Customer Reviews

The Perfect Pumpkin: Growing/Cooking/Carving

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This has to be the definitive book on growing and using pumpkins. The author covers everything from starting seeds, preparing the field, caring for the plants, troubleshooting and finally harvesting and enjoying the fruits of your labors. There is detailed information on pumpkin varieties and pumpkin pests. The final chapters have extensive recipes for pumpkin. The writing is clear and the scope is comprehensive. I highly recommend it.

This book was a wonderful addition to my book collection because I had been looking for a good pumpkin book for a while. There are tons of them here on amazon but the vast majority of them are mainly for very young children and aren't very informative for an adult who would like to aquire some practical knowledge on our favorite Winter Squash.
The Perfect pumpkin is really the perfect sampler of all types of pumpkin information, such as the history of pumpkins, how to grow them, how to carve them, how to cook with them( an entire recipe section! ) and even crafty things such as how to make your very own pumpkin hand soap. This is a very pleasant and interesting book that should satisfy both children and adults. My only gripe about the book is that the growing section wasn't as informative and comprehensive as I was hoping it would be. There is more than enough information for the first time grower, but for anyone who is a novice grower or professional grower should probably also buy "How to grow world class giant pumpkins" as a companion to this book. But for the first time pumpkin grower also looking for some fun facts and information about pumpkins in general, this is ideal.

How to start your pumpkin patch,from scratch? I'm surprised this excellent gourd resource book is not more talked about.Everything about pumpkins is discussed here.How to grow and how to harvest.All the varities charted and labeled.Trouble-shooting in the pumpkin garden and squashing pesky pests,(pun intended).How to carve and craft the ideal jack-o'-lantern for Hallowe'en.Also how to make creams,soaps,and other decorations.Good tips on storing,freezing,canning and drying.Final chapter has a seemingly cornucopia supply of tasty pumpking recipes.Competitive pumpkin growing is a serious big business thesedays.There is also good advise on developing and cultivating the 'Great Pumpkin'.The colossal cucurbit and the 'calabaza grande' alike. This is perhaps the most versatile pumpkin book ,you'll ever have to read on the subject.

The three thing, other than flowers, I enjoy growing the most in my garden are tomatoes, gourds and pumpkins. Each is an art form; each has its own rewards. Of all the books I have read, flipped through and studied, this by far is the most comprehensive and conclusive. I have been raising these nice plants for years, thought I knew quite a bit about it and was wonderfully surprised at what I learned from reading this work. The old saying about old dogs being incapable of learning new tricks is for of a fable than anything else.

This work takes us through the growing process right from the start which begins with preparing the patch and selecting the varieties to be grown. The care and feeding of pumpkins is much more complicated that the uninformed might think and to produce a good crop you have to have many tools and a good bit of knowledge. This work goes along way in providing the knowledge part.

Of course the book does not end here. We are given many wonderful pumpkin recipes, carving ideas, uses...both practical and decorative and given a wonderful history of this amazing plant.

Please note that for those of you that are interested in growing the giants, the really big honkers, then there are other works out there that might fit your needs better. I personally could care less about these monsters of the garden so I did not mind the lack of information in this area.

I was particular interested and rewarded with the chapters dealing with care of the plant, harvesting, and trouble shooting. Pumpkins can be cantankerous at times and there is a fine line between a successful crop and an complete failure...something that I admit has happened to me from time to time.

In our area of the country we have more than our fare share of pests that delight in munching down on these plants from the time they start to well past harvest time. This work gives good sound practical advice on how to control these critters. I am one of those people who are sort of ambivalent as to insect pests, rodents and such and do not mind sharing...I always plant more than I need just for this reason, but I have noted that many of the little creatures that infest neck of the woods are rather greedy at times and want more than their fare share.

I cannot think of, nor have I encountered a better overall general work on the subject of raising pumpkins...and I might say that many of the tips in this book also apply to squash and gourds too, so you sort of get double or triple your dollar's worth when purchasing the thing. The text is quite readable and done in an informal way that does not require a degree in horticulture are agronomy to understand.

There is something rather Zen like about raising a good pumpkin crop, watching it develop and harvesting at the end of the season...very peaceful; very relaxing.

I like this book and do recommend it.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks

A world of wonderful info. covering all aspects of growing pumpkins. Any beginning pumpkin grower should have it.