How do you know if a pumpkin is ripe?
Pumpkin belongs to those crops that lie on the garden beds to the last. Later, only beets are harvested. However, do not delay harvesting the pumpkin. Despite the fact that its seedlings have good frost resistance, the fruits themselves are quite vulnerable to frost. If you keep the pumpkin in the garden until the very frost, after freezing it becomes unsuitable for storage. Therefore, it is important for gardeners not to miss the pumpkin harvest time.
How do you know if the pumpkin is ripe? The general ripening time depending on the pumpkin variety, as well as external signs, will help to navigate this issue.
Classification of pumpkin varieties and the timing of their ripening
There are many varieties of pumpkin. In terms of ripening, they are:
- early ripening (Freckle, Almond 35, Gymnosperms);
- mid-season (Russian woman, Kroshka, Smile);
- late ripening (Muscat, Vitamin, Pearl).
Early ripening pumpkin varieties are harvested in August, since they have the shortest ripening period - 3.5 months. Such a culture must be used within a month, it is no longer stored.
A little later (in the first decade of September), mid-season varieties are removed, which ripen within 4 months and are also used mainly for consumption in the next two months.
For storage for the winter, late-ripening varieties with a thick peel are used. They begin to remove them from the garden at the end of September. A feature of these varieties is that the pumpkin reaches full ripening during storage (on average, 30-60 days after harvest).
Depending on the climate of the region where the pumpkin is grown, some shift in the timing of the harvest is allowed. For example, in the southern regions, where the first frosts come later, crops can stay on the beds longer.
There is one general rule when harvesting, regardless of the region: the pumpkin should be stored until frost.
How to determine the maturity of a pumpkin?
It is possible to determine that the pumpkin is already ripe and it is time to start harvesting it by the following signs:
- The stem of the pumpkin has become dry and tough.
- Leaves and fences turned yellow and partially (or completely) dried out.
- The pumpkin color is brighter and the pattern is clearer.
- The peel has a tough structure, which does not leave a trace after pressing with a fingernail.
- The pumpkin rings when tapped.
During harvesting, care should be taken so as not to damage the integrity of the pumpkin skins, as well as prevent it from falling. From the blows, the pumpkin will begin to rot from the inside during storage.
The removed pumpkin is stored in a dry and cool place (in the basement).