Winter Squash and Seeds in the NW
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bakingbarb
Location: Washington, Western
Posted: Sep-25-2004 at 8:05pm
I am wondering how well winter squash grows in the Puget Sound area? Michigan might have cold winters but we had more then enough heat to grow almost everything. Now the next question, there is a winter squash that if they grow here I would like to try.......Crown Prince. But it looks like it is available only in the UK. Would this be true that I would not be able to get it here?
I tired to link to a picture but it was too long. If you do a search on google images for Crown Prince Squash you want the very first one. It is Mike and Judys Pumpkin and squash.
The reason I am interested is this, I had bought squash similar to these from a man who ran a small pet supply store. Parrot seed had gotten wet so he threw it out onto the compost pile and got these squash (time lapse story). They were wonderful and that was probably the one and only time I did not save squash seeds. I always save squash seed and if it is the best I ever had then I keep the seeds but if nothing special I toss them. Well I did not do that. It was the BEST squash I ever had, did I say that already?
tia
~BakingBarb
trav
Location: Washington, Western
Posted: Sep-25-2004 at 8:20pm
The early squashes do well here... if we have a decent summer. Basically the Cucurbita pepo winter types, like acorn and delicata, will often fully ripen (in my garden anway - if you live right on the Sound or the ocean it's not a given). Many winter squashes, though, are C. maxima, and a few are C. moschata, both of which tend to want a longer season to ripen fully. I've never had a butternut or a hubbard ripen to the point that the stem dried, for example. While they tasted good enough it's doubtful the seed was mature, and they didn't keep as well as you probably remember from your Michigan days.
No idea about Crown Prince; sorry.
Travis
bakingbarb
Location: Washington, Western
Posted: Sep-25-2004 at 9:32pm
Travis thank you for replying (my oldest son is a Travis). I cannot find which type it is, all I saw was that it needs 100 days.
~BakingBarb
trav
Location: Washington, Western
Posted: Sep-25-2004 at 10:25pm
Remember that "100 days" might mean "100 midsummer Indiana days" as opposed to PNW days. Heat-lovers just take longer here.
Travis
trav
Location: Washington, Western
Posted: Sep-25-2004 at 10:34pm
Hey Barb,
I saw the picture. It reminds me of a squash/pumpkin called Jarrahdale. Territorial sells a squash called Redlands Trailblazer that is bred from Jarrahdale, and appears similar visually at least. Johnny's Selected Seeds sells Jarrahdale, and lists it as a pumpkin.
They are C. maxima, but might be worth a try - they seem to fall at the shorter-season end of the species.
Travis
bakingbarb
Location: Washington, Western
Posted: Sep-27-2004 at 7:45pm
I was wondering if I gave it a boost with heat if that would help? I will start it early then grow it on plastic (there must be one for squash as there is for tomaters) and cover it. Alot for a squash.
That one was really the best I had ever eaten. I did find a company in the UK that will ship here so I might give it a try. I have read about those other ones also (jarrahdale and such) but this description is so right on. I should taste them all if I had the room.
~BakingBarb
trav
Location: Washington, Western
Posted: Sep-28-2004 at 12:51pm
Growing it on some sort of plastic (like IRT-76) would certainly help. It might be worth covering them early, if you put them out early - but I wouldn't cover them during the main season because it'll drop the light levels 10 or 15 percent. Plus as Gary has pointed out, it can interfere with pollination.
I grow my melons under cloches, but that's because without the cloche they're usually pretty pathetic. Plus I still uncover the cloches whenever the weather is warm.
Travis
bakingbarb
Location: Washington, Western
Posted: Sep-28-2004 at 9:43pm
Travis to grow melons here are you saying they need quite a bit?
I am so used to the heat of Mi that I never thought about it being so diffrent here. Cripes I may have to rethink what I will and won't grow here. I do so love to grow pumpkins and there is this melon I have to have. It is sweetie no.6 sold by Johnny's seeds.
http://www.johnnyseeds.com/catalog/resultdetails.html?edit_id=1715
trav
Location: Washington, Western
Posted: Sep-29-2004 at 1:12pm
Barb,
Things are VERY different here. :-) Fortunately for you, most of Johnny's stuff will grow quite well here - Maine's summers aren't too much warmer than ours.
I have a suggestion that will help your PNW veggie garden more than any other:
Buy Steve Solomon's book "Growing Vegetables West of the Cascades"
Also, if I might do a little shameless plugging - I'd suggest you look through some of the articles on my website. One that you might find helpful is Maritime Northwest Melon Culture
Travis
gary
Location: Washington, Puget Sound Corridor
Posted: Sep-29-2004 at 1:41pm
As an example of the summer temps disparity I picked Flint, MI where my son spent 5 half years at Kettering U.
The critical for melons June to Sep average minimum temps are as much as 10 degrees higher there than Olympia. The highs are only a few degrees higher than Olympia.
The daily heat units on Aug. 1st in Olympia would be (78max+ 50min) / 2 - 50F = 14 heat units. In Flint, an 82F max & a 59F min gives 20.5 heat units or 50% faster to maturity.
Gary
bakingbarb
Location: Washington, Western
Posted: Sep-29-2004 at 6:38pm
Travis and Gary thanks for the info.
I was just wondering today about the heat units here.
I am going to have to do some reading this winter aren't I? LOL
Michigan is for sure warmer. It is ironic but I just always wanted to live here and could not stand the weather in Mi. but now I am rethinking that weather that I hated. But I won't be going back so will have to adjust. There are things that will do better here of course but they are not really edibles!
thanks guys
~BakingBarb
trav
Location: Washington, Western
Posted: Sep-29-2004 at 8:54pm
Oh, and Barb... I hate to be a downer but you may find your tomatoes won't taste as good here as you remember from Michigan. Especially if you're in love with certain specific varieties - they don't always adapt well to our cooler days and nights.
I grew Brandywine a couple years here, and couldn't for the life of me see why people everywhere rave about it. Then a friend of mine, who'd grown up in the midwest, tasted one of my tomatoes and told me "that's not like any of the Brandywines we ever grew back home".
Travis
gary
Location: Washington, Puget Sound Corridor
Posted: Sep-30-2004 at 7:06am
You can find the heat units for WA locations close to you using this site. Just click on a location an then on "Growing Degree Days" in the left panel.
A link at the top will send you to a map of the Western US to look up other western sites.
"Washington State Climate Records"
Gary
bakingbarb
Location: Washington, Western
Posted: Sep-30-2004 at 9:02pm
Thanks Gary for the link, will have to check it out on the weekend when not so tired
Travis, yes I did notice tomatoes are milder here or something. I like early girl already so it does ok here at least I grew it here and it was ok. I need to start earlier cause they were late for me.
I like the salad orange and then there is a small green one I love.
Will have to see how they will do here.
thanks agian
~BakingBarb
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