As another Lame Cherry exclusive in matter anti matter.
There is a dilemma with squash and pumpkins. They grow well, but like turkeys there is only so much of them you can eat, and when it comes right down to it, most of them repel you in flavor and are one time holiday meal.
This is my fun time, as most of what is posted here is not fun and a burden in how evil the world is and waiting around for God's Judgment is to me wasting time.
The subject though is squash and pumpkins. This is a list of some of the trial varieties God grew for me and how they turned out as it may help you in your growing things.
God is growing spaghetti squash this year for us, and I found that they grow about like cucumbers in setting on as fast as they can. I do not know about size yet, but they are prolific. These seeds came from one in the grocery. As far as I can assess, a few hills of these squash would provide any family with all the vegetable pasta that you could desire.
That is what the problem is with most squash. They produce wheel barrel fulls of them, and unless you feed them to livestock, you got way too much of everything going on.
I splurged this year on two varieties. As I recorded here, I started as tradition 2 years ago with TL about making George and Martha Washington pumpkin pie without the crust. You just put it in the shell.
We tried those baby boo things and that was ok. We tried one bought out of Home Depot I think it was or something and it was good, but pumpkins have that deep orange thing going on in the seeds and unless you get it gone, it makes you wince as it is strong flavored, and this one was a bit stringy which was unpleasant in the 3rd serving.
So I came upon an 1800's pumpkin, which I think is a squash pumpkin cross called Wintery Luxury. It is supposed to be good, and it is growing pretty good, as I saw at least one set on and it was turning orangish by the middle of July from started seeds inside.
The second one we tried was Baby Butternut. This is from that Dr. Meader breeding program of long ago. I first tried Butternuts from seeds a neighbor had in squash I picked up out of his garden when he left for the winter. They grew but were late........and I got good crops of them, but I honestly hate squash, so it was like I had too many.
I just sort of stopped growing them, and went to Acorns, which are a rather tasteless but prolific squash here too. Not as prolific of Buttercups, but those things............Lord God I gag from eating them literally as they are too squashy tasting.
I have also grown Hubbards. They grow well, but it is hell trying to get those hard shelled things open and when you do.......you got nothing but puke squash inside as far as my gut check tells me.
I did some old Arikara squash too........damned neared killed me as my body reacted to them like poison. Any way, back to the Baby Butternut.
These squash are 105 day squash. Butternuts tend to be 110 day squash which is long season. These squash I had just one plant, and it is among the spaghetti and Red Kuri, but after a very poor look of trying to die, it is chugging along like a weed.
It is setting fruit on some how, in I can find no male blossoms.........squash only breed to genus and will not crossbreed.
So here we come to the Baby Butternut which is setting a fruit on about every 2 feet. If they would have time to keep growing, I think they would put on 60 feet of vines. I do not know how big the fruit will be, but they certainly are performing well at this time, which has been quite hot, and now is getting quite cool and dry.
The Red Kuri, I do not know. They are lagging and not setting on well yet. I hope that they do, as I really do like Red Kuri. They are the one squash which had not gagged me.
I like eating Butternuts sliced, and roasted in the oven with olive oil, salt and pepper on them in sort of almost potato chip wedges. That does not make me gag, and it is a way to eat something that does produce too much of things.
I also have a squash pumpkin (yes I know all pumpkins are squash Mr. College degree in pepo and maxima.) which set on early, but it seems to have a problem with really hot mid summer temperatures. I grow this one as when I was young, Mom used to make pumpkin pie from these big fruits and people just loved them. Is nice to visit the past even if it was bad the memory was good.
That about is it for the trials. Yes I have grown Amish Pie.........did well enough too as most squash do. Still waiting on Red Kuri, but they might be some Japanese climate thing that the change to the west might be something it needs to work with yet, meaning I need a fruit to set on, to grow it out a few years.
These seeds are from the one which TL and I grew on the deck last year. Vines there were only like 6 feet, and both ways I have going on 30 feet I think. Just need them to behave better in this cold hot desert situation I am stuck with at times.
I know there are those big wheel squashes that I might try some year, but right now I am settling on the reality of..........oh I got some Russian summer squash I have to check on too. Were making big plants, but did not see if it was setting fruit as was a direct seeding.....but the situation is, I had good results so far with Baby Butternut, Spaghetti and maybe that Winter Luxury. Book is out on Red Kuri yet, which I do want to set on to please me. They just do not like most squash like 90 to 100 degree heat.
Squash like a dry warmth and almost cool nights in the 60's it seems. But give them some rain and they produce mammoth crops in the nice part about squash is many of them set down roots at vine junctures and suck moisture in that way. That is where these huge crops come from.
I like the Baby Butternut.....will like it better when the fruit ripens and have too many of them. Like Spaghetti as it is not proper to be buying things like that when they grow so easy. I want to like Red Kuri, but it is fickle here. It sometimes takes a few years to get plants regionalized to you for them to grow. That is why it is important to save seeds and keep acclimating your plants.
Well playtime is over and I hope the information helps.
agtG
