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Vegetables · annual
Winter squash and pumpkin from seed
Cucurbita spp. · also searched as pumpkin, butternut, acorn squash, starting squash
- Germination temperature
- 75 to 95°F (24 to 35°C)
- Minimum soil temperature
- 60°F (16°C)
- Sowing depth
- 1 to 1½ in (25 to 38 mm)
- Days to germinate
- 6 to 10 days
- Light
- Cover the seed; darkness helps
- Before sowing
- Nothing needed
- Start indoors
- 3 to 4 weeks before planting out
- Plant out
- 1 to 2 weeks after the last frost
- Sow outdoors
- 1 to 2 weeks after the last frost
- Spacing
- 36 to 48 in (90 to 120 cm)
Your dates from your last frost Seed not coming up?
Sowing
Winter squash needs a long warm season (about 100 days to harvest in CSU's table), so sow right after frost or start in pots 3 to 4 weeks ahead. Plant three seeds per hill and thin to the strongest.
Care and transplanting
Mulch, water at the base and let vines roam. Plant out when frost is past and soil is warm.
Problems
Slow germination means cold soil. Wilting vines can be borers or bacterial wilt. Powdery mildew late in the season is common and rarely fatal.
Saving seed
Seed is viable from a fully ripe fruit; scoop, rinse and dry thoroughly. Squash of the same species cross, so expect surprises.