Crops & Breeds › Vegetable Garden
🥒 Summer Squash
Vegetable Garden · growing reference
| Days to maturity | 45 days – 95 days, by type |
|---|---|
| Germination | 7 days |
| Direct sowing | +5 days vs transplants |
| Spacing | 24″ in the row × 48″ between rows |
| Planted as | seed |
| Water | ~1–2 in a week |
When to plant
In USDA zone 6, for example: Plant out around Apr 22, once your last frost has passed.
| Spring | |
|---|---|
| Zone 3 | May 22 |
| Zone 4 | May 14 |
| Zone 5 | May 3 |
| Zone 6 | Apr 22 |
| Zone 7 | Apr 8 |
| Zone 8 | Mar 22 |
| Zone 9 | Feb 27 |
Dates are the typical window for each zone's average frost dates — your own last frost can differ by a couple of weeks. Zone 10 and warmer is effectively frost-free: plant to the season, not the frost. Southern Hemisphere: shift six months.
Squash Types
- Table · 50 days · 6–12 lbs/plant — The everyday pick — zucchini, crookneck, and pattypan are all varieties on this clock. Keep picking young.
- Blossom · 45 days · 20–40 blossoms/plant — Grown for the flowers (fiori di zucca, flor de calabaza) — pick the males fresh at dawn; blossom strains bear bigger blooms.
- Ornamental · 95 days · 8–15 gourds/plant — The small ornamental gourds — left to harden on the vine and cured for decoration, not the table.
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