Lazy gardening tip: If you get behind on weeding to the point where your weeds are growing taller than your squash or pumpkins, go through your vines, lightly lift them up, and set them on top of the weeds (I have even done this on top of spiny pigweed which is a horrid intrusive plant with thorns). They will grow on top of the weeds for the rest of the growing season ensuring your leaves get all the sunlight they need while giving some protection to the squash and pumpkins themselves. I have done this for the past two years (bad procrastinator here) and have gotten around 200 pumpkins each year in a 40 x 40ft area.
I live in Australia. I'm growing Spaghetti squash and jap/kent (1st time this year) and butternut (my 2nd time). I planted lots of seeds this time. Last year i had 2 plants and only got 3 butternuts. I'm hoping to get a good harvest this year. Thank you for all your information. I love your channel, i learn so much
This year I’m growing zucchini, crockneck, acorn, and butternut in NW WA state. I did get powdery mildew on my zucc’s and yellow squash and so I sprayed the leaves with the milk/water mix and it works great!!
I dream about having my squash and melons living long enough to get mildew. Vine borers aren't just destroyers of squash. They also take out zuccs and melons.
I live in WA too! I grow spaghetti squash, butternut, acorn, zucchini and my favorite summer squash, scallop squash. Powdery mildew eventually hits them, but I get a good harvest anyway. I'll have to try the milk trick.
@@Honojane12 I wish that were all I had to worry about. My plants are nearly always wiped out by squash borers. Squash beetles are annoying but have never done more than minor damage. Squash borers devastate.
Thanks for the suggestion Melissa. Blossom end rot is often caused by inconsistent watering, which means plants struggle to circulate nutrients properly, causing deficiency. Often what looks like blossom end rot in squashes, is simply a result of the fruit not having been properly pollinated. This causes it to rot at the end.
This was the most informative video on squash I've watched. Thank you on the tip for hardening winter squash off the vine. We are getting a ton of rain and my honeynut butternut squash are splitting.
First time growing squash for me here just outside of Toronto. Honey Baby butternut and so far I count about 14. Thanks for the tips Ben; you always have great advice and I love your enthusiasm 🙂
I’ve grown Butternut squash “Hercules” this year, first time I’ve tried. I might add I’m not a gardener I just like gardening. I’ve planted two plants in two big 30l plastic buckets. I’m in Norfolk UK. They have produced a few fruit. Some have just dropped off when quite small, however some are looking healthy and are hanging on. I’ve counted 5 squashes each about 8” long so far and it’s only mid August. Keeping the pots moist is quite a challenge, they are thirsty plants! I feed them once a week with tomato feed. Here’s hoping. I don’t quite know when to harvest them. I’m just going to wait and see, unless someone tells me otherwise. Great videos. Thank you.
What a coincidence, I'm also growing butternut squash for the first time this year! I'm from Kansas. I planted mine beneath a tree that is dying and in an area with plenty of pollinators and whatnot so they're growing quite well. My only problem is that they've expanded so crazily that it's hard to tend to them - the foliage is everywhere.
If you like gardening, you are a gardener :) I'm having the same problem with the tiny, baby squash turning yellow and dying off. I've had a few healthy butternuts grow but I'm losing a lot of babies. Not sure if it's a pollination problem or something else.
So many fabulous Tips! Can’t wait until next season to use them! Butternut squash is a favorite here. Roasted and mixed with coconut milk and some spices, it makes a divine soup. Thank you!
I’m growing butternut squash for the first time and my one plant has lots of fruit! Thanks for the tips - I was worried how to take the way care of them.
Growing climbing miniature butternut squash up a cattle panel arch here in NW Missouri. We do get vine borers, so they have been wrapped in tulle up about 4 feet. They are just starting to turn color!
We planted a dark Zucchini, Alexandria summer Squash, Early Yellow Crookneck and a winter squash Green Kabocha. We are having the best squash year thus far. Now the zucchini has succumbed to disease (I did not wrap this year), the Alexandria looks great, the Crookneck is battling the bugs well. The fall Kabocha is wonderful. We have had about 40-50 summer squash so far. Our cucumbers lasted much longer also and we have had about 60 cucumbers but now it is done, almost to September which is a record. I did milk spray the cukes for a while. We have also used Neem oil spray to kill squash bug young with success. Also kills the eggs. But the adults half way killed.
I’m in northeast USA and the squash bugs and vine borers have been out of control this year! I took 50-100 eggs off my plants every single day, and I only have 5 squash plants! At least I’ve found an easy way to do it… duct tape! Press the tape against the leaf or stem where the eggs are and the eggs come right off. Fold up the tape and discard. Also, when checking the squash plants I wear sleeves and gloves as those leaves are prickly and easily scratch and irritate the skin.
I shred my crooked neck and zucchini and freeze and use it for soups, pasta sauces, they just melt and be un noticed but add nutrient dense goodness to just about any meal
First time planting squash.... First 4 weeks beautiful growth until all the pests moved in. Vine borer, inch worm and powdery mildew. Next year I better be prepared.
Have been growing yellow and green courgettes and made some great courgette cakes. Am also growing two pumpkins, one is ‘Becky’ and I currently have one perfect pumpkin on the vine. The other is ‘Mammoth’ and unsurprisingly it is taking over the garden!
Very glad to have seen this, but I'll have to use the tips next year as it's too late for most of my squash. Our biggest issue are the vine borers. I'll try the row cover AND foil next year!!
We have a vine borer problem. So much so that those techniques don’t work for me. They lay eggs all down the vine and even got to my sunflowers this year. I love butternut squash, but the borers here do too. I’m not sure where you are located, but I’m in eastern Virginia, US. Next year I’m going to see if I can come up with an enclosure for my squashes that I can keep on all year and see if that works. If not, I’m resorting to flame thrower, haha. Good luck!
I've got sugar pie pumpkin, two types of acorn, and two types of butter nut....and some mini pumpkins for my daughter's.....and they are completely taking over my garden. Fingers crossed for a decent harvest this fall!
Fantastic video blog! I have 2 types- straight neck and butternut, both provide so much delicious fruit. Very important to erect support structures because they vine rather vigorously. Thanks for the tips and tricks.
My garden is very far from perfect, but I still enjoy all the pottering and time outside. It's most important to just enjoy your garden, which I'm sure you do.
Trombocino squash are brilliant. The seeds are concentrated in the bulb at the end & the neck is just the flesh. They also can be stored all the way through to March.
I am growing 5 variety of pumpkins, zucchini, butternut squash this year. For the first time ever, I planted birdhouse gourds. They are huge and so adorable! Garden is producing great. I see some sqash bugs now amongst my pumpkins🤨🤨🤨. Vines died because of a lack of water getting to them. I'm ready to be done with over 100 degree weather.
I am growing acorn and kobocha squash in Montana where the growing season is quite short and it is sometimes difficult to get the fruit ripe. I have been told that the appearance of the squash does not necessarily indicate when it is ready to pick. It takes time to develop adequate flesh with a good taste and the best indicator is to determine when the fruit sets; i.e. when the female plant is pollinated which I do with a small paint brush. the fruit is ready to pick about 50-55 days. I noticed the fruit sets over a period of a few weeks so that gives me an idea when they will be ready if the temperature cooperates. This is true for all varieties of winter squash. This from research and work at Johnny's Seed company.
First time trying butternut squash this year. I've got 5 growing at about a foot tall so far (a bit late in sewing) going to get them all into a bigger pot with a tripod of cane for them to climb and a gauze sheet for protection. In Scotland but it's been 25 degrees this week so hopefully they'll be ok once outside 👌😁
Love all your video posts. Learn so many garden hacks and look forward to more. (Also, being from the moist Pacific NW I am so happy to see I am not the only one who gardens in the rain!
Yes, not ideal to film in the rain but I was off on vacation late that afternoon. Trust me to leave it to the last minute - it literally rained all day!
5:33 I had one particularly disorganized autumn/winter a few years back. By May the following year, I stumbled across a pumpkin in my bedroom closet. No idea how it got there but it was perfect and unspoiled.
