Growing Squash

If you have room in your vegetable garden, growing squash can be fun and rewarding, and you're sure to find a favorite variety.

Growing Habits

There are two types of squash – summer squash and winter squash. Summer squash have edible, thin skins and are best harvested when ready to eat, as they do not keep well.

Winter squash have inedible, thick skins and, with proper storage, will keep for months, providing fresh produce well into the winter.

All grow best in full sun and warm temperatures, though winter squash will tolerate light shade and cooler temperatures once established. Most require lots of room to grow.

Bush varieties take less space and may be a better option in a small garden than vining varieties. Both varieties need a light, well-drained soil that retains moisture.

Hill planting provides an ideal environment, with hills three feet apart. This allows the plants to develop good root systems and spread over the hills.

A week after the last frost, when temperatures are steady at 60 degrees, sow squash seeds ½ inch deep at the top of each hill. When seedlings appear, remove the weakest one and allow two to grow.

For row planting, space plants three to four feet apart in rows four to six feet apart to allow adequate room. For a small garden, a tripod of poles can be used to support vining varieties and keep them off the ground.

Growing squash requires between 50 and 100 days, depending on variety. To get a jump-start on the season, start seeds indoors.

Provide lots of water when growing squash, and keep the soil moist throughout the season, watering only the soil and not the leaves to avoid diseases.

Keep the bed weed-free by adding a thick layer of hay, straw or leaf mulch. Fertilize when the first fruits set. When the vines are five feet, pinch off the tips to encourage side-shoots.

Winter squash flowers should be removed in mid-summer. By then, all of the fruits that will have time to develop have been set and further flowering will only draw nutrients from the fruits. Once fruits appear, place a clean layer of mulch or a board under each one to prevent it from making contact with the soil.

Harvesting

Summer varieties such as zucchini and crookneck should be picked when six to eight inches in length. Round varieties should be between four and eight inches around. Be sure to pick them all when the blossom drops or the plant will stop producing.

Winter varieties need to ripen on the vine. Don't harvest until the plant dies back and the outer skin of the squash is hard. If frost is threatening the plants, pick all ripe fruits and cover unripe ones on the vine with a heavy layer of mulch or a blanket.

If storing winter squash do not wash, allow to dry in the sun until the stem shrivels, and place in a dry location with a temperature of about 50 degrees. Winter squash may keep for five months with proper care.

Popular Squash Varieties

Among the summer squashes, zucchini, crookneck and straightneck are the most popular for home gardens. Winter squashes offer more variety and include buttercup, butternut, hubbard, acorn, spaghetti squash and pumpkins.

Squash Problems

There are only a few pests that attack squash plants. The squash bug and the squash vine borer are the most common, with occasional trouble from the cucumber beetle.

A long, grayish-brown bug, the squash bug will lay its eggs on the underside of leaves. Clusters of these reddish-brown eggs should be destroyed when noticed. Place boards on the soil overnight to trap the adult bugs, which will congregate under them.

The borer leaves entry holes at the base of the plant and lays its eggs at the base of the stem. These tiny red-orange eggs can be easily destroyed by rubbing them. The adult borer looks like a one-inch white caterpillar and can be picked off and destroyed.

Cucumber beetles may attack early in the season. If time permits, wait until later to plant squash. For an infestation of any of these pests, pyrethrins can be dusted on the base of the plant every two days for a week.

Many of the newer cultivars of squash plant have been developed with disease resistance. If diseases such as powdery mildew, mosaic, wilt or downy mildew appear, immediately remove the affected vines, place them in a sealed bag and toss in the trash. Do not add to a compost pile to prevent spread of infection.

Squash brings so many varieties of flavor to the table that growing squash has become a popular choice for home gardeners.

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