Every year, the National Garden Bureau, a non-profit organization promoting the pleasures of home gardening, selects one annual, one bulb, one edible plant and one perennial to celebrate. It’s a great way to discover a new plant or to learn a bit more about a plant you may already be growing.

Let’s look at the edible plant chosen for 2019, the pumpkin.

History

For many, pumpkins are associated with autumn, sweet desserts, and Halloween.

Wild pumpkins are small and hard-shelled. Photo: http://www.tripadvisor.co.za

Pumpkins are believed to have been domesticated in Mexico about 5500 B.C. Originally, the fruit was small with a hard shell and was grown mostly for its edible seeds. Native Americans would also either roast and consume strips of pumpkin flesh, or dry the skins and weave them into mats. Over time, varieties with thicker, less fibrous flesh were developed and used for human consumption.

It is believed…