OK, one of my favorite cultivars is the 'Neck Pumpkin' -- it's a gigantic butternut squash with a small, bulbous base and a neck sometimes as long as two to two and a half feet. It can often weigh 12 to 15 pounds. Flesh is similar to any butternut. They tend to be curved and can be really pretty.

I usually get these seeds from Pinetree Garden Seeds in Maine, but I think Shumway in Wisconsin has them as well.

Her is a list of C. moschatas available. Note they range from the popular butternut, to cheese type squash to pumpkins. Pick the type that you would like to try.

Three different moschatas That I grew last year.
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Here is a link that might be useful: Moschata squash

Thanks denninmi for your response! I've heard of neck pumpkins and will absolutely check them out.

And farmerdilla, what a superb resource! I loved your photo and that link is amazing. I'm going to have some fun checking out all those possibilities. Maureen

"I don't have a huge garden so vine length is also an important consideration"

Unfortunately, moschatas tend to have long vines. While C. pepo and C. maxima have many bush or semi-bush cultivars, C. moschata does not - maybe it just runs in the genes. The good thing is that some of them, such as "Tromboncino", can be trained to climb. That would be my recommendation. There are quite a few commercial sources, including Pinetree and Territorial.

I've been looking at Tromboncino. Looks like alot of fun if nothing else. Although I think they are eaten in a somewhat immature form and are not suitable for long term storeage.

I'd have to agree with you, Tcstoehr. Because of severe problems with insects (borers) & disease (mosaic), I stopped growing zucchini, using Tromboncino as a less-vulnerable substitute. The plants are only vulnerable as seedlings, at which time squash bugs or cucumber beetles might attack them (they seem to be immune to SVB). But once the stem begins to root, the plants seem able to defend themselves; no more bugs or beetles to be found.

Provided that you have the room (it needs a lot) it bears heavily, and my family loves the flavor of the young, nearly seedless "zukes". But I allowed some squashes to mature for seed, and the stringy texture & bland flavor were not appealing.

Like zeedman said, most C. moschata have extensive vines. There are a few bush versions of the butternut, however. Burpees Butterbush is the only one that I have grown, but it is just as compact as a yellow crookneck.

zeedman and tcstoehr - I grew Tromboncinos several years back - I didn't realize it was a moschata. 20' vines - I measured!

Wanna hear something interesting about them? I had a part-time job as a cook for 35 elderly ladies at a retirement home. I had a HUGE Tromboncino that I took with me to work and served most of it for a meal. But it was so big I had to take some of it back home! LOL I put it cut-side down on a plate in the refrigerator and the next day cooked it for myself. Afterward I attempted to wash the plate it had been sitting on in the frig. The clear juice from the zucchini would not come off. Not hot water, not cold water, not a scrubby, nothing. I had accidentally discovered one of the strongest glues I've ever seen! I don't recall now how I actually got the stuff off of the plate - probably a very long soak. So beware the mature Tromboncino! Maureen

farmerdilla - Am I correct in assuming that a bush type butternut would produce less than a longer-vining type?

I just started studying the varieties you featured in your link. Thank you so much for that! You must be a squash lover to have put that whole thing together.

I'm going to make some kind of spreadsheet of vine lengths, but I realize I'll find conflicting information. Nevertheless I think it's worth a shot. Maureen

Yes, the bush types yield less per plant. On a given patch of land, the bush types usually outyield the vine types, because you have a much higher plant density. In additiom most of the bush butternuts seem to be small ( 1-3 lbs)