Something new grew in my garden trough. Sturdy stem and whirly, curly tendrils with prickly palmate leaves and big golden blooms soon grew luxuriantly. I asked my Filipino domestic helper what it was. 'Pumpkin , I threw some seeds there,' was her reply.
Because it just grew and grew, it reminded me of Jack's beans in the fairytale. Such a quick grower and a scrawling plant! Since it had taken root and was showing healthy signs of life, I didn't have the heart to cut short its life. Before long it was at the expense of my tomato and long bean plants sharing the same trough. Very soon the vigorous growth dwarfed them in the same space.
The vines just curled and twisted along the wire fencing. It grabbed anything in its path, entangling itself among the ixora bushes. Flowers appeared and they are extremely short -lived - just lasting for as short as a time as day. I learned to recognise the male and female blooms which grew on the same plant. But the baby pumpkins began aborting. Plop they fell to the ground before growing to a decent ping pong ball size. We hung on, me for the love of the green canpy of leaves and the showy yellow flowers.
In the meantime I heard groans of ' but we do not like to eat pumpkin!' When my sister in law heard about the promising start of a pumpkin harvest, she relished me with the different ways of cooking ala Indian style. Of late, I have a Sri Lankan domestic helper and she asked for pumpkin. By then, my pumpkin patch had long gone . Though hardy the plant succumbed to pests. Methinks it didn't have a fighting chance as there was not much love for it!! That was the end of the pumpkin growing experiment. So off I went to the local mini market. I bought the smallest ball of pumpkin. Voila! In her hands the pumpkin curry won accolades! Noses that snubbed pumpkins were surprised at the outcome. Everyone polished off the pumpkin curry and asked for more.
Because it just grew and grew, it reminded me of Jack's beans in the fairytale. Such a quick grower and a scrawling plant! Since it had taken root and was showing healthy signs of life, I didn't have the heart to cut short its life. Before long it was at the expense of my tomato and long bean plants sharing the same trough. Very soon the vigorous growth dwarfed them in the same space.
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| Greenscape in my garden trough |
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| Much green activity |
The vines just curled and twisted along the wire fencing. It grabbed anything in its path, entangling itself among the ixora bushes. Flowers appeared and they are extremely short -lived - just lasting for as short as a time as day. I learned to recognise the male and female blooms which grew on the same plant. But the baby pumpkins began aborting. Plop they fell to the ground before growing to a decent ping pong ball size. We hung on, me for the love of the green canpy of leaves and the showy yellow flowers.
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| Swing it out and hook! |
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| Feeling the prickly leaf |
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| Before it unfurls |
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| Love the bright cheerful colour |
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| Dying before the day is done |
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| Looks so well sculptured |
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| Hair so fine - so well coated |
In the meantime I heard groans of ' but we do not like to eat pumpkin!' When my sister in law heard about the promising start of a pumpkin harvest, she relished me with the different ways of cooking ala Indian style. Of late, I have a Sri Lankan domestic helper and she asked for pumpkin. By then, my pumpkin patch had long gone . Though hardy the plant succumbed to pests. Methinks it didn't have a fighting chance as there was not much love for it!! That was the end of the pumpkin growing experiment. So off I went to the local mini market. I bought the smallest ball of pumpkin. Voila! In her hands the pumpkin curry won accolades! Noses that snubbed pumpkins were surprised at the outcome. Everyone polished off the pumpkin curry and asked for more.
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| Promise of a pumpkin |
Posts
Pumpkin and squash blossoms are some of my favorite flowers in the garden. It's a double whammy treat, first the flower than the fruit!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on such a healthy plant in your garden.
It must have been a disappointment for you! My garden is small, but I have some potato plants and tomatobushes. This summer, which is more like autumn, anything will grow, for we have had a lot of rain.
ReplyDeleteHave a great rest of the week and thanks for the visit.
I didn't know we could grow pumpkins here in our country! And they have such beautiful flowers too!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this!
Great captures of the various stages.
ReplyDeleteHahaha at you not knowing what was growing in your own garden until your maid told you! You sure are funny, Keats! Pumpkin is awesome and full of antioxidants. I discovered a new way of enjoying them -- at the bottom of a pot of vegetarian steamboat -- last Saturday. Don't let them get cooked too soft, just leave them in big chunks, and they will be tastier than any mock meat or tofu! Pumpkin curry is the best! Or stir-fried with mustard seeds and curry leaves!
ReplyDeleteI love pumpkin and that pumpkin curry just popped an idea in my mind. Won't be cooking anytime soon though with my hand still out of commission. One thing's for sure, i'll be hearing some grumblings too.
ReplyDeleteyour plant doing fine... with trellis to climb. we have one crawling on the ground beside a row of lady's fingers.
ReplyDeleteHalloween is around the corner? Each time Bananaz sees pumpkin A Jack-o'-lantern comes into mind. haha. Lovely flowers and pixz of the pumpkin.
ReplyDeleteHello! We also grow the pumpkin in our country...
ReplyDeleteHave a wonderful day!
Beautiful pictures.This is a common sight at the back yards .Pumpkin plants are capable of taking care of themselves.They grow over the walls on to the roofs and get heavily laden.And,it is free !
ReplyDeleteI love pumpkin blossoms. Here in Seattle, just before Halloween, we take my grandchildren to the local pumpkin patch so they can pick out their own pumpkins. It's lots of fun! And pumpkin pie is yummy!
ReplyDeleteI love pumpkins! Too bad about your plant! I grew them once but it is overcrowding my little space and very prickly, so I took them out! So sad, but got not much choice! Next time, try hand pollinating the male and female flowers, that's what I've read before, but did not get the chance to try it myself!
ReplyDeleteNice. I love pumpkins. My mom had planted some when she came to stay with me for a month. Now it's all over the backyard. It really is an 'overpowering' plant.
ReplyDelete