Squashes. Cucurbita pepo (Gallery 2)

Mongogo
The trailing vines bear round fruits, 15-20 cm in diameter which have 10 very proeminent ribs. They weigh around 2-4 kg. The stem is very long and hard. The skin is very hard, smooth, of green and yellow-green colours. The flesh is dense, thick, orange, not very sweet and of fine quality. The fruits keep from 3 to 8 months.
This heirloom variety is originally from the Guatemala.

Melonnette Jaspée de Vendée
This very productive variety bear embroidered fruits which look like melons. They are round to oval, yellow-orange. When fully mature, the skin is covered by small corky cracks. The flesh is orange and very sweet. Each plant produces 5-7 fruits which average 1-3 kg. This variety will keep for a few months.
This old heirloom variety is originally from Vendée, in the western part of France. It is also known as “Melonnette de St Julien de Croncelles”.

Styrian Hulless
This variety is grown for the hulless seeds which are used for roasting or for pressing high quality oil. The flesh is rather tasteless. It is a long vining plant which bears 35 cm by 25 cm fruits which may weigh up to 10 kg. They can keep for a few months. This variety produces fewer plants than “Lady Godiva” but they are larger. From direct sowing: 100-120 days.
A variety originally from Styria, Austria.

Small Sugar
The vines develop 4 to 6 round, slightly ribbed, fruits which are 18-20 cm in diameter and weigh 2,5 to 3 kg. The flesh is orange, rich, very smooth textured andsweet. This variety is excellent for canning, pies or for carving jack o'lanterns. It is a perfect variety, also, for small spaces and is easy to grow. From direct sowing: 90-105 days.
Heirloom variety from the 1800s, also known as “New England Pie” and “Sugar Pie”.

Swan White
The shape is similar to other acorns but with more pronounced ribs. The fruits weigh from 500 g. to 1 kg. The skin is snow white turning creamy yellow when fully mature. The flesh is pale yellow with a delicate and sweet flavor of hazelnut. This variety is high in calcium. The fruits keep from 4 to 8 months.
It was developed by Mrs. G. Swan, in Canada.

Yugoslavian Finger
This variety has a pretty unique shape : the big fluted, acorn type fruits have 10 finger-like ribs, that make points at the end of each fruit. The rind is cream-colored. They can be harvested young and used as a summer squash.
A variety originally from Yugoslavia

Custard Marrow Striped
The pretty fruits have the shape of a disk with deeply scalloped edges. They are white striped with green and yellow. The young fruits can be eaten like courgettes and are best picked when 5 cm across. They can then be grated and eaten raw having the taste of an artichoke’s heart. They can be also stir-fried. When fully mature, the flesh is thick, firm and white and the fruits can be stuffed. They are good keepers. It is a semi-bush variety which may yield up to 15 fruits during the season

Custard Marrow Warted
The custard marrows originated with the Amerindian people on the eastern seabord of America and their names vary in the Amerindian languages from Virginia to New England. The white and yellow fruited varieties date from the pre-Colombian era. The oldest depiction of a custard marrow dates from 1591 in the book of Matthias de l’Obel “Plantarum Seu Stirpium Icones”. One frequently finds, however, a variety of warty yellow custard marrow , a trailing variety, from a crossing in the 18 th century between yellow custard marrows and yellow courgettes (warty when fully mature). The striped custard marrow dates from the 1850’s and is believed to result from the crossing in France between the white cusard marrow and the variety called “Yellow Mandan” which seems to have originated a long time ago in north America. The different names mentioned in the book “Les Plantes Potagères” of Vilmorin-Andrieux, are as follows and are often very image provoking : bonnet d’electeur, priest’s hat, imperial crown, Jerusalem artichoke, Arboufle d’Astakhan.