Very good info and wish I'd done a little more research.. I'm in North America and having problems with everything you spoke about and whiteflies this year. Thanks for sharing!
I grow seminole pumpkin which is a native to the US type. These will keep a year nicely. I just throw out last years stock to my chickens. This year's is coming in now.
First year I've tried growing marrows. Plants took off vigorously but then contracted powdery mildew, despite regular watering. It happened so quickly too. The marrows we've been able to harvest (woodlice appear to thrive on them in our garden, attacking the young fruits very early on) have been delicious. Picking up more and more knowledge this year, so next year I'll hope to do better.
We've had rain here in the mountains of western NC almost every day! Been pouring 2", 3" and 5" out of the gauge way too often. We got two consecutive no-rain days this week, a record for months. So yeah, we got powdery mildew! Grew a lot of squash. My favorite is Trombetta Di Albenga, an amazing climbing, Italian summer squash that produces long neck fruits that are dry and sweet, never watery or mushy. One squash is a meal. Still producing from a July transplanting. Second favorite, Clarimore, a Middle Eastern, pale green Zucchini that shares qualities with the previous. Yellow Crockneck is the old southern standard that I've eaten since childhood, grown it for 42 years. Black Beauty and Golden were the Zucchini choices also. Then I went wild with winter squash. From Row 7, a delicious, super sweet, tiny butternut bred from Honey Nut that is only called 898, from Cornel University trials. Robin's Koginut is a cross between a Kobacha and a Butternut. Transplanted them out in early June and they've matured, bypassed disease and insects for most of their life. I Also grew: Honey Nut, Honey Boat Delicata, Candy Stick Delicata, Sweet Dumpling. Tetra, also from Row 7, is a Delicata bred for edible stems, flowers, immature fruit and winter squash. I blew it and didn't keep it separate to experiment so it'll just be a winter squash. For heirlooms I grew Dutch Fork, a local Cherokee variety, and North Georgia Candy Roaster. I also grew Lady Godiva, a naked seeded pumpkin. Watermelons, canteloups and cucumbers also. Just transplanted out my last blast of summer squash, yellow Crockneck and Black beauty. Started them inside because of the rain. Seeded out the 40 days to maturity Ortolana di Faenza a few days ago also. Only one Golden Zuke, a couple of YCN and the Trombetta are still producing from my first plantings. The giant winter squash that went out late July have powdery mildew but they're still throwing out fruit and growing vigorously. The plants that went out late June aren't very productive and will only mature a few fruit each. And, as I said, the early June plantings prospered. BTW, I can quarts of summer squash with basil, oregano and over abundant herbs and blend it creamy to add to canned tomatoes for a low acid pasta sauce in the winter. Great for soup base also. So easy to pressure can.
Wow - want aren't you growing! What a fantastic list of squash delights! I love the tip of a squash sauce - a nice alternative/addition to tomato sauces.
Lots of problems with our squash this year. How about a video on who pollinates squash and how to attract ( needs of pollinators). Also, slow growth this year?? Heat, sun? I dunno???
You're in luck: we already produced a video on just this topic here: @ Hope that helps! (If the link doesn't work, just search for GrowVeg Hand Pollinating Squash and you should get it)
You can pickle it, steam it, stir fry it, fry it, grill it, stuff it and make squash casserole. Most of the time, when I grill, I use half squash and half zucchini. So this recipe works for both. To GRILL it, Do not use lighter fluid or charcoal that has lighter fluid in it. Get a Webber chimney and start your charcoal with it from now on, this will take the taste of your food to another level. Set your grill up for indirect cooking. I use a disposable aluminum pan on the side with no coals, to coat the squash in and keep it warm. In your pan add some butter and garlic. You want enough butter, to baste the squash while your cooking it and keeping it warm. You have to slice the squash lengthwise and you want the slices to be 3/8" or 10 mm thick. I use tongs to turn it. Coat your squash with the garlic butter and put it over the coals, I season with Cavender's Greek Seasoning. Baste often, but do not start a fire with too much butter. I like to grill mine to a darker golden brown, the more caramelization, the more flavor. Baste it again when you take it off the fire and put it in your pan to keep warm. To Southern Fry, Slice the squash across so that you have round slices 1/8" or 3 mm. In a bowl mix 1 egg and 1 cup or 236 ml of milk. In a bow mix 1/2 cup or 118ml of flower and corn meal. In a skillet pour in enough oil of your preference so that the squash rounds will just barely float and heat to medium or deep fry at 350f or 176c. Fry to golden brown and add a touch of salt as soon as you take it off the heat. Strain off the oil the best you can and place on a plate with paper towels to soak up excess oil.
The stink bugs and the borers are so bad in our area (SEastern US). Wrapping the stems with foil and keeping them covered until they bloom has made a huge difference.
This is so incredibly helpful and I really appreciate it. Our squash, butternut waltham, Looks very very dry but The leaves are yellowing. I think we are watering it too much. Opinion? Northern New England
It can be quite hard to overwater them. Check the soil - dig a finger down an inch or so deep and if it's moist, hold off watering until it's dry. Sometimes the leaves can be a bit yellow after planting while the plants find their feet and settle in. Keep the soil moist and hopefully things should pick up.
I'm growing 4 kinds of squashes this year. In containers & vertically for the first time, they've been getting irregular waterings and now all have very pale green leaves. I think my butternut squash stopped taking up water/nutrients for a few weeks and it's suffering from saturated roots- it has the black-edged leaves and the fruit is deforming. I may stick to just 1 variety next year.
My zucchini had two fatal problems this year: First, it sprawled everywhere and made enormous leaves, but very few fruits. And the fruits that it did produce were munched by squirrels before they could reach anywhere near harvestable size! Squirrels also get my tomatoes, cantaloupe, and even spaghetti squash - they bite into everything and ruin it!
The rodents this year have been ridiculous! (I'm in Canada.) The mice have eaten several of my white acorn squash as well as cucumbers that were hanging from a trellis! LOL I don't even want to talk about the chipmunks.......
I thought zucchini was the weed of the vegetable world and would feed my NH neighborhood. I had just 1 fruit out of 4 plants. I had bright yellow flowers until the vine borer destroyed each plant. I will try your tips next summer.
Thankyou for the useful tips, it is my first year of growing Squash; butternut and Cheeky Prince which is a hybrid. Initially I got lots of fruit growing but over the past month the babies have been rotting once they get to golfball size, I think it is because it has been so cool and wet in North Yorkshire...
The cooler, wetter weather we've been having recently will certainly affect fruit production. They can be a lot less predictable in these conditions, and there will be fewer pollinators on the wing to pollinate.
This video is great, but to late for me. My zucchinis already died 😔. I am in Alabama, USA, and seem to have all the pests and diseases. I will try the aluminium foil and milk next year. Thank you
I'm playing around & see if I can get a second harvest of Sugar Pie Pumpkins, they should be ready by Thanksgiving or 15 of Dec. Next year I'm trying Lakota Squash & Boston Marrow Squash
The following is taken from our video on tomato problems, but the same advice would still apply to squashes: Blossom end rot is a disease caused by dry soil conditions and a shortage of calcium. Fruits form sunken black patches at the blossom end of the fruit. Ensure your tomatoes have enough water at all times, and feed them regularly with a liquid tomato fertilizer. This is the best way to guarantee your plants are getting all of the minerals and nutrients they need for healthy growth. Pay particular attention to plants in confined spaces, such as pots or growing bags.
Patty pans are my favourite, I’ve just put some seed to sprout. I harvest them small, no need to peel, just chopped up and fried in butter. I’ve heard that adding crushed eggshell can boost calcium for strong growth?
You could add crushed eggshell for this reason, yes. But usually there's enough calcium and any lack of calcium is usually down to irregular watering. :-)
Winter squash does beautifully here in NE Georgia, at the foot of the Appalachias. We do fight squash bugs and now marmorated stink bugs, it worth the effort. I still have a few butternut, spaghetti and Cherokee Tan pumpkins (an amazing native American cultivar) from August 2019 in our basement! The North Georgia Candy Roaster is amazing but not as long on the shelf given its huge size. Summer squash does well too, and our season is long enough we can start late to avoid some of the pests. Favorites are bennings green tint (pattypan), lemon, and ronde de nice. Our plants were beautiful and full of fruit when I pruned some leaves for airflow and space, but this may have been an error as they quickly looked diseased when rainfall picked up :( any advice on that? I did 4 plants in a 1.5 meter square box and they were flowing over all sides. Love the tip about using a tile under larger fruits especially and will try the milk solution next time I am faced with powdery mildew!
