All About Growing Winter Squash

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If you enjoy gardening you'll enjoy growing winter squash in its many diverse types. Shown here, from left to right, are buttercup, delicata, ‘Red Kuri’ buttercup, butternut and dumpling squash.
If you enjoy gardening you'll enjoy growing winter squash in its many diverse types. Shown here, from left to right, are buttercup, delicata, ‘Red Kuri’ buttercup, butternut and dumpling squash.
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Old-fashioned squash pies laced with cinnamon and ginger will never go out of style, but newer trends in winter squash cuisine favor savory risottos and creamy, squash-stuffed ravioli — and don’t forget to eat the tasty seeds!
Old-fashioned squash pies laced with cinnamon and ginger will never go out of style, but newer trends in winter squash cuisine favor savory risottos and creamy, squash-stuffed ravioli — and don’t forget to eat the tasty seeds!

(For details on growing many other vegetables and fruits, visit our Crop at a Glancecollection page.)

Colorful, curvaceous and a cinch to store, winter squash is one of the most nutritious crops you can grow, and these spectacular fruits hold their — vitamins A and C and other healthful riches — throughout their long storage life. Growing winter squash is easy whatever the variety you choose, and butternuts, buttercups and other types with dense flesh can stand in for carrots, pumpkins and sweet potatoes in any recipe.

Types to Try

Seed catalogs typically sort winter squash varieties into the following types, listed here in order of their popularity with the MOTHER EARTH NEWS Gardening Advisory Group:

Butternut squash combine rich flavor and smooth texture with natural resistance to squash vine borers. These bottle-shaped fruits have buff-brown rinds and will store for six months or longer.

  • Published on May 20, 2010
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