seeds - butternut squash

[ballinderrymum]

hi i have just deseeded my shop bought butternut squash - can i plant the seeds? what do i need to do?

Squash cross pollnate so you never quite know what you will get if you plant the seed from a shop one . If you defintetly want butternut best buy some, about £1 in Wilkos which worked well for me last year or look for Hunter.

They can't tolerate the cold so start them off inside a few weeks before the last frost date for your area. As they get bigger they can go outside during the day and in at night to harden off then go into final planting spot.

Put a stick next to the roots and a plastic bottle turned upside down with bottom cut off next to the roots for easy watering as they spread out a lot. You could train them up something or round in a circle to keep them under control. They are harder to grow than courgettes and you do read of people who don't have much luck with them , think length of growing season and weather are probably key factors. But definitely worth a shot, I got 13 from 4 plants last year and basically did nothing other than lob them in ie. No watering. Think that was beginners luck though and my pumpkins who had the same treatment ie. neglect, keeled over.

thanks for the advice :) fingers crossed