Naked-seeded pumpkin project

meadow

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Thank you for that reference, @meadow . I knew someone had continued working with the original Little Greenseed line, but my link to that effort (from several years ago) had expired. I was unaware of the release of Emerald Naked Seeded. I found it interesting that Holly Dumont was involved, I knew her casually on another forum (and through SSE) and had exchanged seed with her.

It appears that Emerald Naked Seeded was selected for many of the same traits I am seeking. However, based upon the photos & descriptions, they appear to have arrived at a slightly different result... and apparently still unstable. Everyone selling the seed appears to be charging a lot, for a relatively small amount of seed (Ken originally sent me almost 100 seeds).

IMO this parallel breeding project is still worthwhile - and who knows, we could end up with a better Northern-adapted cultivar. The results of this years 2nd generation grow out - if it shows improvement - should demonstrate whether my goals of a fully-stable variety are realistically attainable. If not... well, at least we'll get a lot of pumpkin seeds to eat. ;)

I was thinking while raking dry grass (gotta make hay while the sun shines!)... when I posted earlier, I noticed something that hadn't 'sunk in' before: Emerald Naked Seeded is Little Greenseed crossed back into the Grex.

I'd be happy to help with your project, Zeedman. I was planning to grow several varieties of hull-less seeded pumpkins to compare and see which I like best, but I don't mind putting off that project. My seeds won't know the difference, since they are tucked away in the freezer. 😁
 

Zeedman

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i'm guessing that since none of the fruits i took seeds from had the right traits if i keep planting those i'm not too likely to get what you wanted, but i'll keep them for now and see what happens.
Chances are that unless you hand-pollinated, the seeds you plant will drift further off type - with more hulled seeds.
thanks for this! it looks like if anyone can source Emerald Naked Seeded then you've gone several years later in the project without having to duplicate that kind of effort.
I don't believe that their effort necessarily went in the same direction, or I would not waste the time of others, or my own limited resources. The original seed was highly variable (even containing hulled seed) and could have been selected in many directions depending upon chance, and the preferences of the breeders. Furthermore, the seed I distributed was from my own 4-variety trial, which added further variation... as could be seen in the 2021 results. Given the fact that the current descendants of Little Greenseed still appear to be unstable, I believe there is a chance for us as a group to create something better.
 

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@Zeedman I agree with you. It is worth while continuing this project. Here are two pictures of the seeds I took today. Not sure which is better, one taken outside in the sun, one inside near a window.
View attachment 47149
View attachment 47150
I should add, I'm not in Canada, obvious from my loacation, but I thought the old Canadian pennies were more interesting than the US ones. Wish the 1927 one on the left showed up better.

@meadow Sorry, didn't think to take a picture of the back of the pack. It does say there 18 seeds, but I counted 20. Doesn't say "botanical sample: not germination tested".

those look about the same as the ones i grew this season. i had variations in size of the seeds between several fruits. i did not keep them all - i roasted two pints worth and they were delicious - i just finished off the last of them the other day. :) not having hulls makes them a winner right there, just wish the flesh of the fruit was also edible - i hate wasting anything (not that the worms minded :) ).
 

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... I believe there is a chance for us as a group to create something better.

i hope so! i'll plant as many of the seeds that you sent to me before i start planting the next generation.

i'm still never sure how much space we'll be having for growing squash up until the weather breaks and we decide how many tomato plants we need. everything else revolves around that decision. peas are the exception but i still have to figure out where to put those too early enough.

it's really too bad i can't buy the feild next to us. :)
 

Zeedman

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not having hulls makes them a winner right there, just wish the flesh of the fruit was also edible - i hate wasting anything (not that the worms minded :) ).
The very low amount of waste in Little Greenseed is what first jumped out & grabbed my attention. I had previously grown Styrian, and two similar varieties (Kakai and Streaker Jack). While the seeds from those were good, the pumpkins were mostly empty space, surrounded by a large amount of basically inedible flesh - a lot of waste for someone without animals to feed them to. The Little Greenseed from my first trial was just over softball sized, surprisingly heavy, and densely packed with seed within a 3/4" rind (the one in post #40 is almost identical). There were other traits I find desirable, such as the ability to root along the vine, and a short DTM. And based upon my observations in 2021, where I saw moths hovering around the plants & no later signs of damage, it may even be resistant to Squash Vine Borer. (Can't say that about my kabocha, which was completely destroyed). :(
 

flowerbug

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The very low amount of waste in Little Greenseed is what first jumped out & grabbed my attention. I had previously grown Styrian, and two similar varieties (Kakai and Streaker Jack). While the seeds from those were good, the pumpkins were mostly empty space, surrounded by a large amount of basically inedible flesh - a lot of waste for someone without animals to feed them to. The Little Greenseed from my first trial was just over softball sized, surprisingly heavy, and densely packed with seed within a 3/4" rind (the one in post #40 is almost identical). There were other traits I find desirable, such as the ability to root along the vine, and a short DTM. And based upon my observations in 2021, where I saw moths hovering around the plants & no later signs of damage, it may even be resistant to Squash Vine Borer. (Can't say that about my kabocha, which was completely destroyed). :(

i don't mind empty space as long as the seeds are easy to remove from the pulp, that is one trait i would require. the one you reference in #40 looks to me like the seeds would take much more time to remove from the pulp. i'd want a much dryer experience and was happy with the ones i had this year for the most part. the seeds were easy to remove and it was nice to not have slimy pulp to deal with.
 

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What do you recommend for spacing, @Zeedman ?

i had to laugh... :)

with squash the questions to me have usually been how much room do i have and what might fit in where? last year we had some varieties/vines going off into the pathways for 30ft. the green seeded ones seemed to be ok with 10-20ft, but probably could get done in 4-5ft.
 

meadow

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i had to laugh... :)

with squash the questions to me have usually been how much room do i have and what might fit in where? last year we had some varieties/vines going off into the pathways for 30ft. the green seeded ones seemed to be ok with 10-20ft, but probably could get done in 4-5ft.

I was planning to use the South edge of the garden, so they should have plenty of room to spread outside of the prepared garden area.

eta: I should say that the South edge is a 4-foot wide 'bed'
 

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