Pumpkin Trivia

pumpkinThere is far more to pumpkins than most people realize. Pumpkins are being used as boats, in sports and creams. They are a very nutritious and hearty fruit. Pumpkins have grown far beyond being merely Halloween decorations.

One of the strangest sports in the world is pumpkin boat racing. Never heard of it? Pumpkin racing began in Windsor, Nova Scotia. Contestants hollow out their giant pumpkin and race it across Lake Pesaquid. The PVCs (personal vegetable crafts) are divided into different groups. They have a paddling group and a motorized and experimental class. Contestants are encouraged to not only decorated their PVC’s but to wear a costume. In Windsor the day of the big race is a whole day of pumpkin fun and games.

Howard Dill has been dubbed the ‘Pumpkin King‘. Dill is the man behind the Giant Pumpkin. It was his engineering and cross breeding that gave us the seeds for growing enormous pumpkins. Dill, himself held the title for growing the world’s largest pumpkin a number of times, before his record was defeated. Dill is also the founder of the world famous pumpkin races held in Windsor, Nova Scotia. Continue reading

Oyster Trivia

Oysters on the half shellOysters which used to be considered a poor man’s food are now one of the world’s delicacies. There are hundreds of ways that an oyster can be prepared and eaten. They are also the subject of many myths and old wives tales. What are the facts about oysters?

Casanova ate oysters every day.

Oysters are able to change their sex. Most oysters are male for the first year of their lives and then become female by the age of two or three.

An oyster eats by taking nutrients out of the water. It does this by filtering the water. An oyster is capable of filtering 60 gallons of water every day.

Oysters may contain viruses. Special care is needed to handle and eat oysters.

One common virus carried by the oyster is norovirus. The norovirus can cause gastroenteritis, or stomach flu. The most common symptoms of this are diarrhea, vomiting and cramps. This condition can be fatal.

Oysters can be eaten year round. There is an old wives tale that says you should only eat oysters in months that have a “r”. in them. This a myth. Continue reading

Potato Trivia

potatoesPotatoes are probably one of the most versatile vegetables on the planet. They are grown on every continent except Antarctica, and they are able to grow in almost any condition. There are also countless ways of cooking and preparing them. The potato can be baked, boiled, broiled, fried, scalloped and the list goes on and on. Potatoes are one of the world’s most important crops.

Potatoes were first cultivated in Peru. Potatoes were an important food source for the ancient Incans. They could grow and store potatoes at elevations over 10 00 feet. Potatoes could be frozen and stored and would not spoil or lose their food value.

The potato had become a staple of the Irish diet by the early 1800s. In 1845 and 1846 the potato crops in Ireland were destroyed by a fungus. The result of this devastation was a widespread famine, which became known as the Irish Potato Famine. During this time many families immigrated to the New World.

The space shuttle Columbia took potato plants into space in 1995. This was the first time that food was grown in space. Continue reading