Pumpkin 'Waltham Butternut'
One of the most popular pumpkins in the world, and the one that wins most non-pumpkin eaters over, 'Waltham Butternut' is originally from Waltham Massachusetts in the USA where it was developed by Charles Leggett and grown in the Waltham Field Station in the 1940s. The flesh was described as smooth as butter and sweet as a nut. Few could disagree and they are undeniably one of the most popular culinary pumpkins in the world today.
Pumpkins are the easiest of the curcubits to grow, they are big feeders, so dig in plenty of well rotted manure where they are to grow. They germinate easily in warm soil, gardeners in cooler areas can start their seedlings in pots in a warm spot and plant out after risk of frost has passed. Pumpkins need plenty of water as they grow, mulch well to conserve moisture and eliminate weeds. Harvest pumpkins when the stalk attaching it to the vine turns woody and corky. Cut (not tear) the stalk from the plant. Never lift the pumpkin by this 'handle' as if it breaks off the pumpkin will go mouldy within days.