I'm considering trying to cross a crookneck squash with a venus fly trap with hopes of the plant eating those SVB moths and squash bugs. I planted 8 plants and got 4 squash.

I won't grow 3 Zucchinis again, that's for sure. Lots of those went into the compost bin. One plant should suffice.
I want to try Tromboncino squash grown on a trellis instead of Zucchini.
Winter squashes I love because I can store them for so long unlike other veggies that I have to eat *now* or get rid of them somehow. Winter squashes I just roll into the closet and come back when I need them.
I will grow Butternut again cuz they always seem to do well and taste good.
I want to try Sugar Hubard because it's so impressive.
I did grow Golden Hubbard this year but it's still on the vine so I haven't eaten any yet, but they grew well.

LOL SheBear... That could lead to a "Feed me, Seymore" kind of situation!

Hi tcstoehr,

I had to do a little Googling to find out what a Tromboncino squash was. Very interesting. It really sounds like the best of a zucchini and more with the seeds all concentrated in one end.

I'm also most interested in the winter squashes for their storage qualities. I've never eaten any type of Hubbard, how do they rate in your book in comparison to acorns and butternuts?

For next year, I'd like to grow a pie pumpkin, a hubbard squash, a buttercup squash and yellow / golden zucchini. Amazingly enough, I think I have the seeds for all of them. I've never grown any of them before.

4 zucchini, 4 crookneck, 1 spaghetti, and 1 butternut

EG

I plan on growing Sweet Dumpling, New England Pie Pumpkins, Butternut, and cheese pumpkins.

If you don't have much experience growing Buttercup squash, you may want to take note of the seeds. There are several cultivars of Buttercups, all of which belong to the species Cucurbita maxima. However, there are 3 common races of C. maxima, and Buttercup has been crossed so many times with them, so you can find cultivars of Buttercup which is closer to one race than the other. You can tell which from the seed. These 3 races (there are more than 3, but these 3 are the ones that are usually grown) each have specific seeds.

One has seed which is completely white. That race grows well in certain climates, but generally requires a long spring prior to the summer heat, else it runts out in midsummer, resulting in very poor yield.

One has seed which has a white base, but is covered somewhat by a brown swede like material. That race grows quite well where it can get full sun and the days aren't too hot. This race is what the original Buttercup was bred from.

One has seed which has a white base, but is covered in a hard brown material, the white only visible on the edges of the seed. This race grows well where it can get full sun. The longer the days, the better it grows. It is good for northern climates. Though it doesn't mind hot weather much, it does use a lot of water. It also requires better tilled loose soil the other 2 races, else it runts out. If the soil is clay, adding sand and gypsom helps.

Good luck.

susanne_in_nl, I've never, ever tasted Hubbard squash in my whole life. So I don't know how good it is. I've been told it's wonderful. I have 10 enormous Golden Hubbards apparently ripe, glowing in my vegetable garden. So I will soon find out.

I plan on growing the following:

• Winter Squash - Waltham, Table Queen, Buttercup

• Summer Squash - Tromboncino, Early Prolific Straightneck, Costata Romanesca, Cocozelle, Eightball

Dean

Hi all--I am growing for next year (see my trellissing post :D):

Winter:
Sweet potato
Acorn
Butternut
Kabocha
Spaghetti

Summer:
Trombetta (which is the same as a trombochino, and I have heard it can also double as a winter squash, with a butternut-like fruit)
Crookneck
Goldbar (love this yellow zuke!)
MAYBE a regular zuke
Pattypan

I have resolved NOT to try any c. maximas in the near future. Since moving to Oklahoma I've tried one each year. Each year the plant is either devastated by squash bugs before it can start sprawling, or, more often, it grows beautifully until, just as it sets its first female fruit, it gets hit by a borer. Wham! The whole thing dies almost over night.

This year I tried a Hubbard squash. When it went down and I pulled it out, I discovered MANY borers all through the vine.

The Warsaw Buff Pie Pumpkin, which I have grown for years, is a close relative to butternut (c. moschata), only more irregular in shape. I now have two strains. One is the original, which produces 3-4 different shapes. The other is a selection I made in the 90s. It only produces round "pumpkin" shaped fruit.

Next year I intend to grow the original strain and give it an optimal location. This year I grew Warsaw Round, the selection). But I got it in late and squeezed it into a location which hurt production.

Also, from a Gardenweb member, I received seed for a vining summer squash from Turkey. It's called Dolma Kabak. It's productive and puts down roots wherever the vine touches the ground. I've grown it two years now and intend to make it a permanent part of the garden. It does resist borer attacks better than most.