A lovely variety of plants there! Generally, if the leaves are green and healthy I would leave them be. They are the powerhouse behind the plant, helping to swell the fruits to maturity. Your planting density sounds fine, particularly as they are growing over the sides too.
Help! I have a wall garden with a raspberry plant, a tomato plant, 2 strawberry plants, 3 pepper plants, lots of orange beetroot, lambs lettuce, spinach and carrots.I am having to tear dark grey, pale green or browny sections off of my leaves. I noticed at the garden bed today a grey powdery mound in the soil at the bed of my beetroot. Randomly placed I might add as it was not attached to a root at all.... I carefully cleared any signs of this fungus yesterday from all my leaves to see if I could eradicate it. Back again today across approx 1/8 of my leaves again. O also noticed a leaf from my beetroot plant that I must have missed yesterday. Upon inspection, it appeared to have a thin translucent layer across the leaf face...Almost as though the substance was wearing down the surface of the leaf.... This feels to be all rather quick no? Definitely something I should treat I think but I don't know really what I'm doing as its may first time growing! Any advice would be greatly appreciated. xx
It sounds like you may have leaf miners. This is very common, especially in beetroots. The miners eat the leaves from the inside, burrowing about to create a translucent look to the leaves. It usually isn't that bad news. More details here: www.growveg.com/pests/us-and-canada/leaf-miner/
GrowVeg yes! I suspect you are correct! So I shall remove the leaves and crush…. Upon inspection today I noticed a couple of silvery grey spiders. I believe they may be the culprits. I will try and catch them too! Coverings may be difficult though as I have my plants in hanging baskets.
Nice video, I have a problem with my squash I have plenty of foliage and squashes growing but the squash rot when they are about 2” long what can I do please
That sounds like they haven’t been properly pollinated. And so the plant is supporting the fruit. This video might be helpful with that: ua-cam.com/video/4Baj4vUXFMA/v-deo.htmlsi=Jj45LktyR9ZxdvX1
I would like to grow my squash and pumpkins on an arched trellis. How do I know what weight the trellis needs to be able to support for different vegetables or at least heavier vegetables like pumkins? What material is best suited?
I’m not sure there’s a specific way of doing this, other than being sure to invest in a really sturdy, well-made arch, perhaps out of some sort of galvanised or coated metal.
Would love to share an image of our Cucuzza squash trellis but don't know where to attach it! Its a prolific fruiting vine that makes a great point of interest in our therapeutic Garden of Hope at Good Samaritan Hospital (Suffern, NY)
We grew crockneck, pumpkins, spaghetti and blue Hubbard squash this year. 70 so far (not counting the crockneck!) And more are coming. Our biggest spaghetti squash was 4 lbs!! We've got a blue Hubbard coming along that's so big, he might not pass through the back door! It's been a wonderfully blessed garden harvest and your videos, Ben, make it more fun ❤🤓. We love your mug!!
I would so like to learn from you or someone out there, if upon starting my seeds of squash this early what can I possibly do to save them, as I was hopeful that I can continue to give them life, as they are growing on my kitchen window-ledge, after getting splashed on my small pot on the window close to sink tap. Is it possible to pot them on as they have started to sprout out, but am I to think that without enough sun they will not live or can they manage with the right amount of heat and small aount of light given in my kitchen and perhaps they can make it to the spring, if I continue to repot and accommodate, if they keep growing and these winter squash last to a time when they can get pollinated, I just do not know if it is possible to save them!
It depends on where you are. But if it is autumn where you are then, yes, it may be tricky to keep them going until it is time to plant them in spring. Squash are best sown in late spring, so they can take advantage of increasing light levels. You could continue to grow you squash under some type of grow lights, but I think you may be better off re-sowing later in spring.
I've had the weirdest problem, which is possibly why you made no mention of it. All my flowering squash have been male flowering plants. No female flowers! What can you do about this? The season is almost done and I have no squash. thanks
Hi Malcolm. It may be plants aren't getting enough nutrients so don't have the resources to produce more energy-intensive female flowers and fruits. Check out this video: ua-cam.com/video/4Baj4vUXFMA/v-deo.html
Thanks so much for sharing. I'm in Kingston, Jamaica and sowed butternut squash seeds from Burpee Gardens (eventually thinned to 3 plants) for the 1st time on January 3rd. I followed the hand pollination method and was successful. The 1st squash is growing nicely but now the vine is shriveling and seems to be dying although the fruit still looks healthy. 1 other plant now has a pollinated squash and the other is still only showing male flowers...the vines and leaves look OK but not as lush as yours did....not having any issues with powdery mildew. Please tell me what can I do about the dying vine? They're all getting full sun and are being watered almost daily if there's no rain. Help!!
Not sure what might be going on with the dying vine Lisa. I wonder if they are getting eaten, for example by squash vine borers? I'm not sure if that's a pest in Jamaica though. I do hope you manage to get a decent crop one way or another. Sending you green fingered and thumbed thoughts!
@@GrowVeg thanks so much for responding Ben, and for the good wishes! Alas, I dug up all 3 plants this afternoon even tho the growing fruit, about the size of my hand, looked so healthy 😒. No sign of vine borders altho it seems I may have a mild case of bad nematodes - saw signs only on the roots of the plant with male flowers and none on the others 🤔. We had okra growing in the same spot last year so maybe that's the reason. My twin sister and I are learning a lot as 1st time backyard gardeners - converted our lawn to a veggie garden last year and despite the challenges, so satisfying to reap what you grow!
Brilliant video, thank you. We had a single frost day early October in Uk so I harvested all 40 of my butternut squash straight away (56 kilos!) . All hardish skins and left long T stem. They have been drying on a window sill in my unheated bedroom for 2 weeks but they are all going Damp and rotting at the neck! Ive no freezer space left! This is the 2nd year this has happened! What can I do next year to avoid loosing so may so quickly, please?. The stems are hard as rock but I can still push a finger nail into the skins. How else can i stop the damp ? I have stored some upright and some with the stem hanging down.Help!
I would store them in the dryest part of the house. In general squashes are okay at slightly warmer temperatures, so you may be best prioritising lower humidity over coolness. The unheated room may be very humid, causing problems. You may be able to rescue the squashes by cutting away the rotten bit them peeling and cubing the squash into inch-sized cubes to then freeze - but that would rely on finding a bit more freezer space of course.
You know , I think you have a good point now that I have seen what you say about humidity.I hadn't thought that through! I was so worried about frost damage.There is a lot of wet condensation on the sunny window ledge where the squash are meant to be "drying off". Thankyou @@GrowVeg for your reply and suggestion for next year! I am not giving up!
I've had surprise Butternut squash plants pop up in my garden this year. While I've gotten a couple that grew fine, I'm having a lot of the babies die off right as they're getting started. They suddenly turn yellowish. Is this a pollination issue? Or sunlight? I'm losing a lot of fruit that's starting off healthy.
If the plants themselves are turning yellow and dying it could be that they don't have enough nutrients to sustain them, or they aren't in an ideal growing position - full sun, plenty of moisture etc. If they fruits are dropping off then it's likely a pollination issue, which you can help along by hand pollinating.
I've got my butternut squash growing beside my tomatoes in my side garden. From the sound of things, that's not a good combination. I take it tomatoes sound be in dryer soil and the squash should be in soil that stays moist all the time. I put one butternut squash plant in there and I has taken over the whole garden! It's growing up the stems of the tomatoes and is now stilling over into the neighbour's back lawn. I guess with all the rain here in winnipeg this summer it's been perfect for the butternut squash but I have to say the tomatoes are doing OK as well (although one has blight all over it). Do you think I should plant the squash in a different place next year?
