Pumpkin Da Marmellata, Jam Pumpkins

Jam Pumpkin da Marmellata: Mid/early with French origins and very sweet flesh, this variety is used to make preserves. Because the pumpkin is sweet, less sugar is needed, and added lemon zest gives the jam a fresh flavour. The fruits are orange with a smooth skin and are flattened at the poles. Different pumpkins have different characteristics and some are better for some purposes than others, so check under each variety listed below that you are growing the right one. No point growing a dry pumpkin if you want to make jam, or a jam pumpkin if you want it for roasting. They should be treated like csquash, sown first 1" into pots or trays, and then transplanted out when the risk of frost has passed. They love manure or rich dark soil from the compost heap. They should be watered from the base to avoid white powdery mildew forming on the leaves and fed in the summer with some tomato food, especially if they are sown into growbags. Personally, I would plant two per growbag instead of three as they are hungry beasts. Well, they have pretty large fruits to produce, after all! Pumpkins are pretty easy to grow, but remember they are 'trailing' and will run. You can use this to your advantage by growing them upwards instead of along the ground, say up on to a shed. The plants do have little 'grapplers' that will hold on to whatever it is they are climbing up, but you could support them by using some twine or wire. Don't be tempted to tie this too tight around the growing stem as you need to allow some room to expand. Imagine if you didn't change your sweater between the ages of five and eighteen...Plants are no different!