I used our last squash the other day, it was a delicata squash that was still perfect. This is the first year we have had squash this late in the year, not from the freezer. Winter squash are one of my favorite foods so I was really excited to have one last this long.
This year I made some trays, out of scrap wood that River brought home from work, with hardware cloth on the bottom for air circulation, that fit on the large shelves in our closet. It worked pretty well. Our bedroom is unheated and as long as we kept the door closed most of the time the temperature stayed in a nice zone for keeping squash. My grandparents always stored squash under the spare room bed, which was also an unheated room, probably a slightly cooler temperature then our room was.
I was disappointed with the storage of our kabocha type squashes. I had planted three varieties; Sweet Mamas, Uncle David’s and Buttercup (my absolute favorite since childhood). They were the first to get soft spots, followed by the pie pumpkins, then the butternuts, last but not least the delicata.
This year I didn’t plant any Kabocha type squash. I may regret this later, but for right now I went with my best storage and highest production plants (for us, this was butternut last year)…we will find out in the fall if this was a good choice.
Your post is very informative! I love gardening. I was raised on a farm in North Carolina! But now I live close to town with very little space I made a small raised garden this year!
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We started out with small raised beds. Have you heard of Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew? Our farm grew from this in a way…
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I think I have heard of the Square foot gardening. I have a picture of my small garden on my blog. That we made this year. Pictures of the garden that my husband had when we moved back to the old farm several years ago also. The one we did at the old home place , we did like a garden that would be tilled or plowed. But we didnt have either. So we used shovel and hoe and rake. it turned out a lot of veggies. The Lord blessed us so we could share with neighbors.
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That is too pretty to eat. I have not grown delicata squash yet. My winter squash were grown from seed that someone else selected. I got acorn squash, which was totally rad, and lasted a very long time. (Our seasons are opposite of yours.) The Hubbard squash did not last quite as long, but certainly lasted long enough. I still like pumpkins too. They last a VERY long time.
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Where are you from Tony? I’m not a huge fan of acorn squash, not sweet enough for me, I always feel like I have to add maple syrup with my butter when I eat them!
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Well, of course! Why bother eating them without maple sugar? I am in Los Gatos, but we grew the acorn and other winter squash at the farm outside of Scott’s Valley in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The few miles in between makes quite a difference. The climate in town is that of a chaparral. Both climates are excellent; but they do have their distinct personalities.
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Greta,
Sounds like very productive gardens! Ours has changed and multiplied over the years too !
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