Squash can get quite rambunctious, as you've discovered, so is often best growing on its own, or at least training away from other plants so they don't get smothered.
@@GrowVeg Rambunctious! This is the squash plant from hell! It's grown 30 feet down the garden. It's completely merged with the tomatoes. I have squash growing right beside tomatoes on the same plant. They both seem to be quite happy but it's going to be a bit strange at harvest time when I'm plucking a squash with one hand and a tomato with the other! Lol
Yes, any squash that naturally sprawls/trails can be tied in to more vertical supports such as trellis to raise them up off the ground. Or you can train them into position by directing the stems with sticks as they grow.
First time planting squash & I planted a mixed seed pack. So I have no idea what I'm growing! Can I post a picture so you can help identify please? Thanks for video!
@@GrowVeg So if I experience Powdery Mildew on my summer squash plants, I should then spray with the milk/water solution? Wait until the mildew shows up and then apply the solution?
Oh my goodness! Someone left a tip about planting a certain variety of radish that keeps the vine borer away! I can't find it! Do you remember which variety???? Please!
I am so sorry, but I am not sure which variety that would be. But I would imagine that most radishes would be pretty much the same in terms of their effectiveness. But that doesn’t answer your question I appreciate!
This could be due to soil high in nitrogen, which would encourage leaf production over flowers. Also, overly acidic soil from years of compost additions can slow flower production - soil that is tending towards acid would benefit from having lime added to bring it closer to a neutral pH (7.0). This would encourage the flowers to set fruit rather than just dropping off. Check out our video, also, on pollinating squash where fruit set is poor: www.growveg.co.uk/guides/hand-pollinating-squash-for-higher-yields-and-seed-saving/
I have been way more successful with my zucchini and pattypan squash this year. But one thing I have noticed that every time I grow winter squash (spaghetti squash and butternut squash last couple of years and pumpkin this year) once I have one squash set I get no more female flowers so I only get one squash per plant. Is this normal?
I am in South Africa and struggle terribly with pumpkin fly with my butternut. It's not feasible to keep this sprawling plant covered by mesh. I have it growing from the ground up onto a chicken wire fence to keep it away from the soil and to utilise my space more effectively. I have put up pumpkin fly traps that contain water and pheromones in them, but these have made little difference. The 2nd problem I have is blossom rot. Any ideas on what may be causing it? Your advice would be greatly appreciated, thank you.
Hi Monica. Blossom end rot is often caused be irregular watering, rather than a lack of calcium (though this can also be the cause). Keep the soil evenly moist but also consider applying a liquid tomato feed every few weeks to up nutrients, particularly if the soil hasn't been improved with plenty of organic matter at or before planting time.
I lost both of my winter squash plants to squash beetles this year )-: I checked them every day, sometimes twice a day, removing adults and eggs but they just kept coming. Tried soapy dishwater spray to no avail. I know they winter over so is there anything I can do now or later in the Fall that will help me keep ahead of them next year?
Hi Diane. This article offers more in-depth advice on squash beetles (and borers): www.growveg.com/guides/protect-your-crops-from-squash-bugs-and-squash-vine-borers/
I'm growing pumpkins for the first time, its a volunteer from lats years pumpkin i left outside to root down. My male flowers are going yellow (bud and stem) before flowering... What am i doing wrong?
I'm in tropical Indonesia and growing an intentional cross between butternut squash and sweet dumpling squash. Since the climate is great for growing squash, the plant just keeps on growing and growing and putting out female and male flowers. I currently have 26 confirmed squash on just the one plant and more female flowers are forming. Since the plant probably won't die off due to the cold, how will I know when the squash is ready? Will the stems die off / turn brown if the plant doesn't die off? Should I just go with how hard the skin is?
Wow - that's loads of squash! I would go by how hard the skin is. Once they're nicely hardened and there's good colour in the skin, they should be good to harvest.
Growing at least two plants should greatly increase pollination - three if you have the space is ideal. Make sure to keep doors and windows open so the bees can get in. Or hand pollinate if you need to.
I’ve bought 2 squash plants and have put them in my greenhouse. The problem I have is over the past couple of days leaf’s have gone a different colour and have also dropped down. Is this something I’ve done? As no idea to what it could be.
Check that they aren't dried out. If not, it could be a sudden change in conditions that they were used to. If it's very warm and sunny then that could be the issue - perhaps move them to a shadier corner of the greenhouse to help them acclimatise. Or it could be that they are running out of nutrients. Remove them from the pot and if the roots are running around the inside of the pot, pot them on into a larger pot until you are ready to plant them.
@@GrowVeg thank you for getting back to me. I think it maybe too late for them now as the leafs have curled and have gone black and brown but have small flowers coming.
Unfortunately not - it's the proteins in animal milk that have the effect required. More here: www.growveg.com/guides/using-milk-to-prevent-powdery-mildew/
@@GrowVeg Thanks for the reply. I imagined it was the content of the dairy milk and not the consistency that made the difference, but thought I would make sure.
Lazy gardening tip: If you get behind on weeding to the point where your weeds are growing taller than your squash or pumpkins, go through your vines, lightly lift them up, and set them on top of the weeds (I have even done this on top of spiny pigweed which is a horrid intrusive plant with thorns). They will grow on top of the weeds for the rest of the growing season ensuring your leaves get all the sunlight they need while giving some protection to the squash and pumpkins themselves. I have done this for the past two years (bad procrastinator here) and have gotten around 200 pumpkins each year in a 40 x 40ft area.
What a brilliantly simple tip - thank you!
@@GrowVeg Can you use any type of milk in the milk solution spray?
I am so tempted. They take up so much space, though.
You could try a trailing variety of squash, which you can then train up onto supports such as trellis. This would save space.
The trellis in question:
As always these short videos are enthusiastic, informative and very watchable. Thank you
I live in Australia. I'm growing Spaghetti squash and jap/kent (1st time this year) and butternut (my 2nd time). I planted lots of seeds this time. Last year i had 2 plants and only got 3 butternuts. I'm hoping to get a good harvest this year. Thank you for all your information. I love your channel, i learn so much
Wishing you a very bountiful harvest Charmaine. :-)
This year I’m growing zucchini, crockneck, acorn, and butternut in NW WA state. I did get powdery mildew on my zucc’s and yellow squash and so I sprayed the leaves with the milk/water mix and it works great!!
Glad to hear that!
Glad to hear that works!
I dream about having my squash and melons living long enough to get mildew. Vine borers aren't just destroyers of squash. They also take out zuccs and melons.
I live in WA too! I grow spaghetti squash, butternut, acorn, zucchini and my favorite summer squash, scallop squash. Powdery mildew eventually hits them, but I get a good harvest anyway. I'll have to try the milk trick.
@@Honojane12 I wish that were all I had to worry about. My plants are nearly always wiped out by squash borers. Squash beetles are annoying but have never done more than minor damage. Squash borers devastate.
The biggest issue I'm experiencing is blossom end rot. It would be great if you could cover how to avoid that problem in a future update.
Thanks for the suggestion Melissa. Blossom end rot is often caused by inconsistent watering, which means plants struggle to circulate nutrients properly, causing deficiency. Often what looks like blossom end rot in squashes, is simply a result of the fruit not having been properly pollinated. This causes it to rot at the end.
Helpful all around! I had those bugs early on and didn't realize they were so damaging! Thanks so much for your great videos.
This was the most informative video on squash I've watched. Thank you on the tip for hardening winter squash off the vine. We are getting a ton of rain and my honeynut butternut squash are splitting.
Milk solution also works well on Roses for Marsonia...black spot. Thank you so much for such interesting videos and info.
Thanks for the extra tip Gail.
First time growing squash for me here just outside of Toronto. Honey Baby butternut and so far I count about 14. Thanks for the tips Ben; you always have great advice and I love your enthusiasm 🙂
That's a good haul of squash - nice work Anne!
