The Bertagnina pumpkin owes its name to its shape which has a characteristic protuberance that makes it resemble a “bartò”, the traditional headdress that local farmers used to wear. It is grown mainly in Dorno and in some neighbouring villages, such as Alagna which is called “Alagna di süc”.
It is best to cultivate this pumpkin in sandy soils as they do not tend to form if they remain in stagnant water. In fact, this plant does not need much water at all except in the driest summer months when it is necessary to give irrigation in order to keep the plant alive. According to tradition, sowing takes place on the first Thursday of April, also respecting the popular saying that: "i süc dal prim giudì d’aprìl i vénan gros me barìl" (the pumpkins from the first Thursday come as big as barrels). Instead, harvesting begins at the end of August and continues until October.
It is a climbing plant, it was traditionally grown by making it attach itself to the pergolas of houses. The pumpkin has a turban-like appearance, the top is much larger than the bottom which only has 3 or 4 lobes. The Bertagnina pumpkin reaches about 30 centimetres in diameter and a weight of 3 to 4 kilograms; the pumpkin is grey-green with a fairly smooth skin. The pulp of the pumpkin is yellow-orange and is quite firm.
The Bertagnina pumpkin is very versatile and can be used in many different ways in the kitchen such as in soups, risottos, ravioli fillings, in desserts or even just cooked in the oven. In recent years, pumpkin jams and beers have also been made.
Due to the mechanisation of agricultural work, this particular pumpkin has been replaced. Its particular protuberances result in there being a large amount of waste during processing. In the early 2000s, the Bertagnina squash was rediscovered: the seeds were recovered and an association was created to protect it.
The research activities necessary for the reporting of this product in the Ark of Taste online catalogue were financed by the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies, the General Directorate of the Tertiary Sector and Corporate Social Responsibility – notice n° 1/2018 “Slow Food in action: communities protagonists of change”, pursuant to Article 72 of the Tertiary Sector Code, referred to in Legislative Decree No. 117/2017.
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