By Jennifer Browning
Pumpkins , a beloved symbol of autumn and a crop synonymous with fall , have gained in popularity over the last few years , mostly due to its addition to coffee , candles , and so much more . Every year , the United States produces 1.5 billion pounds of pumpkin and 80 % of this crop is ripe for picking in only one month of the year-October .
Texas is the fourth leading state in commercial pumpkin production and each year 5,000 to 8,000 acres are planted with this crop that in 2020 generated $ 2.4 million for farmers with an economic impact of $ 7.4 million in the state according to crop briefs prepared by Texas AgriLife Extension Office .
Pumpkins , like avocados and tomatoes , often get the debate of whether they are a fruit or a vegetable and from a botanist ’ s perspective , they are a fruit due to it being a product of the seed-bearing structure of flowering plants .
The moment you carve into a jack-o ’ -lantern , you encounter the stringy orange pulp and many seeds inside . Those seeds , also called pepitas , provide all the proof you need that a pumpkin is a fruit . In fact , New Hampshire officially named pumpkin its state fruit in 2006 !
Vegetables , on the other hand , are the edible portion of plants and because pumpkins are less sweet and more savory from a culinary perspective , we categorize them as a vegetable .
Over 45 different varieties of pumpkin exist . They range in color and include orange , red , yellow and green , and they boast names like Hooligan , Cotton Candy , and Orange Smoothie . Water makes up 92 % of a pumpkin and every single