The frost that looked likely did not come to pass, but we took that as a signal to harvest all the winter squash.
Gardeners planted fourteen rows of winter squash: buttercup, butternut, and delicata seeds. Some squash plants grow into widely sprawling vines. This is the butternut squash bed. Before it was time to plant squash, these trellises hosted snap peas, snow peas, and cucumbers.
Oh look, among the squashes: a left-over cucumber!
While Burgess buttercup is a favorite variety, and we do grow it, butternut squashes have always thrived best here.
Delicata does nicely here too. This year’s harvest was smaller than usual. Hungry voles munched on crops where the delicata was growing, and the soil is more clay in that area too. Delicata squash plants don’t sprawl into vines but grow as small bushes, more like summer squash. Delicata squash roasts up sweet and tender and the skin is edible and appealing.
Once the harvest is in, gardeners divide the squashes into shares, one for each gardener household. We could discuss storage methods, but growing squash takes up so much room in the garden that each share is somewhat modest. Storage is rarely needed.
Oh heck, why not? Store winter squash in a cool, dark place with good air circulation. Or bake or boil squashes, divide into portion sizes, and freeze. Delicious!
