Discussion

Harvest Time

It is that time of year--mid-autumn--when the crops are in and temperatures are turning cool. We've just had Halloween, and Thanksgiving Day is arriving soon. Food of various sorts--traditional mostly but perhaps exotic, too--is on everyone's mind. This week's painting subjects, pumpkin and mushrooms, goes well with that theme. In fact, here is a link to an Italian dish that combines the two; Pumpkin and Mushroom Rotolo.. Mushroom Rotolo

Pumpkins

Five Little Pumpkins

Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate

The first one said "Oh my it's getting late."

The second one said "There are witches in the air!"

The third one said "But we don't care!"

The fourth one said "Let's run and run and run!"

The fifth one said "I'm ready for some fun."

Ooooooooooooo went the wind and out went the light

And the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight.

Pumpkins are a type of squash native to North America. They have been cultivated since between 7,500 to 9,000 years ago in what is now Mexico. There are many different types of pumpkin.

In Japan, the English word, pumpkin, brings to mind a different type of squash, however. The Japanese word for it is nankin or kabocha. In English, it is called a Japanese pumpkin.

It is used in a number of popular dishes in Japan. The skin is edible.

The Japanese word for pumpkin in this course's syllabus is nankin, so when I say that pumpkin is part of this week's painting subject, I really meant nankin or kabocha. 

In North America and Europe, however, this is the type of pumpkin that comes to mind around this time of year.

As you can see, pumpkin leaves are quite large. So are the blossoms. The photo below shows the blossom of a kabocha (Japanese pumpkin). The bulge at the base indicates a female blossom. Male blossoms just have a narrow stem. Pumpkin blossoms are very similar to kabocha blossoms. 

Cut a pumpkin open, and you see can masses of stringy pulp and seeds.

Pumpkins are a type of winter squash (Cucurbita pepo). Among their nutritional benefits, pumpkins are a good source of vitamin A and beta-carotene. Pumpkin seeds are a good source of protein, magnesium, copper and zinc.

They are frequently eaten roasted.

Some varieties of pumpkins are giants like this roughly 1,000 lb. specimen. 

Some have been weighed up to a metric tonne.

Most of the time when we think of pumpkins, we think of something that looks like this.

These generally weigh in the range 6 to 18 lb., though larger cultivars can reach up to 75 lbs. They can be used for home-made pumpkin pie filling, though most canned pumpkin pie fillings are derived from other types of pumpkins.

Another all-important use for pumpkins is the carving of jack o' lanterns around Halloween.

The tradition of carving jack o' lanterns goes back to Ireland before pumpkins were available. Lit coals were placed inside carved and hollowed-out potatoes, turnips or gourds to make them glow in the dark. The purpose was to scare off evil spirits on Hallows' Eve, today known as Halloween (Oct. 31), the day before All Saints Day, also known as All Hallows' Day (Nov. 1).

Those familiar with L. Frank Baum's Oz books may recognize this character from, The Marvelous Land of Oz, the second book of the series, Jack Pumpkinhead.

Mushrooms

To start off with, there is no meaningful distinction between mushrooms and toadstools. People have a tendency to think of mushrooms as being safely edible and toadstools as being toxic. The label doesn't matter. Some organisms are called by both names.

Mushrooms (and/or toadstools) are the fruiting bodies of fungi that live underground. This anatomy chart illustrates significant parts of the organism. (It is tempting to call it a plant, but strictly speaking, mushrooms aren't plants.)

The mycelium looks like roots in this picture, but in fact, that is the real organism. The rest, the mushroom, is merely a temporary fruiting body. Depending on the type of fungi, the mycelium, consisting of thread-like filaments, may span an area too small to be seen or be spread across thousands of acres. In North America alone, there are about 10,000 named species of mushrooms. More than five times that many have been described.

The most common type of mushroom consumed in the world is the button or white cap (Agaricus bisporus). It goes by other names, too.

The photo above shows Agaricus bisporus if it is picked when immature. Button mushrooms closely resemble the destroying angel, an extremely toxic species. It is best to get farm-grown mushrooms in stores rather than try to find them in the wild. If searching for them yourself, be very very very certain you can tell which is which.

If allowed to mature somewhat, Agaricus bisporus looks like this and is called cremini, Swiss brown, Roman brown, or baby bella. Together, cremini and button mushrooms comprise 90% of the U.S. market.

When fully mature, Agaricus bisporus becomes a portobello mushroom. It is truly a three in one food.

There are so many other kinds of mushrooms that it is impossible to show more than a few. The enokitake is native to Japan and is used in many Asian dishes

Another popular edible Asian mushroom is shiitake. Shiitake has been mentioned in ancient Japanese texts. It accounts for 25% of the world's mushroom market today.

There is a rule of thumb that says that any mushroom that is colorful is deadly. That isn't always true, but it is for the Amanita Muscaria or fly agaric.

The crab brittlegill is colorful, but the cap is safely edible. It has a natural crab aroma.

Some mushrooms are known for medicinal purposes, like this lions mane mushroom, used in Chinese medicine for over 2,000 years. It is better known for maintaining health if taken daily rather than for curing specific ailments. Its appearance is exotic, even for mushrooms.

Speaking of exotic appearing mushrooms, the morel is highly prized in French cuisine, adding flavor to many dishes. It is said that the cost of this expensive item is worth it to those who have tasted one after it has been sautéed in butter.

Mushrooms have played a role in folklore, especially fairy rings.

Artwork

Katsushika Hokusai (1760 – 1849)

Hokusai is almost universally recognized as a great landscape artist for his series of ukiyo-e, but he painted many other subjects on other types of media, too. The painting below, Pumpkin (kabocha) Vine and Horsefly, was done in the 1825 to 1833 timeframe.

Imao Keinen (1845 – 1924)

Keinen, a leader in the shin-hanga (new prints) movement was appointed an imperial household artist. The print below, Pumpkin (kabocha) & Blackbird, is from an album he published in 1892 (Keinen Kachō Gafu) depicting a series of kachō-ga (birds and flowers pictures), woodblock prints.

Ogata Gekkō (1859 – 1920)

Gekkō was a self-taught ukiyo-e painter. He won numerous national and international prizes and was well known outside of Japan. Here is his Pumpkin and Dragonfly (kabocha ni tonbō).

Muzuno Toshikata (1866 – 1908)

Educated on the Utagawa school style of painting under Yoshitoshi Tsukioka, Toshikata was a popular book illustrator. He was one of the founders of the Nihonga Society of the Japan Art Association and the Japanese Art Institute. The painting below titled Gathering Mushrooms was produced in 1893.