How to Avoid Common Squash Problems 

Lazy gardening tip: If you get behind on weeding to the point where your weeds are growing taller than your squash or pumpkins, go through your vines, lightly lift them up, and set them on top of the weeds (I have even done this on top of spiny pigweed which is a horrid intrusive plant with thorns). They will grow on top of the weeds for the rest of the growing season ensuring your leaves get all the sunlight they need while giving some protection to the squash and pumpkins themselves. I have done this for the past two years (bad procrastinator here) and have gotten around 200 pumpkins each year in a 40 x 40ft area.

As always these short videos are enthusiastic, informative and very watchable. Thank you

We grew crockneck, pumpkins, spaghetti and blue Hubbard squash this year. 70 so far (not counting the crockneck!) And more are coming. Our biggest spaghetti squash was 4 lbs!! We've got a blue Hubbard coming along that's so big, he might not pass through the back door! It's been a wonderfully blessed garden harvest and your videos, Ben, make it more fun ❤🤓. We love your mug!!

I live in Australia. I'm growing Spaghetti squash and jap/kent (1st time this year) and butternut (my 2nd time). I planted lots of seeds this time. Last year i had 2 plants and only got 3 butternuts. I'm hoping to get a good harvest this year. Thank you for all your information. I love your channel, i learn so much

Thanks for responding with a video to my question. Much appreciated! ❤️

This year I’m growing zucchini, crockneck, acorn, and butternut in NW WA state. I did get powdery mildew on my zucc’s and yellow squash and so I sprayed the leaves with the milk/water mix and it works great!!

The biggest issue I'm experiencing is blossom end rot. It would be great if you could cover how to avoid that problem in a future update.

What a great video on squash! Thanks for all the tips and tricks. I just started my fall garden and already have so many decorative gourds growing.

Helpful all around! I had those bugs early on and didn't realize they were so damaging! Thanks so much for your great videos.

This was the most informative video on squash I've watched. Thank you on the tip for hardening winter squash off the vine. We are getting a ton of rain and my honeynut butternut squash are splitting.

I wish I'd had this video back in May. XP

Milk solution also works well on Roses for Marsonia...black spot. Thank you so much for such interesting videos and info.

I am so glad I came across this video. I am growing Cinderella pumpkin in Western Washington and have been dealing with a mild case of mildew and will try the milk water solution. Happy gardening!

First time growing squash for me here just outside of Toronto. Honey Baby butternut and so far I count about 14. Thanks for the tips Ben; you always have great advice and I love your enthusiasm 🙂

Perfect timing! I needed this!

Very educational and I love your passion for growing

So many fabulous Tips! Can’t wait until next season to use them! Butternut squash is a favorite here. Roasted and mixed with coconut milk and some spices, it makes a divine soup. Thank you!

You are such a joy to listen to, and I appreciate all of your tips!

Thankful for this video! Next year’s harvest will be much better in dealing with squash borer! They were disparaged this year.

Thanks for the tip of wrapping the vines in foil. I lost so many vines to borers this year.

Wonderful information, thank you!

Thnk u!! I have struggled with both pests living in Kansas, US and ended up with powder mildew for first time too....

Very helpful video! Thank you 😁👍

Thank you for this video 🙏🌻

I always do the crooknecks and this year I got a bumper crop with plenty to give away but mildew always gets them in the end. I tore them out and planted some new for fall in a different part of the garden. and 2 cucumber plants gave me more than I could give away!

I’m growing butternut squash for the first time and my one plant has lots of fruit! Thanks for the tips - I was worried how to take the way care of them.

I’ve grown Butternut squash “Hercules” this year, first time I’ve tried. I might add I’m not a gardener I just like gardening. I’ve planted two plants in two big 30l plastic buckets. I’m in Norfolk UK. They have produced a few fruit. Some have just dropped off when quite small, however some are looking healthy and are hanging on. I’ve counted 5 squashes each about 8” long so far and it’s only mid August. Keeping the pots moist is quite a challenge, they are thirsty plants! I feed them once a week with tomato feed. Here’s hoping. I don’t quite know when to harvest them. I’m just going to wait and see, unless someone tells me otherwise. Great videos. Thank you.

Great video! I love butternut squash, putting my first two raised beds in soon and looking forward to trying🤘🙏🙏

Growing Black Futsu (a staple of mine). 2 plants - 25 squash. I got some Yokohama Squash seeds for next year. Can't wait to give them a try.