I wish I'd had this video back in May. XP
You have, this year! 😜😁
I’ve grown Butternut squash “Hercules” this year, first time I’ve tried. I might add I’m not a gardener I just like gardening. I’ve planted two plants in two big 30l plastic buckets. I’m in Norfolk UK. They have produced a few fruit. Some have just dropped off when quite small, however some are looking healthy and are hanging on. I’ve counted 5 squashes each about 8” long so far and it’s only mid August. Keeping the pots moist is quite a challenge, they are thirsty plants! I feed them once a week with tomato feed. Here’s hoping. I don’t quite know when to harvest them. I’m just going to wait and see, unless someone tells me otherwise. Great videos. Thank you.
Harvest when the skin is hard, dull beige in color and the stem is brown. There should be no green in the skin.
the little ones that drop off are ones that weren't pollinated.
What a coincidence, I'm also growing butternut squash for the first time this year! I'm from Kansas. I planted mine beneath a tree that is dying and in an area with plenty of pollinators and whatnot so they're growing quite well. My only problem is that they've expanded so crazily that it's hard to tend to them - the foliage is everywhere.
If you like gardening, you are a gardener :) I'm having the same problem with the tiny, baby squash turning yellow and dying off. I've had a few healthy butternuts grow but I'm losing a lot of babies. Not sure if it's a pollination problem or something else.
So many fabulous Tips! Can’t wait until next season to use them! Butternut squash is a favorite here. Roasted and mixed with coconut milk and some spices, it makes a divine soup. Thank you!
Would you be willing to share the recipe? :)
Very educational and I love your passion for growing
I’m growing butternut squash for the first time and my one plant has lots of fruit! Thanks for the tips - I was worried how to take the way care of them.
Thanks for the tip of wrapping the vines in foil. I lost so many vines to borers this year.
Growing climbing miniature butternut squash up a cattle panel arch here in NW Missouri. We do get vine borers, so they have been wrapped in tulle up about 4 feet. They are just starting to turn color!
So pleased they're starting to ripen up for you Cheryl.
We planted a dark Zucchini, Alexandria summer Squash, Early Yellow Crookneck and a winter squash Green Kabocha. We are having the best squash year thus far. Now the zucchini has succumbed to disease (I did not wrap this year), the Alexandria looks great, the Crookneck is battling the bugs well. The fall Kabocha is wonderful. We have had about 40-50 summer squash so far. Our cucumbers lasted much longer also and we have had about 60 cucumbers but now it is done, almost to September which is a record. I did milk spray the cukes for a while. We have also used Neem oil spray to kill squash bug young with success. Also kills the eggs. But the adults half way killed.
I’m in northeast USA and the squash bugs and vine borers have been out of control this year! I took 50-100 eggs off my plants every single day, and I only have 5 squash plants! At least I’ve found an easy way to do it… duct tape! Press the tape against the leaf or stem where the eggs are and the eggs come right off. Fold up the tape and discard. Also, when checking the squash plants I wear sleeves and gloves as those leaves are prickly and easily scratch and irritate the skin.
Really fab tips there Lynn - thanks for sharing.
What a great video on squash! Thanks for all the tips and tricks. I just started my fall garden and already have so many decorative gourds growing.
You are such a joy to listen to, and I appreciate all of your tips!
Thank you so much. :-)
I shred my crooked neck and zucchini and freeze and use it for soups, pasta sauces, they just melt and be un noticed but add nutrient dense goodness to just about any meal
What a great idea. :-)
Thankful for this video! Next year’s harvest will be much better in dealing with squash borer! They were disparaged this year.
Perfect timing! I needed this!
I’ve got a blue Hubbard from almost a year ago. No rot no mold. Planning on campfire roasting it this fall.
That will be a delicious way to enjoy it - yum!
Thank you so much….Central Florida, USA
I've had a few squash rot that are on the ground! It's been a hard year for growing them!
First time planting squash.... First 4 weeks beautiful growth until all the pests moved in. Vine borer, inch worm and powdery mildew. Next year I better be prepared.
Thank you so much for the video. Now, I will burry the exposed stem with dirt for extra protection from 🐛 🐜
Have been growing yellow and green courgettes and made some great courgette cakes. Am also growing two pumpkins, one is ‘Becky’ and I currently have one perfect pumpkin on the vine. The other is ‘Mammoth’ and unsurprisingly it is taking over the garden!
Thnk u!! I have struggled with both pests living in Kansas, US and ended up with powder mildew for first time too....
Very glad to have seen this, but I'll have to use the tips next year as it's too late for most of my squash. Our biggest issue are the vine borers. I'll try the row cover AND foil next year!!
We have a vine borer problem. So much so that those techniques don’t work for me. They lay eggs all down the vine and even got to my sunflowers this year. I love butternut squash, but the borers here do too. I’m not sure where you are located, but I’m in eastern Virginia, US. Next year I’m going to see if I can come up with an enclosure for my squashes that I can keep on all year and see if that works. If not, I’m resorting to flame thrower, haha. Good luck!
Wonderful information, thank you!
Your garden look beautiful , growing a lot plant in the garden , thanks for sharing
I've got sugar pie pumpkin, two types of acorn, and two types of butter nut....and some mini pumpkins for my daughter's.....and they are completely taking over my garden. Fingers crossed for a decent harvest this fall!
All the rampant growth bodes well for a good harvest!
Fantastic video blog! I have 2 types- straight neck and butternut, both provide so much delicious fruit. Very important to erect support structures because they vine rather vigorously. Thanks for the tips and tricks.
You're very welcome, thanks for watching.
Like always..... super informative . Wish I could have a garden like yours, beautiful ,peaceful and yumi one ☺☺
My garden is very far from perfect, but I still enjoy all the pottering and time outside. It's most important to just enjoy your garden, which I'm sure you do.
Trombocino squash are brilliant. The seeds are concentrated in the bulb at the end & the neck is just the flesh. They also can be stored all the way through to March.
Thanks for the recommendation Caroline.
I am growing 5 variety of pumpkins, zucchini, butternut squash this year. For the first time ever, I planted birdhouse gourds. They are huge and so adorable! Garden is producing great.
I see some sqash bugs now amongst my pumpkins🤨🤨🤨. Vines died because of a lack of water getting to them. I'm ready to be done with over 100 degree weather.
I hope the weather cools down for you soon. We seem to be getting an early autumn over here in the UK!
I am growing acorn and kobocha squash in Montana where the growing season is quite short and it is sometimes difficult to get the fruit ripe. I have been told that the appearance of the squash does not necessarily indicate when it is ready to pick. It takes time to develop adequate flesh with a good taste and the best indicator is to determine when the fruit sets; i.e. when the female plant is pollinated which I do with a small paint brush. the fruit is ready to pick about 50-55 days. I noticed the fruit sets over a period of a few weeks so that gives me an idea when they will be ready if the temperature cooperates. This is true for all varieties of winter squash. This from research and work at Johnny's Seed company.
Great advice, thanks for sharing this Pete.
First time trying butternut squash this year. I've got 5 growing at about a foot tall so far (a bit late in sewing) going to get them all into a bigger pot with a tripod of cane for them to climb and a gauze sheet for protection. In Scotland but it's been 25 degrees this week so hopefully they'll be ok once outside 👌😁
Think they should do fine in this weather Andy. Hope you get a good crop. :-)
Love all your video posts. Learn so many garden hacks and look forward to more. (Also, being from the moist Pacific NW I am so happy to see I am not the only one who gardens in the rain!
Yes, not ideal to film in the rain but I was off on vacation late that afternoon. Trust me to leave it to the last minute - it literally rained all day!
5:33 I had one particularly disorganized autumn/winter a few years back. By May the following year, I stumbled across a pumpkin in my bedroom closet. No idea how it got there but it was perfect and unspoiled.
Oh wow! 😮
Very good info and wish I'd done a little more research.. I'm in North America and having problems with everything you spoke about and whiteflies this year. Thanks for sharing!
I grow seminole pumpkin which is a native to the US type. These will keep a year nicely. I just throw out last years stock to my chickens. This year's is coming in now.
Vine borers are my arch nemesis
One zucchini goes for almost two dollars USD here in the Southeastern USA because it takes so much labor to grow any at all.
