Cucurbita maxima

Squash in the maxima group tend to do well at more Norther Latitudes. They also are sweeter with thicker meat and have a pronounced spongy stem. Maxima squashes are commonly used for pie do to their sweetness. The golden hubbard is widely used in the the commercial pumpkin filling industry because the golden color is the same color as the meat; the reason being that if a bit of the skin were to get in with the meat, it wouldn't be noticed. However there is a trade-off as golden hubbards are noticably smaller than blue hubbard which have more meat.

Buttercup - the smallest of maxima squash, perfect size for a family to eat. I feel their meat is probably the sweetest, making them perfect for pie. I also like their shape; there seems to be a perfect symmetry about the buttercup.

Open Pollinated Seeds, Tualatin Valley Grown. Farmingtongrapelibrary.com

Cinderella - Beautiful orange pumpkin, somewhat flattened, looks like the carrage Cinderella used on her tour of Europe after the second world war. Commonly used on Halloween for front door decoration. This is not a carving pumpkin, rather just a "good to look at" pumpkin. The Cinderella meat is sweet and excellent as expected.

Open Pollinated Seeds, Tualatin Valley Grown. Farmingtongrapelibrary.com

Golden Hubbard - As mentioned, smaller than the blue hubbard, same great squash flavor, bright orange color. However, unless you like to collect maxima squashes, there is almost no reason to grow the golden hubbard, or the green hubbard.

Open Pollinated Seeds, Tualatin Valley Grown. Farmingtongrapelibrary.com

Blue Hubbard - these get big, I like to grow them huge, selecting seeds from only the largest examples. In 2009 I made 9 pumpkin pies with just one of these.

Open Pollinated Seeds, Tualatin Valley Grown. Farmingtongrapelibrary.com

Sweet Meat - There seems to be an Oregon connection with sweet meat, or maybe sweet meat is just the most commonly grown maxima in Oregon. Buttercup is still my favorite.

Open Pollinated Seeds, Tualatin Valley Grown. Farmingtongrapelibrary.com

Atlantic Giant - This pumpkin is grown for competition, not for pie. The key to growing a great Atlantic is to remove all the little buds along the vine and leave just the first two. In fact, even remove the first bud and focus on the second bud. Once you obtain optimal size, slit the vine just before the stem to allow for fluid to drain, overwise the pumpkin will continue to "fill" with fluid and split your awesome pumpkin. Growing it on a pallet will also make it easier to move once it is fully grown.

Open Pollinated Seeds, Tualatin Valley Grown. Farmingtongrapelibrary.com