Autumn is pumpkin time. The world’s largest pumpkin exhibition shows that you can conjure up more from the popular vegetable than the well-known soup. The event is taking place for the 23rd time in the Blühendes Barock in Ludwigsburg near Stuttgart. The highlight of the event, which lasts several months, are the gigantic pumpkin sculptures: works of art made from and with pumpkins, with a different theme every year. This year’s exhibition has the motto “Jungle”. Visitors can admire, among other things, a crocodile, a colorful chameleon, a giant ant or the Disney heroes Mowgli and Baloo.
More than 600 varieties of pumpkin
The artist Pit Ruge designed the 14 figures. He and his team used over 600 different types of pumpkin and more than 100,000 individual specimens of the autumn fruits. Most of them come from farmer Jens Eisenmann. It provides 99 percent of the pumpkins needed. He started early this year. “The conditions for cultivation were perfect this year,” said Eisenmann of the “Bietigheim newspaper“When the seeds were planted in April, the weather was warm and humid – ideal conditions for the pumpkins to grow.
In addition to the “jungle” of sculptures, the exhibition offers an entertainment program. The giant pumpkin carving festival is scheduled for mid-October, where “international stars grab their knives”. A few days ago the European Championships in Pumpkin Weighing took place. The winner was a specimen from Italy weighing 1100 kilograms. At the pumpkin slaughter festival at the end of November, the record vegetable will be opened so that visitors can then buy the seeds.
The many colorful pumpkin varieties are not only part of the art exhibition, but can also be found on the menu. If you are hungry, you can taste the vegetables in sweet or savory form. You can choose from among other things pumpkin rice pan, pumpkin dumplings, spaghetti with pumpkin sauce and pumpkin waffles. If you fancy something exotic, you can try pumpkin secco and spritzer for refreshment. And for those who prefer to stick to the tried and tested: there is also pumpkin soup.
The pumpkin exhibition is still open until December 4th in the Blooming Baroque in Ludwigsburg to see.
Sources: “Bietigheim newspaper“, Blooming baroque Ludwigsburg“Visit Ludwigsburg“