Squash
Cucurbita spp.
Squash come in summer and winter types, offering versatile fruits from tender courgette-like harvests to hard-skinned varieties that store through winter. They're vigorous plants that love sun and rich soil, producing colourful, flavourful crops perfect for roasting, soups, or stuffing. With trailing or compact options, there's a squash for every garden size.
Growing Guide
Step-by-step instructions for growing Squash
Planting Calendar
Growing Guide for
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Traditional method for larger winter squashes like butternut or crown prince, allowing vines to spread for maximum yield in open ground.
1 Start Seeds Indoors
Fill pots with peat-free seed compost and sow seeds on their side about deep. Keep them warm until they germinate, then grow on in a bright spot.
2 Care for Seedlings
Water your young squash plants regularly to keep the compost moist, and pot them on into larger containers if roots fill the pot.
3 Harden Off Seedlings
Gradually accustom your squash plants to outdoor conditions by placing them outside for increasing time each day over a week or two.
4 Transplant Outdoors
Once the risk of frost has passed in Ardgay, plant out into rich, well-prepared soil in full sun, spacing apart depending on variety.
5 Ongoing Care
Keep plants well watered, especially during dry spells, and mulch around them to retain moisture. Feed every couple of weeks with a high-potash feed once fruits start to swell.
6 Train and Prune
Allow vines to trail naturally, or pinch out growing tips once 4-6 fruits have set to direct energy into ripening them.
7 Harvest Fruits
Cut mature squashes with a sharp knife, leaving a short stem, when skins are hard and leaves start to die back before first frosts.
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