92 Pounds! A New Record

I can't believe I got thirty squash this year. The last time I got a good haul of squash was in 2012, the year I got a lot of everything. It was the year that had no winter and I planted seed in February (totally unheard of here, where I usually start at the end of March). I'm wondering if I will beat my production record this year over all even without the early start. 92 pounds of squash really kicks the total up a lot. Last year I got only 50. Though to be fair I have 25% more space in squash this year. Even taking that into account it was the best squash year ever. And I have six little squash trying to ripen still in the garden. I don't think they will make it, but I'm rooting them on.

Squash is a hard one in my raised bed garden. Squash likes to ramble. Containing it is hard. I give the plants 3' at both ends of my 16' long raised beds and grow corn in the middle 10'. I train it under the corn. It is a constant struggle to keep it where it belongs. Even in a good corn and squash year like this year, I can't get a pound per square foot out of the space with just them. One of the beds had crops in them in early spring though. That added to the poundage in the beds. So these beds probably came out pretty even to one pound per square foot. Most people without a lot of space don't grow corn or squash. But corn is my husband's favorite. And squash is one of my major storage crops for the winter.

And speaking of winter. Can you imagine me eating 90 pounds of squash in six months? That is about half a pound a day. There is no way I can eat that much. I'm sure I'll be sharing it with my townhouse mates. And bringing squashed based items to every party I go to during the holidays.

For now the squash is joining the sweet potatoes in front of the sliding glass door so they can cure. If only we would get some sun that is. Recently it has gotten cold and dreary so nothing is really curing they are just sitting there shivering.

Well at least the ones by the far windows have a nice view of the garden while they shiver.

And in future possible records, the carrot harvest is looking big too. My fresh eating carrots are getting just huge. I'll show you the photo on Monday. If the storage carrots get that large I'll certainly break my 2011 record of 42 pounds. But sadly I'll have to wait until November for that one. I like to let the carrots see a bit of frost before I dig them up as they get very sweet and delicious that way.