Garden Tour: All the Pumpkins, Gourds, and Winter Squash I've Been Growing this Year

Few things bring as much color, texture, and pure sculptural delight to my fall garden as pumpkins, gourds and winter squash. From deeply ridged to perfectly smooth, warty to whimsically twisted, these fruits span a stunning range of shapes and colors: icy blue, sunset orange, near-black green, creamy white, and even dusty rose. Some are squat and ribbed like turbans, others long and crook-necked with mottled skin. Still others bear tidy striping or irregular splotches. Their diversity is both ornamental and functional—equally at home as a Thanksgiving table centerpiece, on the front porch, or roasted on a baking sheet.

Though they’re all members of the Cucurbitaceae family, pumpkins, gourds, and winter squash serve different purposes. Winter squash (like butternut, kabocha, and Delicata) are grown primarily for eating, with sweet, dense flesh that stores well into the colder months. Pumpkins can fall into both culinary and decorative categories—some varieties, like Sugar Pie, are ideal for baking, while others are grown for size, carving, or ornamental value. Gourds, on the other hand, are generally not edible, but are just plain fun. They are grown for their hard, durable shells and ornamental forms. They’re ideal for decor, crafts, and drying for long-term use.

Growing Tips

Growing all three types successfully takes some planning. They love heat and space, thriving in full sun with well-amended soil and consistent watering through the summer. But if you’re growing multiple varieties—and especially if you plan to save seeds—it’s important to know that cross-pollination can easily occur between compatible types within the same species. Using isolation distances, physical barriers like row covers, or hand-pollinating flowers are all ways to help preserve the genetic integrity of your favorite varieties. Even if you’re not saving seed, giving each plant room to sprawl helps reduce pest pressure and ensures healthier, more productive vines.

Let’s take a stroll through the garden, shall we; and take a look at all the Pumpkins, Gourds, and Winter Squash I’m growing this year for fall decorating.

Pumpkins

Jarrahdale – These beautiful pumpkins have a distinctive bluish-gray, ribbed exterior and a beautiful, round shape. Great for decorating. Due to their dense flesh, they are particularly good in the kitchen; in pies, soups, stews, pancakes, and roasted.
Porcelain Princess – Salmon-pink skin with bright orange flesh. These are a pink-skinned variety and their smaller size makes them ideal for tabletop displays.
Cinderella – also known as Rouge Vif d’Etampes, these are larger, between 18-24 inches in diameter, flattened shape and a deep reddish-orange color. Makes a great pumpkin soup in a slow cooker.
Marina De Chioggia – This is an Italian heirloom known for its distinctive bumpy, gray-green skin, yellow flesh with a sweet and creamy texture when cooked. Unfortunately, the seeds I bought were cross pollinated at the seed merchant, and I grew some lovely salmon colored Turks Turban instead. However, I‘m not terribly sad about that. I did a second planting late in the summer but am still awaiting my Marina De Chioggia pumpkins! I will update the photo below when they mature.
Musque de Provence – Gorgeous, large, and heavily ribbed pumpkins, also known as Fairy Tale pumpkins. The skin starts a deep green and matures to a beautiful deep tannish-brown color when ripe. Additionally, they are excellent for pies, soups, roasting, and other culinary uses.
Blaze – Extremely vigorous small pumpkins, to about 7 inches in diameter. They have adorable green vertical stripes which mature to an orange stripe against a yellow background. Perfect for tabletop displays.
Blue Harvest – Late Addition planting! The Blue Harvest pumpkin is a striking variety with smooth, slate-blue skin with prominent ribbing and a round shape that makes it both eye-catching for fall displays and delicious in the kitchen. Compared to Jarrahdale, Blue Harvest pumpkin is a just a bit smaller and more uniform in shape, though both share the same blue-gray skin with sweet, dense orange flesh.
Polar Bear – Late Addition planting! Polar Bear is a full white pumpkin. Beautiful.
Speckled Hound Pumpkin – Late Addition planting! The Speckled Hound pumpkin is a unique medium-sized variety with reddish-pink skin accented by dark green splotches, especially along the ribs, giving each fruit a striking, one-of-a-kind appearance.
Sanchez – Late Addition planting! The Sanchez pumpkin is a unique, bumpy-skinned variety with rich orange coloring and firm, flavorful flesh, making it both visually striking and excellent for decorating.

Pumpkins, Gourds, and Winter Squash — Musque De Provence

Winter Squash

Sibley – A type of a large blue Hubbard with an impressive shelf life and acclimation to shorter seasons. Excellent for roasting and baking.
Green Cushaw – Unique variety with green and white strips, a crook neck and a pear bottom. Takes a bit longer time to produce female flowers but once they show up the fruit matures quickly, and a mature cushaw is well worth it. Mildly sweet and meaty.
Italian Tonda Padana – Italian winter squash variety known for its deep ribbing shape with alternating gray-green and orange stripes, and a large, woody stem. While best for decorating, the flesh is sweet and dry, making it ideal for dishes like gnocchi, soups, and baking.
Spaghetti – A fun, bright yellow squash known for its unique ability to shred into spaghetti-like strands when cooked. When cooked, makes a great gluten-free substitute for Spaghetti. Super easy, prolific and forgiving to grow. Also for a fun recipe, try Spaghetti Squash Cake with Sugar Glaze
Acorn – Beautiful deep green squash with prominent ridges. One of my favorites, the flesh has a buttery flavor that roasts beautifully with just a sprinkle of olive oil (and maybe some brown sugar if I’m feeling decadent).
Butternut – A Thanksgiving favorite, this sweet squash has an orange interior and a creamy texture when roasted. And if you’re wondering how the air fryer stacks up for a quick solution to roasting, check out my Butternut Squash Showdown: Oven vs. Air Fryer – Which Wins?
Mashed Potatoes – A white acorn squash, this one is prized for its creamy, fluffy texture and mild, slightly sweet flavor that resembles mashed potatoes when cooked
Burgess Strain Buttercup – Open pollinated, the seeds of Burgess can be saved without fear of cross pollination. Makes an awesome breakfast bread due to the fact that it is drier than, say, a spaghetti squash.
Turks’ Turban – Turk’s Turban squash is a colorful heirloom variety known for its striking, turban-shaped cap and mildly sweet, nutty flesh that’s as decorative as it is delicious. Very easy to grow, little maintenace required for this vigorous squash.
Kobucha – Kabocha squash, often called the Japanese pumpkin, is a sweet, nutty winter squash with a creamy texture that makes it perfect for roasting, soups, or curries.
Lakota – Lakota squash is a pear-shaped heirloom winter squash with striking deep red-orange skin mottled with dark green streaks, making it as ornamental as it is flavorful. Inside, Lakota squash has vibrant orange flesh with a smooth, nutty-sweet flavor that’s perfect for roasting, soups, and baking.

Gourds

Luffa – A wonderful gourd grown best where you have long growing seasons. Read more about Tips for growing luffa!
Speckled Swan – One of the most beautiful gourds, and certainly one of my favorites, the Speckled Swan has a neck that curves like a swan, along with a lovely mottled pattern on its skin. Best of all, she is easy and forgiving to grow.
Giant Bottle Gourd -Classic gourd used for making birdhouses and in fall decorating.
Caveman’s Club – Robust and easy gourd to grow, named for its shape like a club.
Ivory Bell – Late Addition planting! The Ivory Bell gourd is a hard-shelled, bell-shaped gourd with sturdy handles. It matures through a lovely progression of colors—from white to ivory, then oyster, and finally resting into its final tan color.