Yokohama Pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata)

Pumpkin Yokohama (Cucurbita moschata): heirloom variety from Japan, naturalized American now. Although it disappeared for about  a century, it has recently been reintroduced and recovered in the US (see the section below for more detailed info). It is quite small, a bit ribbed, and shaped like a spinning top. The skin is thick and green, the pulp is golden yellow – sometimes green. It has a complex taste, not easily describable, exotic almost . The fruits can be stored for a long time tanks to its leathery skin. The plant is rustic, quite productive, and very tasty.

In the 1850s Japanese commercial goods became available in the United States, and plants were part of this exchange. One of those was the Yokohama Pumpkin, a superior winter squash that had evolved through centuries of scrupulous selection by meticulous Japanese gardeners. In America, Yokohama was introduced by a wealthy New York City horticulturist, James Hogg. Hogg's brother, Thomas Hogg Jr., was sent to Japan by President Lincoln as a diplomat in 1862. He also worked for Japanese customs and their government. He collected and brought many Japanese plants back to the United States and his brother James used them to build the Hogg Nursery, which became one of the best sources of Asian and Japanese plants in the country. Thomas spent most of his 10 years in Japan in Yokohama, and in 1863 James Hogg decided to name the variety after the city. He claimed he was superior to the Hubbard types that were the standard in American gardens at the time. William Woys Weaver wrote in Mother Earth News "the ‘Yokohama’ possesses one of the most complex flavors I have run across in any squash or pumpkin I have grown." Everyone's taste buds are different, but I detect hints of Asian pear, mango, avocado, lemon balm and, if you have experience with tropical fruits, the unmistakable aroma of sapote. Can it be a pumpkin? ". Like many family heirlooms, this variety in America gradually disappeared until it became extinct. So I started looking for this Japanese Heirloom and eventually found the seeds from Bruno Defay, who had saved this old heirloom in his garden in France. I was so excited to bring this Japanese / American variety back to America around the year 2000. It had been gone from America for almost 100 years! But thanks to a French seed saver, it has been saved for future generations. In 2017 we had the pleasure of bringing "Yokohama" seeds back to Japan. Local seed growers didn't remember this variety, but were excited to hear the story and receive the seeds hand-delivered after more than 150 years of travel around the world and nearing extinction. “ W.W.Weaver.