Growing Butternut SquashThis page is about growing butternut squash, which is a winter squash. Winter squash does not mean it can be grown during the winter. Squash is not self-pollinating therefore it will require bees and other insects to pollinate it. These insects are usually in hibernation during the wintertime.
The term winter squash refers more to the time it is sold than the time it is planted. Usually winter squash is planted in the summer time and harvested until the Fall but will keep well into February depending on how cool of a place you can store it. Squash does not grow in the wintertime. It is a hot weather plant and likes temps the high 80's to low 90's. Anything above this and they die. Since it is now September, it is not a good time to plant winter squash or squash of any kind. Generally winter squash is larger and more meaty than summer squash, which is squash grown during the summertime and harvested during the summertime but it does not have as long a shelf life as winter squash. Winter squash usually requires at least one hundred plus days to mature depending on the variety, while summer squash can be ready in about fifty days.
For the purpose of this site, we will be planting and growing the Waltham Butternut Squash. (pictured to the right) The Waltham is the standard butternut. It is a light tan-colored winter squash with small seed cavities and thick, cylindrical necks without crooks. Uniform fruits avg. 9" long, avg. 4-5 lb. The flesh is smooth-textured and has a unique sweet flavor, particularly after 2 months’ storage. Days to Maturity: 105 I have decided to try growing some squash in a container. I started by planting my seeds in some DOT Pots for ease in transplanting. I planted four seeds in each pot which is the number of plants we would want if planting outside in a hill.
In the picture below is our Squash. It is making some progress but has been hindered some due to the two weeks of rain and cloudy weather we have had. We Praise God for the rain. I have had about seven inches in the past two weeks.
Below is a video where we transplanted the growing Butternut squash into a larger container. In the video I call the squash pumpkins for some reason. Guess I am getting my vegetables all confused.
For more about squash see growing squash, Winter Squash and How to Grow Acorn Squash. 10-19-09 The video below is about transplanting our Butternut Squash. 12-05-09 The squash was doing OK but then we had a deep freeze so the squash died. We will wait until the Spring to try again. Your Garden StoryDo you have a garden story to share with us?
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