Patty Pan Squash!
Patty pan squash is ripe! My young neighbor Sophia and I planted this Cucurbita pepo Balmoral, or Patty Pan Squash, over Memorial Day weekend. Here’s the first harvested one. The tag says 55-65 days to harvest. I took the first one off today at 51 days.
My first Patty Pan Squash
You can see us planting the seedling near the end (3:32) of Episode 10 of “Late Bloomer.” Sophia really enjoyed planting in my garden when she was four. The plant is now two feet tall and three feet wide, and loaded with blooms. Squash blooms always seem to have these little black flies on them. They don’t seem to hurt anything. Anyone know what they are doing?
Female squash blossom with black flies
Though squash requires full sun, the heat is making the big leaves go limp. I know it’s not from lack of water, because I found a mushroom growing underneath. (I cut back on the water after seeing this.)
Mushroom growing under squash
I’ve taken to shading it in the afternoon. The leaves perk back up within an hour or two. Obviously, this method is unsustainable, that’s my sidewalk! Update 2014: I’ve since learned that the big leaves can’t take up moisture fast enough in the heat and they wilt.
Umbrella shading squash plant
This squash is planted near beans and corn, the Three Sisters method. (More on the Three Sisters crop planting.) It’s also right underneath my sunflowers, and with the parrots tearing the wilted blooms to bits going after the seeds, there’s quite a mess on the squash leaves by the evening.
Debris on squash leaf
I’ll let you know how the squash tastes. Thanks for reading! – Kaye
P.S. It tasted great! Try this squash in ratatouille! Here’s how I make ratatouille! It’s so easy! Give it a try.
Category: Curbside Gardening, Vegetables, Warm Season
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How do you prepare this type of squash for eating? Ive always just used it as Halloween and Thanksgiving decorations around the yard….thanks!
It says on the tag, “backed, stuffed, sauteed, soups,” all of which sound good to me! Tonight, I think I will cut it in cubes and steam it and serve with rice.
Oh Kaye that is a delightful umbrella for the squash, how clever. PP squash remind me of flying saucers… They are super tasty and especially sweet when picked/eaten young/baby. Sliced up and lightly grilled is nice too!
*anna
Grilled, yes! OK, I’ll pick the smaller ones tomorrow. I have about a dozen cherry tomatoes, my first ripe batch! I didn’t do the umbrella today, and it seems to have survived. The zucchini squash leaves love the sun!