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Field Pumpkin

Cucurbita pepo

Found in gardens, fields, trash heaps; commonly cultivated in home gardens and commercially, sometimes volunteering from seed the following year. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you

—
Not scored

Native status: sources disagree, under review. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 82%

Height
1–3 feet
Spread
2–25 feet
Light
Full sun
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 13.5 ft apart from its recorded spread. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Annual
Bloom
May to October

Not yet recorded · Leaves

Recorded in 5 Mississippi counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

13CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including MS

Genus host records with ranges including MS · Cucurbita

  • Agrotis ipsilonIpsilon Dart, Black Cutworm, Greasy Cutworm
  • Diaphania hyalinataMelonworm Moth
  • Diaphania nitidalisPickleworm Moth
  • Eichlinia cucurbitaeSquash Vine Borer
  • Estigmene acreaSalt Marsh Moth, Acrea Moth
  • Feltia subterraneaSubterranean Dart, Granulate Cutworm
  • Helicoverpa zeaCorn Earworm Moth
  • Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
  • Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
  • Spodoptera eridaniaSouthern Armyworm Moth
Show all 13
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
  • Spodoptera ornithogalliYellow-Striped Armyworm Moth, Cotton Cutworm
  • Trichoplusia niNi Moth, Cabbage Looper Moth
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
1Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Cucurbita

  • Xenoglossa strenua
Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Cucurbitaceae
Hardiness
Zones 3a–11b
Soil pH
Neutral
Flower color
Yellow

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Ornamental Gourd; Pumpkin; Vegetable Marrow; Zucchini

Conservation status

Mississippi rankSNA
Global rankG4G5
MS statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources