Need help with butternut squash

[Gretchen]

Ok, here goes the story. My family picked up a (large) butternut squash, and I planted some of the seeds, and now we have a squash plant. Well, we have some squash, and I have some questions about the ripening and picking/storing of the squash.

1) A butternut squash is ripe when the skin turns a tan color. Well, one of them is turning tan...on the bottom. Is this normal?

2) What is the best way to store them after they are picked?

3) I heard you cut it off the vine leaving about two inches (about 5 centimeters) of stem. This supposedly increases the shelf life. Is it true?

[Wingnut]

I know nothing about squash, but a quick Google search of the phrase growing butternut squash yielded (among others) the following results, which I hope will be helpful to you:

inquiry-when to pick butternut squash - Harvest Forum - GardenWeb

How to Grow Butternut Squash - Monsterguide.net (Scroll down to the questions section after the article.)

How to Grow Butternut Squash | eHow.com (Pay attention to step 6.)

Good luck!

[ryanh]

The greenhouse show on KSL radio (ksl.com) was talking about growing butternuts from seed this am. You might check to see if a podcast is available there.

Seed grown from squash likely are not be true to the originator variety. As it was put, squash are very "promiscuous", and depending on what pollen fertilized the fruit that you got seeds from will affect what hybrid you actually get. You may not even be growing butternuts!

[Gretchen]

All I can say is this; they look like butternuts. They are the same shape as butternuts. the underside is the same color as a butternut. So my guess is that it's a butternut.

[Moksha]

Seed grown from squash likely are not be true to the originator variety. As it was put, squash are very "promiscuous", and depending on what pollen fertilized the fruit that you got seeds from will affect what hybrid you actually get. You may not even be growing butternuts!

What better way for alien plants to begin their invasion of Earth than cuddling up to these pushover butternut squash. They must be stopped!

[Gretchen]

Well, thanks to Google, I found out what type of squash I'm growing. It's a Waltham butternut squash.

Picture not mine, got it from Google images.

[Gretchen]

Here's a photo of my squash

http://www.lds.net/gallery/view/id_12240/http://www.lds.net/gallery/view/id_12240/http://www.lds.net/gallery/view/id_12240/

Sorry, I couldn't get the photo to show here.

http://www.lds.net/gallery/view/id_12240/

[pam]

Wow those look awesome Gretchen. You did great.

[hordak]

toss them and grow a good veggie like carrots or corn.

my 2 cents

[Dravin]

All I've got to say (at the moment) is butternut squash = yumtasticliciousness.

[dazed-and-confused]

blast!!!...i can only help with cooking them.

mine come from the vine of the local supermarket..

[Gretchen]

Thanks Pam!

Dazed, you can save the seeds and grow them, assuming you have a yard. But be warned: the vines take up a lot of room.

I think that what I grew was a hybrid of a butternut and a banana squash.

[fatboys]

This is what I do with any type of squash and I hope this works for you. Since I live in the country you may have to improvise.

First I go out to a post along a fence. I pound in a 6"nail at the top so that it is sticking out about three inches. I take the squash and carefully push the squash down on the nail so the sun is able to shine on it as it makes it daily rotation. After a week, I bring out my shot gun and blow it to pieces. It is really a good stress reliever.

In my humble opinion, squash was never meant to be eaten. My wife could not grow squash for the first five years of our marriage. It stumped for five years until she caught me digging them up. Now she threatens my life if any die. She does not agree with my opinion either.

[Iggy]

Thanks Pam!

Dazed, you can save the seeds and grow them, assuming you have a yard. But be warned: the vines take up a lot of room.

I think that what I grew was a hybrid of a butternut and a banana squash.

You can raise the vines on posts, fences- if the squash get too heavy use old nylons/pantyhose to cradle them.I have grown zucchini in a huge pot on my deck and used the railing to support the vines. I prefer zucchini when it is little, so I never had to cradle them in nylons. It looked great- the squash vine trailed the entire length of the deck railing- about 15 feet! I had another pot with snow peas that were growing up the post, then down the railing of the steps. In peat pots on the steps, I had mints growing in one, lettuces in another, carrots in another and finally radishes and cukes in the last. Hanging from the roof in plastic pots I had cherry tomatoes. My deck was covered with fiberglass roof- so it got filtered light, like a greenhouse. In the summer, I practically lived on the deck.