What Kind of Squash?

[bethh]

Hey All,

I have some sort of 'squash' growing. I don't have any idea what it is. I thought I only planted yellow squash, zucchini, spaghetti and butternut. These don't look like any of the above. Can you tell me what I have growing? They are twice as big now.

 

[flowerbug]

looks like a cross between a gourd and a zuchini, but i'm guessing it is a trombonico. may just be an odd cross that happened.

are they edible?

 

[bethh]

looks like a cross between a gourd and a zuchini, but i'm guessing it is a trombonico. may just be an odd cross that happened.

are they edible?

Not knowing what it is, I haven't picked any yet. Guess its time to do some research.

 

[Zeedman]

Looks like it is in the butternut species (C. moschata), as is Tahitian melon squash & the Tromboncino mentioned by @flowerbug - possibly a cross with one of those or something else. When I grew butternuts, though, there was an occasional long neck in the patch. Regardless, it should be similar to a butternut when ripe.

 

[digitS']

Could it be a volunteer and not something that you planted?

Many gourds are are the same species as your zucchini and spaghetti squash. Bees will happily move pollen from one plant to another.

Fedco recommends that those gardeners who save squash seed separate plants by 1500' feet. In neighborhoods with several gardeners, that would be impossible with the Cucurbita pepo species because of their popularity.

Steve

 

[flowerbug]

Could it be a volunteer and not something that you planted?

Many gourds are are the same species as your zucchini and spaghetti squash. Bees will happily move pollen from one plant to another.

Fedco recommends that those gardeners who save squash seed separate plants by 1500' feet. In neighborhoods with several gardeners, that would be impossible with the Cucurbita pepo species because of their popularity.

Steve

we planted only one kind of buttercup squash many many years ago and as far as we know we're the only people who garden for quite a ways in almost all directions. yet somehow we got crossed squash within the first few years and have been growing these since. luckily they are edible and resistant enough to bugs that we keep growing them each year.

i just keep selecting seeds from several squash and replanting. this year we are only growing a few plants so i'm curious if we'll even get enough squash to eat let alone seeds. it was kind of late when i put them in too so that will also be interesting to see if we have enough time before the frosts.

tons of flowers on them now and a few squash at least already forming and getting bigger. just don't know how long it takes them to go from big to done...

 

[flowerbug]

Not knowing what it is, I haven't picked any yet. Guess its time to do some research.

pick early and treat it like a zuchini and see how it tastes.

 

[digitS']

@flowerbug , I did some reading about C. maxima squash not too long ago.

"Phylogenetic Relationships among Domesticated and Wild Species of Cucurbita (Cucurbitaceae) Inferred from a Mitochondrial Gene: Implications for Crop Plant Evolution and Areas of Origin"

The authors stated with some confidence that C. maxima did not leave South America during pre-Columbian times. Hey, not only are they worldwide but North American Indians were growing them when European Americans first arrived in the interior of what is now the US.

So ... if you lose that strain of Buttercup, there is only one course of recovery open to you. You'll have to go off to the Andes and start over ...

Steve

 

[flowerbug]

@flowerbug , I did some reading about C. maxima squash not too long ago.

"Phylogenetic Relationships among Domesticated and Wild Species of Cucurbita (Cucurbitaceae) Inferred from a Mitochondrial Gene: Implications for Crop Plant Evolution and Areas of Origin"

The authors stated with some confidence that C. maxima did not leave South America during pre-Columbian times. Hey, not only are they worldwide but North American Indians were growing them when European Americans first arrived in the interior of what is now the US.

So ... if you lose that strain of Buttercup, there is only one course of recovery open to you. You'll have to go off to the Andes and start over ...

Steve

that would be some good winter reading. i don't think there will be any great loss as i can get buttercup back from a large number of places.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Hey All,

I have some sort of 'squash' growing. I don't have any idea what it is. I thought I only planted yellow squash, zucchini, spaghetti and butternut. These don't look like any of the above. Can you tell me what I have growing? They are twice as big now.

There are three different species of cucurbits. If summer squash, winter squash, pumpkins, or gourds are in the same species they can cross-pollinate. I saved seeds from a delicata winter squash one year just to see what would happen. I'd grown different kinds of summer and winter squash in the garden. What I got did not look like a delicata. One looked like it crossed with an acorn squash, the other a yellow summer squash. I tried them as winter squash. One was pretty good, the other not really.

I don't know if that is a volunteer or if you planted it, if you bought seeds or they were saved. It's obviously not anything you thought you were planting. It could be a mixed-up seed in the packet or it could be a cross. From what I've grown the prime candidates for a cross would be Tromboncini squash or birdhouse gourd but I'm sure there are several others.

I'd do like Flowerbug suggested, pick some early and try it as zucchini. Maybe some less than 6" long to make sure it is early. If it is crossed with a squash it should be edible and may be pretty good. If it crossed with a gourd, well probably not. And let one go and try it as a winter squash if the early one is edible. You may like it, you may not. The risk is that it crossed with a gourd and not another squash.