Pumpkin People

Pumpkin Fast Facts

Enlighten your family with these interesting pumpkin facts. Read them aloud while you are carving Halloween pumpkins into scary jack-o’-lanterns.

WARNING: Some of these facts might shock you!

1. Although most people think pumpkins are vegetables, they are actually fruit!
2. There are more than 50 different kinds of pumpkins.
3. The wordpumpkin comes from the Greek word pepon, which means “large melon.”
4. The pumpkin is a member of the Cucurbitaceae family, which includes squashes and cucumbers.
5. Long ago, the colonists made pumpkin pie a bit differently. They sliced off pumpkin tops, removed seeds and filled the insides with milk, spices and honey. Then, it was baked in hot ashes.
6. Native Americans used pumpkin seeds for food and medicine.
7. The largest pumpkin pie was baked by the New Bremen Giant Pumpkin Growers in New Bremen, Ohio, on October 8, 2005. It weighed 2,020 pounds. The ingredients included 900 pounds of pumpkin, 155 dozen eggs, and 300 pounds of sugar!8. Pumpkins are able to grow on all continents except for Antarctica.
8. Pumpkins were once recommended for removing freckles and curing snake bites.
9. Pumpkins are made of mostly water. They can come in colors other than orange: white, yellow and green!

All activities should be parent-supervised. Parents, please make sure that the tools and items needed for a project are appropriate for your child.