Squash

[Containergardener]

I like butternut and fancy growing some squash (for the first time), I don't know how well they will do here but could anyone advise me on them or other varieties.

[smallblueplanet]

One of our favourite winter squash is onion squash or uchiki kuri. They seem to be much of a muchness 'variety-wise'. We also like butternut squash but they are harder to grow to good fruition as they like long hot seasons. We 'discovered' Barbara butternut f1 squash and they do really well in our shorter seasons, they taste nice too.

[Snoop Puss]

Good recommendations, SBP. I grow Barbara here. Although it's hot here in summer, our season is quite short between last and first frost. They grow really well for me too. Lovely flavour and texture and they store well.

[Containergardener]

Thank you Smallblueplanet and Snoop.
Barbara it shall be then. I fear instead of talking to Barbs I may be singing a certain Beach Boys song instead .

[ameno]

I find butternut doesn't always ripen as well in this country, plus the taste is merely "good", not "great, and it doesn't keep so well.
Other winter squash varieties are usually better. Marina di Chioggia is my strongest recommendation. It produces large, heavy fruit which last a long time, is a very reliable cropper, and tastes excellent. Banana squashes are usually very good for both yield and taste, too, although do not keep any better than butternut.

[Containergardener]

I have found some free seeds of Rolet, Yellow scallop and Patisson Gagat . Anyone grown any.of these?

[Andraste]

Another vote for Uchiki Kuri. We only got one small fruit from 2 plants last year (our fault - didn't defeat the slugs quick enough or add compost when planting) but it was really tasty & the fruits are small enough that you can grow up rather than along the ground which would be a plus for container growing.

[ameno]

I have found some free seeds of Rolet, Yellow scallop and Patisson Gagat . Anyone grown any.of these?

I've never grown any of them, but I wouldn't recommend any of them.
Yellow scallop and Patisson Gagat are both summer squashes, which means they are basically just glorified courgettes/marrows, and taste much the same as they do (i.e. bland and insipid), not to mention they don't keep at all.
Rolet is an acorn squash, which is technically a winter squash, but since it's a Cucurbita pepo variety that means it's flavour will be very mild, and it's texture watery and grainy. Also, since it's such a small fruited variety (cricket ball sized), although it likely will produce a lot of fruits, the overall yield will still be very small. The tiny fruited varieties are almost never worth growing, and are disappointing for both flavour and yield.

[Snoop Puss]

Thanks for that, @ameno.

Can I just ask about Rolet? i've not grown it before but was thinking of giving it a try, not as a proper squash and certainly not for saving, but firmer and sweeter than a courgette. I like the usual long courgettes but I don't like Rondo de Nice - too spongy and a bit soapy in flavour - and thought Rolet might be an improvement on that. All the catalogue blurb always makes you think everything is fantastic, but that isn't necessarily the case. Do you think I'm being too optimistic in my expectations?

[smallblueplanet]

I've never grown any of them, but I wouldn't recommend any of them.
Yellow scallop and Patisson Gagat are both summer squashes, which means they are basically just glorified courgettes/marrows, and taste much the same as they do (i.e. bland and insipid), not to mention they don't keep at all.

We've grown quite a few varieties of 'patty pan' type of summer squash. Lots of them have a good taste and are easy to grow, great shape and colours too.
Whilst they will not keep anywhere near as long as winter squash, if you let some of the varieties grow large (6"-8") they will keep for weeks if not a couple of months.

[Andraste]

Those little black ones in the second pic look funky smallblueplanet - do you know what sort they are?

[smallblueplanet]

...I like the usual long courgettes but I don't like Rondo de Nice - too spongy and a bit soapy in flavour - and thought Rolet might be an improvement on that. All the catalogue blurb always makes you think everything is fantastic, but that isn't necessarily the case. Do you think I'm being too optimistic in my expectations?

I've just used Seeds of Italy pics as an example, although we have grown lots of their stuff. Other companies sell the seeds.

Try one of our favourites Courgette Lungo fiorentino, very tasty, slightly ribbed, and not watery like supermarket 'green' versions.



Courgette Striato D'Italia are tasty too



These were some of the white patty pans



These Tromba d'Albenga are fun, and keep well as winter squash - cut pieces off and the end dries over and still keeps.



Plus another fave Courgette Bianca Di Trieste aka Lebanese squash, good flavour.

[smallblueplanet]

Those little black ones in the second pic look funky smallblueplanet - do you know what sort they are?

My memory isn't best any more, I'll check with the OH later but I think they might be Black Futsu. Slightly trickier to grow, they like a warmer longer season.

They eventually over winter turn to look like this

[Snoop Puss]

Yes, those are Black Futsu. I've grown those. Very tasty and they kept for ages. Only problem was not very easy to get into, as I recall. I took a huge wood chopping axe to one in the end. Yours look picture perfect, smallblueplanet.

Thanks for all the recommendations, SBP. I do like courgettes and had some luck growing trombas a couple of years back. Maybe I didn't like Rondo de Nice because I didn't pick them at the right stage, let them go a wee bit too big before harvesting. I might try Rolet this year, just to give them a go. Will keep an eye out for seeds for some of the others for the future.

[smallblueplanet]

...Thanks for all the recommendations, SBP. I do like courgettes and had some luck growing trombas a couple of years back. Maybe I didn't like Rondo de Nice because I didn't pick them at the right stage, let them go a wee bit too big before harvesting. I might try Rolet this year, just to give them a go. Will keep an eye out for seeds for some of the others for the future.

We just love growing squash, the shapes and colours... So we have grown Ronde de Nice, but only once, so I imagine they were a bit flavourless. There's many winter squash we don't bother with as they are more sweet than nutty (ie some of the Acorn types), and we prefer nutty.
Give the patty pans a go, they can be picked and eaten/cooked in the same way as 'normal' courgettes, from teeny to big, and the really big ones skin will sort of harden up and keep for a bit.