Tuesday 17 August 2010

Mixed squashes and pumpkins

I said last time how well the courgettes are doing (and they still are!). Being closely related to courgettes, the squashes are also very happy this year. Last year, we bought a "packet of mixed squashes and pumpkins", and got two varieties out of it - the stripy Padana pumpkin and the curly Tromba of Albenga squash.

This year, we planted some more from the mixed packet, and some seeds that we harvested from the (prize-winning!) pumpkin from last year. As a result, we've got at least four varieties on the go, and plenty more of each. First up, we appear to have another Padana pumpkin - there are at least three like this, but none have the orange stripes of last year, so they may be from the seeds we harvested, as they apparently cross-breed very readily.

Next up, it's definitely a "Custard White" squash. I was hoping for some of these last year, so this is a very welcome sight. I'll try to get a better photo at some point, but they're quite deep into the squash patch.



I'm really not sure what this one is: it's very round, with smooth skin. My best guess is that it's a classic orange "Quintale" pumpkin.



And finally, we have some yellow curly ones again. This one looks more like the photo on the packet than the ones we got last year, with the beginnings of stripes visible.


So what haven't we seen yet from the mixed packet?
I'll keep an eye out to see if any of these turn up over the next few weeks. The knobbly ones look interesting, but are probably hard to peel!