Very helpful video! Thank you 😁👍
First year I've tried growing marrows. Plants took off vigorously but then contracted powdery mildew, despite regular watering. It happened so quickly too. The marrows we've been able to harvest (woodlice appear to thrive on them in our garden, attacking the young fruits very early on) have been delicious. Picking up more and more knowledge this year, so next year I'll hope to do better.
Gardening is very much a journey - we're always learning!
I grew honey butternut and WOW! The flavour was amazing in a soup!
We've had rain here in the mountains of western NC almost every day! Been pouring 2", 3" and 5" out of the gauge way too often. We got two consecutive no-rain days this week, a record for months. So yeah, we got powdery mildew! Grew a lot of squash. My favorite is Trombetta Di Albenga, an amazing climbing, Italian summer squash that produces long neck fruits that are dry and sweet, never watery or mushy. One squash is a meal. Still producing from a July transplanting. Second favorite, Clarimore, a Middle Eastern, pale green Zucchini that shares qualities with the previous. Yellow Crockneck is the old southern standard that I've eaten since childhood, grown it for 42 years. Black Beauty and Golden were the Zucchini choices also.
Then I went wild with winter squash. From Row 7, a delicious, super sweet, tiny butternut bred from Honey Nut that is only called 898, from Cornel University trials. Robin's Koginut is a cross between a Kobacha and a Butternut. Transplanted them out in early June and they've matured, bypassed disease and insects for most of their life. I Also grew: Honey Nut, Honey Boat Delicata, Candy Stick Delicata, Sweet Dumpling. Tetra, also from Row 7, is a Delicata bred for edible stems, flowers, immature fruit and winter squash. I blew it and didn't keep it separate to experiment so it'll just be a winter squash.
For heirlooms I grew Dutch Fork, a local Cherokee variety, and North Georgia Candy Roaster. I also grew Lady Godiva, a naked seeded pumpkin. Watermelons, canteloups and cucumbers also.
Just transplanted out my last blast of summer squash, yellow Crockneck and Black beauty. Started them inside because of the rain. Seeded out the 40 days to maturity Ortolana di Faenza a few days ago also.
Only one Golden Zuke, a couple of YCN and the Trombetta are still producing from my first plantings. The giant winter squash that went out late July have powdery mildew but they're still throwing out fruit and growing vigorously. The plants that went out late June aren't very productive and will only mature a few fruit each. And, as I said, the early June plantings prospered.
BTW, I can quarts of summer squash with basil, oregano and over abundant herbs and blend it creamy to add to canned tomatoes for a low acid pasta sauce in the winter. Great for soup base also. So easy to pressure can.
Wow - want aren't you growing! What a fantastic list of squash delights! I love the tip of a squash sauce - a nice alternative/addition to tomato sauces.
Lots of problems with our squash this year. How about a video on who pollinates squash and how to attract ( needs of pollinators). Also, slow growth this year?? Heat, sun? I dunno???
You're in luck: we already produced a video on just this topic here: @ Hope that helps! (If the link doesn't work, just search for GrowVeg Hand Pollinating Squash and you should get it)
the bees have all but disappeared around here. I've seen some other insects trying to pick up the slack
I had the same problem here in Tennessee. I watched and followed video but still no fruit so no clue what happened this year.
I'll be growing pumpkin and butternut this year.. I think I will skip soft squash this time around
You can pickle it, steam it, stir fry it, fry it, grill it, stuff it and make squash casserole.
Most of the time, when I grill, I use half squash and half zucchini. So this recipe works for both.
To GRILL it, Do not use lighter fluid or charcoal that has lighter fluid in it. Get a Webber chimney and start your charcoal with it from now on, this will take the taste of your food to another level.
Set your grill up for indirect cooking. I use a disposable aluminum pan on the side with no coals, to coat the squash in and keep it warm.
In your pan add some butter and garlic. You want enough butter, to baste the squash while your cooking it and keeping it warm.
You have to slice the squash lengthwise and you want the slices to be 3/8" or 10 mm thick. I use tongs to turn it.
Coat your squash with the garlic butter and put it over the coals, I season with Cavender's Greek Seasoning. Baste often, but do not start a fire with too much butter. I like to grill mine to a darker golden brown, the more caramelization, the more flavor.
Baste it again when you take it off the fire and put it in your pan to keep warm.
To Southern Fry, Slice the squash across so that you have round slices 1/8" or 3 mm. In a bowl mix 1 egg and 1 cup or 236 ml of milk. In a bow mix 1/2 cup or 118ml of flower and corn meal.
In a skillet pour in enough oil of your preference so that the squash rounds will just barely float and heat to medium or deep fry at 350f or 176c.
Fry to golden brown and add a touch of salt as soon as you take it off the heat.
Strain off the oil the best you can and place on a plate with paper towels to soak up excess oil.
Mmmmm... this sounds extravagantly delicious. I'm going to have to try this in the summer, thank you!
Here in Cape Town we have something called pumpkin fly and it destroys the fruit. I'm prepping for my war with them this summer
Hope you win the war!
The stink bugs and the borers are so bad in our area (SEastern US). Wrapping the stems with foil and keeping them covered until they bloom has made a huge difference.
That's great to hear. We don't have these pests in the UK, so it's great to hear that these techniques really do work.
I'm growing butternut. I love the flavor and it stores very well
It does store fantastically doesn't it. :-)
Kabocha, spaghetti, green and yellow zucchini.
This is so incredibly helpful and I really appreciate it. Our squash, butternut waltham, Looks very very dry but The leaves are yellowing. I think we are watering it too much. Opinion? Northern New England
It can be quite hard to overwater them. Check the soil - dig a finger down an inch or so deep and if it's moist, hold off watering until it's dry. Sometimes the leaves can be a bit yellow after planting while the plants find their feet and settle in. Keep the soil moist and hopefully things should pick up.
My butternut squash problems consist of rabbits and squirrels
I'm growing 4 kinds of squashes this year. In containers & vertically for the first time, they've been getting irregular waterings and now all have very pale green leaves. I think my butternut squash stopped taking up water/nutrients for a few weeks and it's suffering from saturated roots- it has the black-edged leaves and the fruit is deforming. I may stick to just 1 variety next year.
My zucchini had two fatal problems this year: First, it sprawled everywhere and made enormous leaves, but very few fruits. And the fruits that it did produce were munched by squirrels before they could reach anywhere near harvestable size! Squirrels also get my tomatoes, cantaloupe, and even spaghetti squash - they bite into everything and ruin it!
That's a huge nuisance. I guess the only way to prevent that would be to grow them in some sort of cage to keep them off.
The rodents this year have been ridiculous! (I'm in Canada.) The mice have eaten several of my white acorn squash as well as cucumbers that were hanging from a trellis! LOL I don't even want to talk about the chipmunks.......
I thought zucchini was the weed of the vegetable world and would feed my NH neighborhood. I had just 1 fruit out of 4 plants. I had bright yellow flowers until the vine borer destroyed each plant. I will try your tips next summer.
Hi Donna. My zucchini were somewhat disappointing this year too - and I can't even blame the vine borers!
Thank you for the great video. Could butternut squash be grown up a trellis with the sling supports?
Yes, absolutely.
Thankyou for the useful tips, it is my first year of growing Squash; butternut and Cheeky Prince which is a hybrid. Initially I got lots of fruit growing but over the past month the babies have been rotting once they get to golfball size, I think it is because it has been so cool and wet in North Yorkshire...
It likely means they're not being pollinated. You could perhaps try hand pollinating them instead?
@@choose47 Thankyou for the suggestion, I will give it a go...
The cooler, wetter weather we've been having recently will certainly affect fruit production. They can be a lot less predictable in these conditions, and there will be fewer pollinators on the wing to pollinate.
This video is great, but to late for me. My zucchinis already died 😔. I am in Alabama, USA, and seem to have all the pests and diseases. I will try the aluminium foil and milk next year.
Thank you
I hope this helps for next year.
I'm playing around & see if I can get a second harvest of Sugar Pie Pumpkins, they should be ready by Thanksgiving or 15 of Dec. Next year I'm trying Lakota Squash & Boston Marrow Squash
Not a word about blossom end rot which plagues me every year!