I am so tempted. They take up so much space, though.

Like always..... super informative . Wish I could have a garden like yours, beautiful ,peaceful and yumi one ☺☺

Your garden look beautiful , growing a lot plant in the garden , thanks for sharing

We planted a dark Zucchini, Alexandria summer Squash, Early Yellow Crookneck and a winter squash Green Kabocha. We are having the best squash year thus far. Now the zucchini has succumbed to disease (I did not wrap this year), the Alexandria looks great, the Crookneck is battling the bugs well. The fall Kabocha is wonderful. We have had about 40-50 summer squash so far. Our cucumbers lasted much longer also and we have had about 60 cucumbers but now it is done, almost to September which is a record. I did milk spray the cukes for a while. We have also used Neem oil spray to kill squash bug young with success. Also kills the eggs. But the adults half way killed.

I grew honey butternut and WOW! The flavour was amazing in a soup!

Growing climbing miniature butternut squash up a cattle panel arch here in NW Missouri. We do get vine borers, so they have been wrapped in tulle up about 4 feet. They are just starting to turn color!

Love all your video posts. Learn so many garden hacks and look forward to more. (Also, being from the moist Pacific NW I am so happy to see I am not the only one who gardens in the rain!

Have been growing yellow and green courgettes and made some great courgette cakes. Am also growing two pumpkins, one is ‘Becky’ and I currently have one perfect pumpkin on the vine. The other is ‘Mammoth’ and unsurprisingly it is taking over the garden!

Very good info and wish I'd done a little more research.. I'm in North America and having problems with everything you spoke about and whiteflies this year. Thanks for sharing!

Fantastic video blog! I have 2 types- straight neck and butternut, both provide so much delicious fruit. Very important to erect support structures because they vine rather vigorously. Thanks for the tips and tricks.

I love delicata squash, and this year we are growing a variety of delicata called, Candystick. I can't wait to try it this fall. It is a winter squash with a skin that it thin enough that you can eat it if you like. Thanks for the squash growing tips!

Thank you so much….Central Florida, USA

Thank you so much for the video. Now, I will burry the exposed stem with dirt for extra protection from 🐛 🐜

5:33 I had one particularly disorganized autumn/winter a few years back. By May the following year, I stumbled across a pumpkin in my bedroom closet. No idea how it got there but it was perfect and unspoiled.

I've had a few squash rot that are on the ground! It's been a hard year for growing them!

Grey Ghost is a personal favorite. They have a phenomenal shelf - life. In fact I am still eating last fall's harvest. Greetings from Canada.

Very glad to have seen this, but I'll have to use the tips next year as it's too late for most of my squash. Our biggest issue are the vine borers. I'll try the row cover AND foil next year!!

One zucchini goes for almost two dollars USD here in the Southeastern USA because it takes so much labor to grow any at all.

I was tucking a handful of hay under each butternut squash, not I’ll look for a tile or something similar. It’s still getting more moist than I’d like with the hay

First time planting squash.... First 4 weeks beautiful growth until all the pests moved in. Vine borer, inch worm and powdery mildew. Next year I better be prepared.

Trombocino squash are brilliant. The seeds are concentrated in the bulb at the end & the neck is just the flesh. They also can be stored all the way through to March.

I'm growing butternut. I love the flavor and it stores very well

I’m in northeast USA and the squash bugs and vine borers have been out of control this year! I took 50-100 eggs off my plants every single day, and I only have 5 squash plants! At least I’ve found an easy way to do it… duct tape! Press the tape against the leaf or stem where the eggs are and the eggs come right off. Fold up the tape and discard. Also, when checking the squash plants I wear sleeves and gloves as those leaves are prickly and easily scratch and irritate the skin.

I have planted butter nut squash 1st time in the greenhouse. Now going to transfer in the pot outside. Keep finger cross hope will get some fruit later.

I'm growing 4 kinds of squashes this year. In containers & vertically for the first time, they've been getting irregular waterings and now all have very pale green leaves. I think my butternut squash stopped taking up water/nutrients for a few weeks and it's suffering from saturated roots- it has the black-edged leaves and the fruit is deforming. I may stick to just 1 variety next year.

How I wish I could see this video three months ago so that I won't have so many rotted pumpkins. 😿Thank you!

I've got sugar pie pumpkin, two types of acorn, and two types of butter nut....and some mini pumpkins for my daughter's.....and they are completely taking over my garden. Fingers crossed for a decent harvest this fall!

