Simple in appearance but heavyset in weight, the pumpkin can be a regular blessing for the local farmer and international consumer. Among the hundreds of species across the world, Kenya grows a handful of these, including the newest global favorites that weigh much and sell highly. One of them is the 37-40 kilo marcotted or cross-layered cultivar that fetches around KSH7000 ($70), per fruit.
The reason for the high price is not hard to find. Many buyers from the Netherlands, Germany and elsewhere, go for the hybrid cultivars because of their compounded natural zinc that prevents radicals that cause tumors. With the rise of lifestyle diseases, you are bound to find the pumpkin in the market more often than it has ever been.
Alongside Kenya, several parts of the world contend for the title of growing and receiving thousands of the fruits. Key among the producers is the US, while the main recipient is Germany.
US as the Original Source
The pumpkin grows marvelously well in the US especially during the a relatively wet spring followed by a late relatively dry summer. This year, the country pumpkin suppliers are celebrating a lull in the love of other fruits in favor of the pumpkin, which has thrived owning to relative wet and dry conditions in 2017. It is an honor for North America was where the world’s first pumpkins originated. They thrive from early March and are ready for harvest in fall, usually every October. However, you can still find the food sources in different forms from January to December in pie and snack recipes.
Germany’s Pumpkin Festival
In Europe, countries like Germany carry out their European pumpkin weighing shows. For example, last year saw a sizable gourd from Switzerland come into the scene, a title that has always been going to American gigantic ones. In Germany alone, one city can receive from different world sources more than eight hundred species of pumpkin, especially during the festival locals of such towns as Ludwigsburg dedicate to the plant.
Kenya Pumpkins
In Kenya, the story is not so different. Traditional gourds ranging, from Curcubita ficifola, also known as malabar gourd or kanyuria, in the Kikuyu vernacular, is a small version of the pumpkin. It is commonly grown for its nutritious leaves that go into a mixture of local grain and legume meals. It competes with the common pumpkin or cucurbita maxima, whose main characteristics are lateral leaves with fine lines that cat through the middle. The flowering is usually yellow. The pumpkin itself is essential for baby and adult food while the leaves are edible when they are tender.
Size Matters
Marcotting or inter-layering two varieties brings added benefits of nutrition, disease resistance and size. So if you are after a huge fruit, with plenty of zinc, then go no further than Kenya’s Opica F1 green cultivar. It is a mixture of a pumpkin that thrives in the mineral-rich rocky areas, and jollydelle, a variety that has resistance against pests and diseases.
You can purchase pumpkins from Kenya by kilo parameters. A kilogram goes for around KSH 180, which means that a forty-kilo pumpkin will cost around $72.
In short, there are many places around the world where you can avail this special fruit. It is also essential to know that the Kenya varieties mature in about four to five months. Due to their organic value, they commonly feature in value addition. This ranges from porridge to zinc-rich supplements and a nutritious flour. If seeking for one of these huge pumpkins, do get in contact with a specialist at Selina Wamucii!