For an acorn squash I will grow Scarchuk's Supreme, from Sandhill preservation. It's an acorn squash with some borer resistance. Again, I goofed this year, by getting it in too late and with too little room. I need to make squash more of a priority.

George
Tahlequah, OK

Since 2009 will be my first attempt at squash, I thought I'd go whole hog.

I've got space planned for 4 Amish Pie Squash (C. Maxima), 6 Muscade de Provence (C. Moschata) and 6 Thelma Sanders Sweet Potato Squash (C. Pepo).

Wish me tons of luck!

I'm hoping to retry growing some butternut(autumn glow) and triple treat pumpkin. I tried getting a late crop of autumn glow butternut this year by seeding 4 plants mid august but only one plant bore fruit. They are about 3 inches long in a container and wont probably make it by the time the first freeze come along. I'd also like to plant some netted pumpkin again this year. Melonette Jaspee de Vendee and some winter luxury pie pumpkin. Anyone know if those two pumpkins are related? But they are C. pepo and thus susceptible to vine borers. I won't be planting any C. maximas again because they take too much space and are prone to insect attacks. The Seminole pumpkin squash sound very interesting but might not have enough time to mature in the northeast US. Has any one tried the delicata types "Honey boat and Sugar loaf" varieties and can give me comparisons on their tastes as compared to each other and the common butternut(sweetness, texture, firmness)? All my honey boat squash plants wilted under mildew pressure this year. The delicatas I've tried from the supermarket were bland and probably grown with too much water. So, so far C. moschatas are my surest bet. Around here the supermarkets sell kabocha squash for 80 cents a pound and they are super sweet. Makes me wonder if I shouldn't just plant flowers instead of squash.

One more question: The Autumn glow butternut I planted that grew large enough to bear fruit bore male flowers first. However, the female flowers that came about a week after opened up before any of the male flowers. Could this be due to the shorter days of Autumn? The plants are incredibly compact, no more than 40 inches long with very short tendrils. And the male flowers are very different from regular squash flowers. The flowers are very fleshy and heavy.

Sorry for going off topic, but thanks for any answers.

Jerryun, squash often do what you're describing. It takes some time for them to "synchronize" their flowering. If there was a large planting, my guess is that there might be some pollen available. But usually, it just takes some time.

I looked up Seminole Pumpkin, and it appears that it produces mature fruit in 95 days. I bet you could grow it.

George

C. maxima: Uncle David's Dakota Dessert. I grew it this year for the first time and it is DELICIOUS. I wish I had planted more, as I've eaten them all already!

C. moschata: Tromba D'Albengna (so curious--I think this will replace most of my zucchini-type squash, if it as good as everyone says it is) and Seminole (I wish I had a dead tree for it to climb!).

I can't wait!

I'm doing a green zuch, a croockneck yellow and a variety called Reve Scalloppini this year. I had problems with powdery mildew last year, but got a good crop out before they all bit the dust.

I am going to try my luck at winter squash again, I did Triamble, Galeux d'Eysines and Guatamalan Blue Banana last year. The vines died very slowly starting at the root end and moving toward the growing tip, I have no idea why. I didn't get any good squash out of them, though. Any suggestions how I can fix this?

Since you live in PA I'd guess your vines had borers. The three winter squash you grew were all from the c. maxima family which are very very prone to problems with borers. It's a shame too, because c. maximas are usually fantastic eating! Why don't you try a winter squash from the c. moschata family? For example any butternut or melon squash would be a c. moschata. This family of squash resists borer better than most.

Other c. moschatas:
cheese pumpkins
Dickinson
Futtsu
Seminole

George

Here's a good thread discussing the different kinds of squash/pumpkins out there. Enjoy!

Here is a link that might be useful: Oklahoma forum discussion on Squash

Macmex, enjoyed looking at the Oklahoma thread on squashes.

Is it bad that I've completely changed my mind on what I'm going to grow this year? Here are my latest thoughts.

Winter Squash - Green Striped Cushaw, Lakota, Long Island Cheese, Golden Pippin Acorn, and Pink Banana if I have the space

Summer Squash - Zephyr, Yellow scallop, Coosa, Black Eel, Green Mottled Grey, Amberpic, and Tromboncino

I'm participating in a squash swap so this might change again before spring!

No, I imagine it's all a matter of preference. But it is fun to dream about what we might be planting, isn't it?!

If you do grow Green Striped Cushaw, take a look at Sanhill Preservation Center's web site. They have a very good recipe for Cushaw.

George