Really great information here. Though my summer varieties never fruited this year, my Waltham Butternut squash is growing great and looking like I will be able to have lots of butternut squash soup this winter.

I’ve got a blue Hubbard from almost a year ago. No rot no mold. Planning on campfire roasting it this fall.

Butternut & Uchi Kuri are my must grow winter squashes. This year I‘m also growing Crown Prince as a trial to see if I like their taste

This year I only grew "crooked neck squash", cuz I couldn't find any zucchini plants in May/June in my area of the country. I didn't count on having such prolific plants. I have a ton of squash coming at me & 2 tons of tomatoes. I LOVE to garden 😍 and yes it's a lot of work but it's worth it. I just need to find a bunch of good recipes for using squash. It's beautiful & I don't want it to go to waste. Enjoy all the yummy produce coming from your gardens. It's all worth the effort you put into it.

I am growing acorn and kobocha squash in Montana where the growing season is quite short and it is sometimes difficult to get the fruit ripe. I have been told that the appearance of the squash does not necessarily indicate when it is ready to pick. It takes time to develop adequate flesh with a good taste and the best indicator is to determine when the fruit sets; i.e. when the female plant is pollinated which I do with a small paint brush. the fruit is ready to pick about 50-55 days. I noticed the fruit sets over a period of a few weeks so that gives me an idea when they will be ready if the temperature cooperates. This is true for all varieties of winter squash. This from research and work at Johnny's Seed company.

I grow seminole pumpkin which is a native to the US type. These will keep a year nicely. I just throw out last years stock to my chickens. This year's is coming in now.

lucky me I live in mid south USA Tennessee. The vine borer gets me every time. The netting does not always work, the vine borer will tunnel in the ground and sleep there all winter and surprise you next spring. I found one they are quite big. This time I am using freshly bought soil and then netting, that should work. I am not going to let some little bugs beat me. :) Another fine video. Thank you This year I will be growing, Tatume, Cucuzza, several kinds of zucchini (round, long green and yellow) Tromboncino, Red Kuri, Luffa (harvested early they taste a bit like zucchini, left late the are sponges, and are not bothered by vine borer, very prolific)

Butternut squash, pumpkin, courgettes. Butternut squash store fine in a cool area. Pumpkin and courgette go in the freezer.

I grow Crown Prince squash. They have a great texture and taste and store very well. I used my last one from last year just this week. This means it stored from October to August.

I shred my crooked neck and zucchini and freeze and use it for soups, pasta sauces, they just melt and be un noticed but add nutrient dense goodness to just about any meal

First year I've tried growing marrows. Plants took off vigorously but then contracted powdery mildew, despite regular watering. It happened so quickly too. The marrows we've been able to harvest (woodlice appear to thrive on them in our garden, attacking the young fruits very early on) have been delicious. Picking up more and more knowledge this year, so next year I'll hope to do better.

Arkansas USA, we have a lot of (bug) problems, this year I am using Cedar chips to deter the wretched bugs!, along with lining the stems of my squash with aluminun foil.

I'm playing around & see if I can get a second harvest of Sugar Pie Pumpkins, they should be ready by Thanksgiving or 15 of Dec. Next year I'm trying Lakota Squash & Boston Marrow Squash

Thank you for your videos. very helpful. This year, I will try to can sugar pumpkins - just like jams. First baked them, then pureed, added apple and spices and some sugar over stovetop and poured into disinfected jars and let them cool very slowly (over 2 days). Not sure if this will work, but if so, I have super easy soup or pie base ready all winter. Fingers crossed.

First time trying butternut squash this year. I've got 5 growing at about a foot tall so far (a bit late in sewing) going to get them all into a bigger pot with a tripod of cane for them to climb and a gauze sheet for protection. In Scotland but it's been 25 degrees this week so hopefully they'll be ok once outside 👌😁

This year it's Uchiki Kuri and Zucchini. I'd do anything for more room to grow big pumpkins!

