2011 Winter Squash Reports

[fortyonenorth]

I love winter squash and I'm excited to see some fruit beginning to set in the garden - finally! I thought I'd start this thread for any interested members to post updates on their winter squash.

This year I'm growing:

• Thelma Sander Sweet Potato (pepo)
• Scarchuk's Supreme (pepo)
• Vegetable Spaghetti (pepo)
• Musquee de Provence (moschata)
• Seminole (moschata)
• Greek Sweet Red (moschata)
• Sucrine du Berry (moschata)

Overall, I'm way behind last year - perhaps because of the cold spring. In 2010, I picked my first squash (vegetable spaghetti) on July 16. This year, I'll probably have my first by the end of August and the moscahtas are just starting to make female flowers. Hopefully, we'll have a long warm fall. On a very positive note, the cuke beetles have not as bad this year and this is the first time in five years that I have not had any vine borers.

So, what winter squash are you growing this year and how are they doing?

[O.P. Mater]

Love those winter squash.....just had butternut squash soup for supper and the first Long Island Cheese pumpkin filled up a 48 oz container with pure pumpkin puree for pies. I planted 2 long rows of each. I also planted a mixed row of winter squash that were destroyed by squash bugs and baby pigs that walked on the stems.....among them were Thelma Sanders, Cinderella Pumpkin and Delicata. The tractor took out the Jumbo Banana Squash & birdhouse gourds. Today I gathered 4 Green Striped Cushaw and there are several Spaghetti Squash that will be ready soon. I would like to try the seminole and I will look up the ones you are growing that I am unfamilar with. Last year I grew North Georgia Candy Roaster and they were wonderful. I have seeds and will send some to you to try next year if you would like some. Glad you didn't have vine borers......they have been horrible this year for us. I always grow butternuts and have for years but most of the other winter squash are new to me. If you find some that you really like, I would love to know about them. Thanks, Sandy

[FILMNET]

Butternut here, i put 3 plants in the middle of my small garden,I have had to cut some braces off it spreads to fast. But 7 fruits so far, 3 are 2-3 lbs already and turning tan color. My first time growing these, 73 days so far should i leave them still late September? No problem is they are tan from green and left on the ground for 1-2 months right?

[kath]

Originally Posted by FILMNET

Butternut here, i put 3 plants in the middle of my small garden,I have had to cut some braces off it spreads to fast. But 7 fruits so far, 3 are 2-3 lbs already and turning tan color. My first time growing these, 73 days so far should i leave them still late September? No problem is they are tan from green and left on the ground for 1-2 months right?

I've been growing butternuts for years, filmnet, and leave them on the vines until all signs of green are gone and the stems are drying up. Usually it means leaving them out until a freeze is in the forecast. The fruits can be damaged by a freeze and will look motley and not keep as well, in my experience. I've also found it helpful to put a small piece of wood or some type of barrier between the fruits and the soil to avoid the problem of little critters boring holes into the fruits and causing rot. The longer the fruits are on the vine, the sweeter they'll be.

[FILMNET]

Thanks Kath, i do move them a few inch's everyday they are on the hay i use, terrible rain last night, Did this rain came from you??? you are west from here,

[Direct Sunlight]

Originally Posted by FILMNET

Butternut here, i put 3 plants in the middle of my small garden,I have had to cut some braces off it spreads to fast. But 7 fruits so far, 3 are 2-3 lbs already and turning tan color. My first time growing these, 73 days so far should i leave them still late September? No problem is they are tan from green and left on the ground for 1-2 months right?

Once mine turn brown, they sometimes split open if left for too long in 100 degree plus heat. Cushaws may split but can also cook in the heat, can tell this if the top turns tan and gets soft. I picked the musquee de provence also for this reason. Where you are you may not have to worry about it. We've had quite the summer here.

[kath]

It sure did- we got another 1.6" in a couple hours last night but thankfully the large hail and damaging winds missed us.

[FILMNET]

The wind and hail went north, now Maine is getting it. I do pick any fruit with color off the plants, i have so many.

[Jeannine Anne]

I am growing much less these days although I raised 200 plants to share.

I have growing,

An assortment of blues all together in one large patch as I am not concerned if they cross this year.

These include. Blue Hubbard, Baby Blue Hubbard, Sweetmeat, Jarradale, Marina Di Chioggia,Queensland Blue, Guatamalen Blue, Sibley, Triamble,Blue Ballet,Crown Prince, and Blue Banana.

In an isolated area I have 2 Mayoral Blue that I am hoping to gert seeds from, this is an extremely rare one from Australia grown by the Mayor of Grafton NSW , the seeds of which he apparently never shared, after his death his family shared the seeds that they found and I got a few from a contact I knew who lived locally. Just a stroke of luck . I shared the few seeds I had with Tania and she is growing them too this year so our fingers are crossed that one of us will get seeds.

Then I have a few others growing in another area, Hokaido, Black Futsu, Delicata and Sweet Dumpling, Kikizu ( i think I have spelt that wrong) Neck ,

Then for summer squash I have Cousa, Sunburst,Butterstick, Yugoslavian Finger Fruit and a couple more.

XX Jeannine

[Mudman]

I wish I had more room for winter squash. I am growing Buttercup and the vines are about 40 feet long now with at least a dozen near full size fruits including a couple huge ones. Hope to get some more if the weather stays warm. I love squash soup on a winter day.

[tjg911]

i dropped delicata, they were good but did not store well.

i'm growing butternut as always.

this year i'm trying buttercup again after several years but this time i kept the plants under FRC until the 4th of july to thwart the SVB.

i've seen a few butternuts at the edge of the plot and some are looking fully ripe which is early especially in a year where EVERYTHING is late - i just picked the 1st pole beans today and that's a good 2-3 weeks late.

i saw some buttercups a month ago but it's just a jungle out there and i won't know for sure until labor day.

on labor day weekend i can see the fruits and the ground but just a week earlier that is impossible. there's a very distinct change that occurs the 1st weekend in september due to longer nights and a weaker sun. i notice it every year and that's when i know whether i have a good harvest which i always have but i only grow butternuts as the SVB always killed anything with hollow stems.

tom

[Jeannine Anne]

Mudman, I am pretty sure there are a couple of bush buttercups XX Jeannine

[TZ-OH6]

Pennsylvania neck pumpkin/squash. Many are starting to ripen and many are just getting started. They make very tasty summer squash panfried. The plants are as huge as the squash.

Butternuts--growing up/between two trellises. I'm happy with the production.

Spaghetti squash. These are all over the place. I planted extra for the SVBs but damage has been minimal so far.

[fortyonenorth]

A couple ripening in the garden. Blue tape is to mark hand-pollinated fruit.

Thelma Sanders Sweet Potato

thelma.jpg

Scarchuk's Supreme

scarchuks.jpg

[Tania]

Originally Posted by fortyonenorth

A couple ripening in the garden. Blue tape is to mark hand-pollinated fruit.

Thelma Sanders Sweet Potato

Attachment 20071

Scarchuk's Supreme

Attachment 20072

Thelma Sanders looks so lovely! I almost bought the seed last year... but stopped myself in time