The following is taken from our video on tomato problems, but the same advice would still apply to squashes:
Blossom end rot is a disease caused by dry soil conditions and a shortage of calcium. Fruits form sunken black patches at the blossom end of the fruit.
Ensure your tomatoes have enough water at all times, and feed them regularly with a liquid tomato fertilizer. This is the best way to guarantee your plants are getting all of the minerals and nutrients they need for healthy growth. Pay particular attention to plants in confined spaces, such as pots or growing bags.
Patty pans are my favourite, I’ve just put some seed to sprout. I harvest them small, no need to peel, just chopped up and fried in butter. I’ve heard that adding crushed eggshell can boost calcium for strong growth?
You could add crushed eggshell for this reason, yes. But usually there's enough calcium and any lack of calcium is usually down to irregular watering. :-)
Winter squash does beautifully here in NE Georgia, at the foot of the Appalachias. We do fight squash bugs and now marmorated stink bugs, it worth the effort. I still have a few butternut, spaghetti and Cherokee Tan pumpkins (an amazing native American cultivar) from August 2019 in our basement! The North Georgia Candy Roaster is amazing but not as long on the shelf given its huge size.
Summer squash does well too, and our season is long enough we can start late to avoid some of the pests. Favorites are bennings green tint (pattypan), lemon, and ronde de nice. Our plants were beautiful and full of fruit when I pruned some leaves for airflow and space, but this may have been an error as they quickly looked diseased when rainfall picked up :( any advice on that? I did 4 plants in a 1.5 meter square box and they were flowing over all sides.
Love the tip about using a tile under larger fruits especially and will try the milk solution next time I am faced with powdery mildew!
A lovely variety of plants there! Generally, if the leaves are green and healthy I would leave them be. They are the powerhouse behind the plant, helping to swell the fruits to maturity. Your planting density sounds fine, particularly as they are growing over the sides too.
Hi... Could you plz advise on the treatment of zucchini mould? Thanks
Have a look at our disease guides, which should help: www.growveg.com/plant-diseases/us-and-canada/plant-problems/zucchini-diseases-identification/
Help! I have a wall garden with a raspberry plant, a tomato plant, 2 strawberry plants, 3 pepper plants, lots of orange beetroot, lambs lettuce, spinach and carrots.I am having to tear dark grey, pale green or browny sections off of my leaves. I noticed at the garden bed today a grey powdery mound in the soil at the bed of my beetroot. Randomly placed I might add as it was not attached to a root at all.... I carefully cleared any signs of this fungus yesterday from all my leaves to see if I could eradicate it. Back again today across approx 1/8 of my leaves again. O also noticed a leaf from my beetroot plant that I must have missed yesterday. Upon inspection, it appeared to have a thin translucent layer across the leaf face...Almost as though the substance was wearing down the surface of the leaf.... This feels to be all rather quick no? Definitely something I should treat I think but I don't know really what I'm doing as its may first time growing! Any advice would be greatly appreciated. xx
It sounds like you may have leaf miners. This is very common, especially in beetroots. The miners eat the leaves from the inside, burrowing about to create a translucent look to the leaves. It usually isn't that bad news. More details here: www.growveg.com/pests/us-and-canada/leaf-miner/
GrowVeg yes! I suspect you are correct! So I shall remove the leaves and crush…. Upon inspection today I noticed a couple of silvery grey spiders. I believe they may be the culprits. I will try and catch them too! Coverings may be difficult though as I have my plants in hanging baskets.
Nice video, I have a problem with my squash I have plenty of foliage and squashes growing but the squash rot when they are about 2” long what can I do please
That sounds like they haven’t been properly pollinated. And so the plant is supporting the fruit. This video might be helpful with that: ua-cam.com/video/4Baj4vUXFMA/v-deo.htmlsi=Jj45LktyR9ZxdvX1
I would like to grow my squash and pumpkins on an arched trellis. How do I know what weight the trellis needs to be able to support for different vegetables or at least heavier vegetables like pumkins? What material is best suited?
I’m not sure there’s a specific way of doing this, other than being sure to invest in a really sturdy, well-made arch, perhaps out of some sort of galvanised or coated metal.
How far apart can I plant the different kinds of winter squash?
Generally I would aim for a spacing of at least 90cm/3ft apart.
Would love to share an image of our Cucuzza squash trellis but don't know where to attach it! Its a prolific fruiting vine that makes a great point of interest in our therapeutic Garden of Hope at Good Samaritan Hospital (Suffern, NY)
I've looked them up online. They are stunners aren't they!
I've managed to grow 20+ squash and exotic pumpkins. But did lose a few in the rainy weather
We grew crockneck, pumpkins, spaghetti and blue Hubbard squash this year. 70 so far (not counting the crockneck!) And more are coming. Our biggest spaghetti squash was 4 lbs!! We've got a blue Hubbard coming along that's so big, he might not pass through the back door! It's been a wonderfully blessed garden harvest and your videos, Ben, make it more fun ❤🤓. We love your mug!!
Ah, thank you so much for the kind comment. Glad you're having such a fantastic year - it's so rewarding when you get those bumper harvests!
Did you try injecting a solution of BT into the stems every week to irradicate Vine Borers?
No, I haven't ever tried that. Luckily we don't get vine borers round here.
I would so like to learn from you or someone out there, if upon starting my seeds of squash this early what can I possibly do to save them, as I was hopeful that I
can continue to give them life, as they are growing on my kitchen window-ledge, after getting splashed on my small pot on the window close to sink tap.
Is it possible to pot them on as they have started to sprout out, but am I to think that without enough sun they will not live or can they manage with the right
amount of heat and small aount of light given in my kitchen and perhaps they can make it to the spring, if I continue to repot and accommodate, if they keep growing and
these winter squash last to a time when they can get pollinated, I just do not know if it is possible to save them!
It depends on where you are. But if it is autumn where you are then, yes, it may be tricky to keep them going until it is time to plant them in spring. Squash are best sown in late spring, so they can take advantage of increasing light levels. You could continue to grow you squash under some type of grow lights, but I think you may be better off re-sowing later in spring.
I've had the weirdest problem, which is possibly why you made no mention of it. All my flowering squash have been male flowering plants. No female flowers! What can you do about this? The season is almost done and I have no squash. thanks
Hi Malcolm. It may be plants aren't getting enough nutrients so don't have the resources to produce more energy-intensive female flowers and fruits. Check out this video: ua-cam.com/video/4Baj4vUXFMA/v-deo.html
Thanks so much for sharing. I'm in Kingston, Jamaica and sowed butternut squash seeds from Burpee Gardens (eventually thinned to 3 plants) for the 1st time on January 3rd. I followed the hand pollination method and was successful. The 1st squash is growing nicely but now the vine is shriveling and seems to be dying although the fruit still looks healthy. 1 other plant now has a pollinated squash and the other is still only showing male flowers...the vines and leaves look OK but not as lush as yours did....not having any issues with powdery mildew. Please tell me what can I do about the dying vine? They're all getting full sun and are being watered almost daily if there's no rain. Help!!
Not sure what might be going on with the dying vine Lisa. I wonder if they are getting eaten, for example by squash vine borers? I'm not sure if that's a pest in Jamaica though. I do hope you manage to get a decent crop one way or another. Sending you green fingered and thumbed thoughts!
@@GrowVeg thanks so much for responding Ben, and for the good wishes! Alas, I dug up all 3 plants this afternoon even tho the growing fruit, about the size of my hand, looked so healthy 😒. No sign of vine borders altho it seems I may have a mild case of bad nematodes - saw signs only on the roots of the plant with male flowers and none on the others 🤔. We had okra growing in the same spot last year so maybe that's the reason. My twin sister and I are learning a lot as 1st time backyard gardeners - converted our lawn to a veggie garden last year and despite the challenges, so satisfying to reap what you grow!
Brilliant video, thank you. We had a single frost day early October in Uk so I harvested all 40 of my butternut squash straight away (56 kilos!) . All hardish skins and left long T stem. They have been drying on a window sill in my unheated bedroom for 2 weeks but they are all going Damp and rotting at the neck! Ive no freezer space left! This is the 2nd year this has happened! What can I do next year to avoid loosing so may so quickly, please?. The stems are hard as rock but I can still push a finger nail into the skins. How else can i stop the damp ? I have stored some upright and some with the stem hanging down.Help!
