Halloween is just around the corner but today is National Pumpkin Day!
Have some pumpkin pie, a pumpkin flavoured drink or carve your special gourd!
Pumpkin comes from the Greek word 'pepon' meaning large melon. More than 2 billion pounds of pumpkin is produced in Canada and the United States each year. Pumpkins are part of the gourd family, which includes cucumbers, watermelons and zucchini. The largest pumpkin pie ever baked was in 2005 and weighed 2,020 pounds.
It is reported pumpkins have been grown in North America for five thousand years. Oh and the health benefits? The pumpkin flowers, seeds and flesh are all edible and are rich in potassium and vitamin A. Pumpkin is used to make soups, desserts, bread and pie.
Originally Halloween was celebrated by carving out turnips and potatoes until Irish immigrants arrived to America and discovered the pumpkin, that quickly became a Halloween ritual.
