Did anyone else carve a turnip instead of a pumpkin as a kid?

[FlyingMonkeys]

I can remember my mum always used to carve a turnip for Halloween. Was this a thing for other people too?

We called them turnip lanterns but they must've been swedes. I grew up in the 60s & 70s and didn't see a pumpkin until I was grown up, they weren't generally available. Like others have said, the smell was amazing.

Neepie lanterns every year. I don’t think the local shops even sold pumpkins.
We’d use a variety of tools. Screwdrivers, apple corer, spoons, chisels and had injuries every year. We had to core them in the garage though, which was so cold we couldn’t feel our fingers anyway, so when we did stab ourselves we couldn’t really feel it.
Then, all the kids in the village would head to the community centre and we’d parade in a circle once we’d all lit our neeps. The fun part of the game was not burning our hands if the lid fell inside but the candle remained burning. What a great smell it was!

The smell of the slightly burnt lid is very evocative

Omg, yes!! The smell!

My dh is determined that I’m wrong to call the big purple and orange things turnips, but they always were! We’ve had this chat more than once! I notice now up north where I’m from that they are now labelled swedes. It’s a bit sad that they’ve changed their name.

We had a swede - I'm not sure pumpkins were a 'thing' where I grew up early '70s

Always had turnips - my poor mam used to take the innards out of four - on for each of us kids. Her arm must have been ready to drop off by the time she'd finished!

They're better than pumpkins, and the "aroma" of roasting turnip stays with you all your life.

Yep always a turnip. Pumpkins were a mythical exotic vegetable 😂

Yes! In Ireland in the 80s. I don't think I saw a pumpkin til my teens.

They were a real shitter to carve though.

We always carved a turnip to make a neepie lantern and then take it to Brownies for a competition. I can remember it being bloody hard work!

I tried to carve a neep (swede) with my kids recently. It reminded me why we use pumpkins now!

I did. It was definitely called a turnip in the North East of England. I only became aware of them being called swedes when I moved to the Home Counties. I also ate the innards raw. 😝

Yup, we carved turnips (east Scotland, 1980s). It took all evening! Especially as my mum would only let us use a blunt knife and a desert spoon.

I never saw a pumpkin til the early 2000s when they were suddenly in all the supermarkets. And I was flabbergasted to find they are not only soft but hollow so you can carve them in seconds... but you don't get any by-product to make dinner out of.

I'd forgotten the smell of a swede lantern until now! We never had pumpkins either.

By the way, for eating there's no need to battle a swede with a knife. Simply stick the whole thing in the microwave for about ten minutes then peel the skin off the cooked swede and mash with butter.

Here's a swede. It's yellow. And here's a turnip. It's white.

Definitely a generational thing! I'm loving all the comments and the turnip/swede debate 😁 I'm NE, parents are Scottish so for me it's referred to as a 'turnip' (although officially a swede). It feels a bit jaffa cake debate. I rember the smell and the singed fingers fishing the lid out of it, whilst held together with garden string 🙄 I may end up battling one into Halloween submission this year for nostalgia purposes.

We carved swedes too - 60s and 70s.And now when I cut up swede to cook I honestly cannot imagine how we managed it!
There weren't pumpkins though.
And the smell of gently roasting swede when you lit the nightlight in the swede was lovely

NE Scotland - I had never heard of a swede when I was growing up. We called them turnips and the little purple and white ones were called nippy neeps or turnips. Not sure if the nippy neep expressions was just made up by my dad!

Another turnip carver here.And we called them turnips- large, orange flesh.
I never heard the word swede,

Cornwall here - definitely a turnip, and yes that is what we carved for hallowe’en

Swede here, too. North west.

We always had turnips! They made the house absolutely stink. Parents didn't carve them for us - we did it ourselves with a spoon - it took hours and hours..

Swede here (called a turnip), we were North West. I don't think I saw a pumpkin until I was in my thirties

I’m in the NW- I wonder why we called them turnips.

Dad is from Yorkshire WR, and Mum’s parents were from Wales and S Ireland. It must’ve been from one of them.

Yes we did! Also called them turnips although they were swedes.

We also used to make witch dresses out of bin bags!

Never carved anything as a child - but I have noticed in recent years (maybe last 10) that shops sell pumpkins at Halloween. They never used to.

I never saw a pumpkin as a child in Scotland, we always had a turnip instead. Might need to do one this year just to recreate the smell!
Glad I've found this thread as dh (southerner) and I have had many arguments about turnips disguised as swedes 😂

I'm from Somerset. We carved GOURDS! My Grandad used to grow them. I don't understand why he grew them as I don't think they're edible!