on July 26, 2006, 22:07:23

Title: Pumpkin or Marrow?
Post by: tricia on July 26, 2006, 22:07:23
I saved seeds from a smallish, roundish, dark orange coloured pumpkin last year and sowed them earlier on and now have three very healthy, huge leaved plants. There are several fruit but they look like stumpy marrows in colour. Question: Do pumpkins start off green and gradually turn colour as they ripen? Or have I sown seeds from an F.1 variety that has reverted? I bought the pumpkin from a roadside seller in Herefordshire while on holiday there last September. It's my first attempt at growing them myself though - as you may guess ;D

Tricia
Title: Re: Pumpkin or Marrow?
Post by: amphibian on July 26, 2006, 22:32:22
Quote from: tricia on July 26, 2006, 22:07:23
I saved seeds from a smallish, roundish, dark orange coloured pumpkin last year and sowed them earlier on and now have three very healthy, huge leaved plants. There are several fruit but they look like stumpy marrows in colour. Question: Do pumpkins start off green and gradually turn colour as they ripen? Or have I sown seeds from an F.1 variety that has reverted? I bought the pumpkin from a roadside seller in Herefordshire while on holiday there last September. It's my first attempt at growing them myself though - as you may guess ;D

Tricia

It could be an F2, or it could be an accidental F1 (cross pollination) if either is the case what you get may be rather random.
Title: Re: Pumpkin or Marrow?
Post by: Columbus on July 27, 2006, 07:50:41
Hi Tricia  :)

As far as I can tell yes they start off green and ripen to orange, or white-ish, depending on the variety.

Take note of the shape - it seems that squash start life as tiny versions
of themselves. The shape they are now is the shape they will be later.
ie. If they are long babies they will be long mature fruit, if they are round now they will be round mature fruit.

Keep us posted, Col  :)