We've had rain here in the mountains of western NC almost every day! Been pouring 2", 3" and 5" out of the gauge way too often. We got two consecutive no-rain days this week, a record for months. So yeah, we got powdery mildew! Grew a lot of squash. My favorite is Trombetta Di Albenga, an amazing climbing, Italian summer squash that produces long neck fruits that are dry and sweet, never watery or mushy. One squash is a meal. Still producing from a July transplanting. Second favorite, Clarimore, a Middle Eastern, pale green Zucchini that shares qualities with the previous. Yellow Crockneck is the old southern standard that I've eaten since childhood, grown it for 42 years. Black Beauty and Golden were the Zucchini choices also. Then I went wild with winter squash. From Row 7, a delicious, super sweet, tiny butternut bred from Honey Nut that is only called 898, from Cornel University trials. Robin's Koginut is a cross between a Kobacha and a Butternut. Transplanted them out in early June and they've matured, bypassed disease and insects for most of their life. I Also grew: Honey Nut, Honey Boat Delicata, Candy Stick Delicata, Sweet Dumpling. Tetra, also from Row 7, is a Delicata bred for edible stems, flowers, immature fruit and winter squash. I blew it and didn't keep it separate to experiment so it'll just be a winter squash. For heirlooms I grew Dutch Fork, a local Cherokee variety, and North Georgia Candy Roaster. I also grew Lady Godiva, a naked seeded pumpkin. Watermelons, canteloups and cucumbers also. Just transplanted out my last blast of summer squash, yellow Crockneck and Black beauty. Started them inside because of the rain. Seeded out the 40 days to maturity Ortolana di Faenza a few days ago also. Only one Golden Zuke, a couple of YCN and the Trombetta are still producing from my first plantings. The giant winter squash that went out late July have powdery mildew but they're still throwing out fruit and growing vigorously. The plants that went out late June aren't very productive and will only mature a few fruit each. And, as I said, the early June plantings prospered. BTW, I can quarts of summer squash with basil, oregano and over abundant herbs and blend it creamy to add to canned tomatoes for a low acid pasta sauce in the winter. Great for soup base also. So easy to pressure can.

I am growing 5 variety of pumpkins, zucchini, butternut squash this year. For the first time ever, I planted birdhouse gourds. They are huge and so adorable! Garden is producing great. I see some sqash bugs now amongst my pumpkins🤨🤨🤨. Vines died because of a lack of water getting to them. I'm ready to be done with over 100 degree weather.

I have yellow star fruit squashes - they seem to be prolific again this year. Uses - soup with harissa paste is one recipe, decorating the church at Harvest time is another use - other recipes would be grand! Thanks for explaining how to harvest - never thought of the T shape before

Winter squash does beautifully here in NE Georgia, at the foot of the Appalachias. We do fight squash bugs and now marmorated stink bugs, it worth the effort. I still have a few butternut, spaghetti and Cherokee Tan pumpkins (an amazing native American cultivar) from August 2019 in our basement! The North Georgia Candy Roaster is amazing but not as long on the shelf given its huge size. Summer squash does well too, and our season is long enough we can start late to avoid some of the pests. Favorites are bennings green tint (pattypan), lemon, and ronde de nice. Our plants were beautiful and full of fruit when I pruned some leaves for airflow and space, but this may have been an error as they quickly looked diseased when rainfall picked up :( any advice on that? I did 4 plants in a 1.5 meter square box and they were flowing over all sides. Love the tip about using a tile under larger fruits especially and will try the milk solution next time I am faced with powdery mildew!

I grew zucchini this year. The plants did great at the beginning of the summer and I got about 10 gorgeous fruits! Then the squash vine borers hit... and that was the end of that. I'm too inexperienced to know how I could have saved my plants. I'm also a little hesitant to try zucchini again next year. I practice square foot gardening in a raised bed so if I do try zucchini again next year, I'm either going to plant them in a different part of my raised bed, give them their own space or treat my entire raised bed with diatomaceous earth before next spring. But this video helps a lot!

Thank you for the great video. Could butternut squash be grown up a trellis with the sling supports?

Lots of problems with our squash this year. How about a video on who pollinates squash and how to attract ( needs of pollinators). Also, slow growth this year?? Heat, sun? I dunno???

Vine borers are my arch nemesis

I'll be growing pumpkin and butternut this year.. I think I will skip soft squash this time around

The stink bugs and the borers are so bad in our area (SEastern US). Wrapping the stems with foil and keeping them covered until they bloom has made a huge difference.

Well, I covered a bare patch of garden with home made compost. I now have a staggeringly vigorous pumpkin and squash patch with at least 30 healthy squash all from discarded squash innards I guess. Well worth trying...

Thankyou for the useful tips, it is my first year of growing Squash; butternut and Cheeky Prince which is a hybrid. Initially I got lots of fruit growing but over the past month the babies have been rotting once they get to golfball size, I think it is because it has been so cool and wet in North Yorkshire...

