Reference Question of the Month

Posted by Judy T.

As the temperatures get cooler and the leaves turn color, many of us start thinking about the upcoming holidays—which often means we think “food!”  Here are some interesting facts to mull over as you start celebrating:

1.  What was the per capita consumption of candy by Americans in 2010?

2.  What state produces the most pumpkins?

3.  Male, female, and young turkeys are each called something different? What are their names?

4.  What exactly is a giblet?

5.  How many cranberries are there in a pound?

6.  Are sweet potatoes and yams different?

Answers: 1) 24.7 pounds 2) IL led the country by producing 429 million pounds (2009). CA and OH are also big pumpkin producing states. 3) A male turkey is called a tom, a female is a hen, and a young turkey is a poult. 4) Giblets are teh edible internal parts of a fowl, including the gizzard, heart, liver and neck. 5) Approximately 333 6) Yes. Although yams and sweet potatoes are both angiosperms (flowering plants), they are not related botanically. Yams are monocots (plants having one embryonic seed leaf) and are in the family Dioscoreaceae. Sweet potatoes, often called 'yams', are dicots (plants having two embryonic seed leaves and are in the family Convolvalacea. Sources: U.S. Census Bureau Profile America Facts for Features, Old Farmer's Almanac, Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Pacific Coast Cranberry Web, The Library of Conress/Researchers/Science Reference Series.