Hello I can send you squash/pumpkin, Moon & Stars Watermelon, Burgundy Okra and several others from your want list. I am interested in some of your Cilantro, Burpee Hybrid II cuke, Onion He Shi Ko (a bunching onion?) and Tigger Melon Thanks for your reply

I got tired of growing pumpkins and squash that were always killed by the dreaded SVB. I found an article in Mother Earth News that explained all about the moth that lays the egg that grows into the SVB..anyway if you grow Cucurbita moshata..a type of squash that has dense solid stems they are totally immune to SVB damage. I grew a Rumbo pumpkin that was wonderful. It is actually a cross between a winter squash and pumpkin. If you read the seed catalogs that give the real botanical names you can find other types as well. The Rumbo's were delicious and beautiful too. The only thing is that you can't carve them like a jack o lantern because they are dense. I got my original seeds from Jungs but Parks used to carry them too. There are also several varieties in the Baker Creek catalog as well. I attached a link to the Rumbo so you can see it. Here is a link that might be useful: Rumbo pumpkin

It's awfully hard to tell what that is ultimately going to grow to become, because they all look so much alike when very young. Why don't you post another picture in three or four weeks, when it's bigger and closer to maturity -- that would help ID it better. If I had to guess, at this point, I'd say it's some type, probably, of a C. maxima, could be a squash like Red Kuri or Lakota type "hubbard-esque'squashes, or it could grow into something along the lines of a Big Max pumpkin.

Pumpkin expert I'm not but I have made pies from pumpkins when I found pumpkins cheaply around here. I made the pies directly from the pumpkins and froze them. My kids loved them. I thought they were a little stringy but DH and kids didn't care. Wouldn't it be easier to find a farmers market or fruit stand around halloween and purchase your pumpkins for pies then? After halloween the pumpkin fields around here are littered with pumpkins. Probably what they sell for canning. I use a lot of pumpkin, canned, and perhaps it might be worthwhile to can your own.