Would love to share an image of our Cucuzza squash trellis but don't know where to attach it! Its a prolific fruiting vine that makes a great point of interest in our therapeutic Garden of Hope at Good Samaritan Hospital (Suffern, NY)

Here in Cape Town we have something called pumpkin fly and it destroys the fruit. I'm prepping for my war with them this summer

Hi! I'm Dutch. I will be trying your milksolution on my holyhocks next year. Thank you! Any effective tips for slugs and snails? I have given up on anything related to squash, cucumber and sunflowers, because the slimeys always eat the flowers or the young plants. 😥

This is so incredibly helpful and I really appreciate it. Our squash, butternut waltham, Looks very very dry but The leaves are yellowing. I think we are watering it too much. Opinion? Northern New England

Hi... Could you plz advise on the treatment of zucchini mould? Thanks

I am growing my favourite, sweet dumpling. First time growing it but ate it all last winter. In my opinion, it is much tastier than other squashes. Plus it is scalloped so pretty when cut and small, good for individual portions or 2 people so nothing gets wasted. Mine are growing over an arch and I have 3 that are a good size and getting some colour. More are still being created. How will I store them? Not sure. I think squash like warmer conditions than other root cellar produce so gotta figure that out. What a great topic for another video! I'm in Toronto, Canada.

Question: I grew birdhouse gourds for the first time this year. I have many quite large gourds growing. The trellis fell over in a recent wind storm and now I’m worried they will all rot on the ground. Is it ok to just go ahead and cut them off the vine (late Aug in Vermont, USA) and start curing them or are they unlikely to be fully developed enough?

Nice video, I have a problem with my squash I have plenty of foliage and squashes growing but the squash rot when they are about 2” long what can I do please

Patty pans are my favourite, I’ve just put some seed to sprout. I harvest them small, no need to peel, just chopped up and fried in butter. I’ve heard that adding crushed eggshell can boost calcium for strong growth?

I would like to grow my squash and pumpkins on an arched trellis. How do I know what weight the trellis needs to be able to support for different vegetables or at least heavier vegetables like pumkins? What material is best suited?

We managed to ward off the squash bugs early in the season but it looks like the vine borers have moved in recently here in central Virginia. It's been a losing battle for me over the past few years but I love winter squash and I'm determined to keep trying.

I thought zucchini was the weed of the vegetable world and would feed my NH neighborhood. I had just 1 fruit out of 4 plants. I had bright yellow flowers until the vine borer destroyed each plant. I will try your tips next summer.

You can pickle it, steam it, stir fry it, fry it, grill it, stuff it and make squash casserole. Most of the time, when I grill, I use half squash and half zucchini. So this recipe works for both. To GRILL it, Do not use lighter fluid or charcoal that has lighter fluid in it. Get a Webber chimney and start your charcoal with it from now on, this will take the taste of your food to another level. Set your grill up for indirect cooking. I use a disposable aluminum pan on the side with no coals, to coat the squash in and keep it warm. In your pan add some butter and garlic. You want enough butter, to baste the squash while your cooking it and keeping it warm. You have to slice the squash lengthwise and you want the slices to be 3/8" or 10 mm thick. I use tongs to turn it. Coat your squash with the garlic butter and put it over the coals, I season with Cavender's Greek Seasoning. Baste often, but do not start a fire with too much butter. I like to grill mine to a darker golden brown, the more caramelization, the more flavor. Baste it again when you take it off the fire and put it in your pan to keep warm. To Southern Fry, Slice the squash across so that you have round slices 1/8" or 3 mm. In a bowl mix 1 egg and 1 cup or 236 ml of milk. In a bow mix 1/2 cup or 118ml of flower and corn meal. In a skillet pour in enough oil of your preference so that the squash rounds will just barely float and heat to medium or deep fry at 350f or 176c. Fry to golden brown and add a touch of salt as soon as you take it off the heat. Strain off the oil the best you can and place on a plate with paper towels to soak up excess oil.

My Spaghetti squash was doing amazing Got about 6 Large squashes in 3 months but now the plant is looking horrible brown, dry and powdery . I am in SoCal and will give that milk solution a try.

How far apart can I plant the different kinds of winter squash?

Hi thank you for your video, can I hang my gems squash up, as it will lie on grass Im cutting? First timer here.