I tried some new varieties of winter squash this year. I generally don't do well with these and I'm trying to figure out if it's the variety, the garden, the bugs, or what.I put the seeds in the ground when things warmed up in May and waited. Vine borers got most of the squash, but I sprinkled some b.t. and crossed my fingers anyway. The rampicante squash and the Greek sweet red squash rallied and actually bore for me.
The Greek kept getting bigger and bigger, which was great, but the problem with new varieties of things is that I never know what they look like when they're ripe and ready to harvest. Thank heaven for the internet. I googled and discovered one site that said to harvest when green. Another site said to harvest when fully brown and reddish.
Okay. I'm thinking there's some flexibility in harvest time.
We had a frost warning, so I harvested the day before the frost when they were mostly brown. Here's a pic. It's twice the size it was when I photoed it green.I cut it in half, scooped the seeds and baked it until soft.
It's got a terrific flavor - even my kids who aren't squash lovers thought it was good. It wasn't very sweet yet, and I'm thinking that if we allowed it to really ripen, it would be much sweeter. That's my plan for next year.
