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Trail Blazers: The Great Gourd

Trail Blazers is a weekly historical feature in partnership with the Trail Museum and Archives
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Oasis resident Joe Thalman grew this massive Manitoba squash measuring 67 inches around in October 1974. Photo: Trail Historical Society

How did your garden grow this year?

Featured in the Oct. 4, 1974 edition of Trail Daily Times, was Oasis resident Joe Thalman, who grew this massive Manitoba squash measuring 67 inches around.

The former Rossland resident donated the squash to the kitchen of the Mater Misericordiae Hospital in Rossland.

Looking at this fantastic image of the past brings up a question, “What’s the difference between a pumpkin and a squash?”

According to Askanydifference.com, pumpkin and squash are two of the most common fruits that belong to the Cucurbita genus. In actuality, squash is a term that is used for all the fruits that belong to this genus.

Thus, it can be said that pumpkin is a kind of squash.

Furthermore, a gourd - which is the hard-shelled fruit of various plants - and pumpkins belong to the same family, so they do not differ much. One variance between the two is that gourds can be only dried when mature and pumpkins can only be eaten when mature.

Squash, gourd, and pumpkin aside, did you grow something impressive this year?

Share photos of your garden delights with us! Email editor@trailtimes.ca.

Read more: Perplexed by a purple tomato?

Read more: The search for ‘stumpinis’



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Sheri Regnier

About the Author: Sheri Regnier

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