Some help please

savingmummy

Today i was given a butternut squash plant and was told to put it in the ground.
I have put it in the ground with a support, is there anything i need to know regarding care etc?
It is very healthy and is approx 5" tall with quite a thick stem.
Does it need covering for protection or should it be ok outside? It is quite windy here in Essex and also rainfull has been quite heavy in bouts.

Thanks for any advise.

Aless

They need lots of water and they get quite long. I feed them with tomato feed every so often. They should be fine outside.

I tend to stake mine but you can leave them on the ground but you can have problems with ripening and rotting if very wet.

frazzbo

Aless wrote: »

They need lots of water and they get quite long. I feed them with tomato feed every so often. They should be fine outside.

I tend to stake mine but you can leave them on the ground but you can have problems with ripening and rotting it very wet.

Oh I see - that must be why people say to put a tile or something underneath. It hadn't occurred to me at all!

Aless

I realised I wasn't very clear in my original post. What I meant was if you leave the plant to trail on the ground you might have problems with ripening because of the difficulty in the sun getting to the squash.

You might have problems with rotting if the squash lies on wet ground/grass, etc. Also insects and bugs might attack the squash more if the squash lie on the ground.

savingmummy

Thank you x

bottleblonde

I'm growing Butternut squash over a metal garden arch again this year. I did it this way for the first time last year and it was pretty successful, just had to keep an eye on the fruits as they grew and support them where necessary because they got quite heavy. I'd read that they grow like triffids in a bed and I didn't have enough room on the ground. Wilko garden arch for just under £5.00, put it in tubs at both ends and growing squashes both sides. I second the bit about them not liking being sat in water, so have 'mounded' up the earth around the base of the plants so the water drains straight off and down in to the roots, and doesn't puddle round the stem.

Whether or not it works agin this year is another matter...;)