I would store them in the dryest part of the house. In general squashes are okay at slightly warmer temperatures, so you may be best prioritising lower humidity over coolness. The unheated room may be very humid, causing problems. You may be able to rescue the squashes by cutting away the rotten bit them peeling and cubing the squash into inch-sized cubes to then freeze - but that would rely on finding a bit more freezer space of course.
You know , I think you have a good point now that I have seen what you say about humidity.I hadn't thought that through! I was so worried about frost damage.There is a lot of wet condensation on the sunny window ledge where the squash are meant to be "drying off". Thankyou @@GrowVeg for your reply and suggestion for next year! I am not giving up!
I've had surprise Butternut squash plants pop up in my garden this year. While I've gotten a couple that grew fine, I'm having a lot of the babies die off right as they're getting started. They suddenly turn yellowish. Is this a pollination issue? Or sunlight? I'm losing a lot of fruit that's starting off healthy.
If the plants themselves are turning yellow and dying it could be that they don't have enough nutrients to sustain them, or they aren't in an ideal growing position - full sun, plenty of moisture etc. If they fruits are dropping off then it's likely a pollination issue, which you can help along by hand pollinating.
I've got my butternut squash growing beside my tomatoes in my side garden. From the sound of things, that's not a good combination. I take it tomatoes sound be in dryer soil and the squash should be in soil that stays moist all the time. I put one butternut squash plant in there and I has taken over the whole garden! It's growing up the stems of the tomatoes and is now stilling over into the neighbour's back lawn. I guess with all the rain here in winnipeg this summer it's been perfect for the butternut squash but I have to say the tomatoes are doing OK as well (although one has blight all over it). Do you think I should plant the squash in a different place next year?
Squash can get quite rambunctious, as you've discovered, so is often best growing on its own, or at least training away from other plants so they don't get smothered.
@@GrowVeg Rambunctious! This is the squash plant from hell! It's grown 30 feet down the garden. It's completely merged with the tomatoes. I have squash growing right beside tomatoes on the same plant. They both seem to be quite happy but it's going to be a bit strange at harvest time when I'm plucking a squash with one hand and a tomato with the other! Lol
Hi thank you for your video, can I hang my gems squash up, as it will lie on grass Im cutting? First timer here.
Yes, any squash that naturally sprawls/trails can be tied in to more vertical supports such as trellis to raise them up off the ground. Or you can train them into position by directing the stems with sticks as they grow.
First time planting squash & I planted a mixed seed pack. So I have no idea what I'm growing! Can I post a picture so you can help identify please? Thanks for video!
It's hard to tell just from the leaf shape, so you may have to wait till the fruits have started to form. It will be a welcome surprise I hope.
I have a question: Will neem oil work on zucchini and yellow squash leaves to be a preventative against bugs and mildew?
I've never used neem oil, and would shy away from spraying plants to prevent problems. But others may disagree!
@@GrowVeg So if I experience Powdery Mildew on my summer squash plants, I should then spray with the milk/water solution? Wait until the mildew shows up and then apply the solution?
Oh my goodness! Someone left a tip about planting a certain variety of radish that keeps the vine borer away! I can't find it! Do you remember which variety???? Please!
I am so sorry, but I am not sure which variety that would be. But I would imagine that most radishes would be pretty much the same in terms of their effectiveness. But that doesn’t answer your question I appreciate!
My pumpkin plants have flowered and spread, but alas not a single pumpkin grew. How could that be?
This could be due to soil high in nitrogen, which would encourage leaf production over flowers. Also, overly acidic soil from years of compost additions can slow flower production - soil that is tending towards acid would benefit from having lime added to bring it closer to a neutral pH (7.0). This would encourage the flowers to set fruit rather than just dropping off. Check out our video, also, on pollinating squash where fruit set is poor: www.growveg.co.uk/guides/hand-pollinating-squash-for-higher-yields-and-seed-saving/
Hi is it possible to grow turks turban squash in containers thanks
Yes, I would think so. But it will need to be a large container and you'll need to water and feed it regularly to get the best possible results.
I have been way more successful with my zucchini and pattypan squash this year. But one thing I have noticed that every time I grow winter squash (spaghetti squash and butternut squash last couple of years and pumpkin this year) once I have one squash set I get no more female flowers so I only get one squash per plant. Is this normal?
I haven't head of this happening before Sarah, that is unusual.
I am in South Africa and struggle terribly with pumpkin fly with my butternut. It's not feasible to keep this sprawling plant covered by mesh. I have it growing from the ground up onto a chicken wire fence to keep it away from the soil and to utilise my space more effectively. I have put up pumpkin fly traps that contain water and pheromones in them, but these have made little difference. The 2nd problem I have is blossom rot. Any ideas on what may be causing it? Your advice would be greatly appreciated, thank you.
Hi Monica. Blossom end rot is often caused be irregular watering, rather than a lack of calcium (though this can also be the cause). Keep the soil evenly moist but also consider applying a liquid tomato feed every few weeks to up nutrients, particularly if the soil hasn't been improved with plenty of organic matter at or before planting time.
@@GrowVeg Thank you for this info :) Any advice on the pumpkin fly issue?
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I lost both of my winter squash plants to squash beetles this year )-: I checked them every day, sometimes twice a day, removing adults and eggs but they just kept coming. Tried soapy dishwater spray to no avail. I know they winter over so is there anything I can do now or later in the Fall that will help me keep ahead of them next year?
Hi Diane. This article offers more in-depth advice on squash beetles (and borers): www.growveg.com/guides/protect-your-crops-from-squash-bugs-and-squash-vine-borers/
I'm growing pumpkins for the first time, its a volunteer from lats years pumpkin i left outside to root down.
My male flowers are going yellow (bud and stem) before flowering... What am i doing wrong?
Keep the plants properly fed and watered. Check out our latest video on getting squashes to fruit properly: ua-cam.com/video/4Baj4vUXFMA/v-deo.html
I'm in tropical Indonesia and growing an intentional cross between butternut squash and sweet dumpling squash. Since the climate is great for growing squash, the plant just keeps on growing and growing and putting out female and male flowers. I currently have 26 confirmed squash on just the one plant and more female flowers are forming. Since the plant probably won't die off due to the cold, how will I know when the squash is ready? Will the stems die off / turn brown if the plant doesn't die off? Should I just go with how hard the skin is?
Wow - that's loads of squash! I would go by how hard the skin is. Once they're nicely hardened and there's good colour in the skin, they should be good to harvest.
@@GrowVeg ok many thanks 👍
I am going to grow Hunter butternut squash in a raised bed in the greenhouse. How many plants do I need to ensure pollination? I am in NE Scotland.
Growing at least two plants should greatly increase pollination - three if you have the space is ideal. Make sure to keep doors and windows open so the bees can get in. Or hand pollinate if you need to.
@@GrowVeg thanks very much for your helpful advice
I’ve bought 2 squash plants and have put them in my greenhouse. The problem I have is over the past couple of days leaf’s have gone a different colour and have also dropped down. Is this something I’ve done? As no idea to what it could be.
Check that they aren't dried out. If not, it could be a sudden change in conditions that they were used to. If it's very warm and sunny then that could be the issue - perhaps move them to a shadier corner of the greenhouse to help them acclimatise. Or it could be that they are running out of nutrients. Remove them from the pot and if the roots are running around the inside of the pot, pot them on into a larger pot until you are ready to plant them.
@@GrowVeg thank you for getting back to me. I think it maybe too late for them now as the leafs have curled and have gone black and brown but have small flowers coming.
Hi, Ben. Is there a vegan alternative to spraying for fungal problems with dairy milk? Would oat milk work??
Unfortunately not - it's the proteins in animal milk that have the effect required. More here: www.growveg.com/guides/using-milk-to-prevent-powdery-mildew/
@@GrowVeg Thanks for the reply. I imagined it was the content of the dairy milk and not the consistency that made the difference, but thought I would make sure.