# Winter Squash



## Centraltn (Feb 21, 2011)

I love winter squash and make sure I always plant waltham butternut and a few other non hybrids, but this year I'm trying Hubbard Squash. Has anyone grown this? How does it taste ? How much room does it really need?

Thanks all!


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## Daegnus (Nov 12, 2010)

Hubbard tastes just like pumpkin. It's super easy to grow, just be sure to give it enough room to wander, just like a pumpkin.

There was a rumor that at one point (this may still be true), much of the canned pumpkin available at grocery stores was actually hubbard squash. The amount of flesh per fruit can be nearly 2 times that of a normal baking pumpkin.


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## Centraltn (Feb 21, 2011)

WOW really> Thats alot of canning- but well worth it!


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## lotsoflead (Jul 25, 2010)

Centraltn said:


> I love winter squash and make sure I always plant waltham butternut and a few other non hybrids, but this year I'm trying Hubbard Squash. Has anyone grown this? How does it taste ? How much room does it really need?
> 
> Thanks all!


 one thing to remember about growing squash or pumpkin, it takes a lot of food and water to feed those long vines and large vegs, I always put a large fork full of good compost or rabbit manure just under the seeds plus side dress them a little through the season. I spray the vines with a little water every couple days just before dark also just to give them a little moisture.
unsweetened Squash and pumpkin will double as dogfood also, so there are many benifits for growing it.


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## BuggingIn (May 31, 2010)

Hubbard squash are awesome beasts! They do take some room, but if you grow them in with the corn, I've heard they can help keep ***** out of your corn patch. ***** don't like the prickly squash vines and leaves. I have seeds saved to grow this year from a huge Blue Hubbard squash grown by my bff's folks. That monster required an axe to split it open...well over 20# of beautiful orange "pumpkin" flesh, and lots of seeds to save and plant (or to roast and eat).

eta: they are a c. maxima, so they'll cross with other maximas - if you are growing more than one variety of c. maxima and want to save seed, you'll have to bag and hand pollinate the blossoms.


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## grannyB (Apr 6, 2011)

I planted 2 hills of Blue Hubbard last year and have enough canned and frozen squash to last us for years. I still have 3 big ones in the basement to can. Some of them, it took 2 of us to hoist them in the wheelbarrow. 

I found a good way to split them -- just drop on a concrete floor and they split right in half. 

They are not as sweet as butternut, but make great pies. I use squash for pies instead of pumpkin. We grew pumpkins, too, but the family likes the squash pies better. My hubbard must have crossed with my pumpkins on one vine because I go several very large green pumpkins. LOL


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## Centraltn (Feb 21, 2011)

Thanks so much grannyB


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