We all love the story from the comic strip Charlie Brown of Linus and the Great Pumpkin, don't we? Pumpkins seem to bring out a bit of the kid in us, as we tend to grow them more for fun these days, rather than for pies and canning as previous generations did. Seeing the piles of big, orange orbs at the farm markets in the fall makes the chilly weather that warns of winter-soon-to-come a bit more lively.

Pumpkins, squash - what's the dif? Well, the distinction between squash and pumpkins are pretty much colloquial, as opposed to botanical. Each group has members made up of the 4 different botanical families: Cucurbita maxima, C. moschata, C. pepo and C. mixta. I know many folks who say their best pies come from fruits they call winter squash. So - if you want to call it a pumpkin, you just go right on ahead and do it!