Experiment with the types of squash that you grow.

Squash is a generic name for plants in the gourd family. All of these plants have soft flesh surrounding a seeded core, and many have hard skins. There are two types of squash – Summer Squash and Winter Squash.

Summer squash matures more quickly than winter squash and has a thinner skin. Summer squash is planted in early spring and is harvested throughout the summer. It can be eaten raw or cooked.

Winter squash is planted later than summer squash and matures later, in the early fall.

Winter squash has a firmer skin, more like a rind, and it is not edible raw. Winter squash keeps much better than summer squash, can be stored in a cool dry place over the winter. Winter squash can be roasted, added to soups and stews, or mashed. And don’t forget the delicious Pumpkin Pie!

The flowers of both types of squash are edible, add them to a salad or deep fry them in a light batter.

Common varieties of summer squash include the Zucchini (courgette), a dark green squash that grows abundantly for most gardeners and the yellow Crookneck squash which ranges from very small and tender to much larger and woodier. The larger kind should be roasted. Summer squash will become woody and lose flavor if left on the vine too long, so it is better to pick it young.

Winter squash is much more varied. Spaghetti squash is yellow in color and oblong. When cooked, the squash separates into noodle-like threads that give the plant its name. Acorn squash is green and acorn shaped, and is delicious roasted with a sprinkling of brown sugar and goat cheese. Banana squash is roughly oblong and has a rich, sweet, yellow fruit.

Butternut squash is another favorite winter squash. It is light brown in color with deep orange flesh. Buttercup squash is round and ranges from dark green to rich red in color, with tender, sweet flesh.

Delicata squash is oblong with streaks of yellow and green. The flesh is sweet and tender when cooked. Hubbard squash is a roughly shaped, lumpy squash ranging from grey to green in color with moist yellow flesh.

Even though you might be tempted to plant 10 types of squash, remember that they are big plants and heavy feeders, that will take up quite a bit of room in your garden.

Acorn Squash

This squash is a compact fruit which comes in green, gold and white, one squash provides one large or two smaller portions. The halves can be hollowed out after baking and used as decorative bowls for mashed squash, squash soup, rice or stuffing.

Ambercup Squash

Compact and weighing less than three pounds, the ambercup squash is a pumpkin-colored shell with an occasional stripe. The flesh is a deep orange. This variety is great in soup.

Autumn Cup Squash

With its forest-green shell and pretty green stripes, the rich, meaty autumn cup squash one of the most favorable winter squashes.

Australian Blue Squash or Queensland Blue Winter Squash

This large blue squash has teal-gray skin encasing bright orange flesh. The flesh is very similar in taste and appearance to a pumpkin.

Baby Boo Pumpkin

A miniature white pumpkin 2 to 3 inches in diameter. There’s not much flesh, so the baby boo pumpkin is mostly used for decoration.

Banana Squash

Ranging from 2 to 3 feet in length, the banana squash has a pale cream or peach colored exterior and golden flesh. It averages 10 to 12 pounds It is common for banana squash in home gardens to grow up to 40 to 50 pounds or more.

Buttercup Squash

Small and green with vertical gray or pale green stripes, the buttercup squash with tender orange flesh has a flavor similar to sweet potato.

Butternut Squash

One of the more common types of squash, the Butternut has a creamy coloured skin and tastes like a nuttier version of the sweet potato. It can be baked or steamed.

Calabash

This smooth, pale green bottle gourd with a white flesh is normally used in stir-fries.

Calabaza or West Indian Squash

Round or pear-shaped, the calabaza squash ranges from beige to pale pinks and oranges. It is similar to the butternut squash, but with a firmer and more fibrous texture.

Carnival Squash

The carnival squash has a patterned skin with stripes of deep orange and specks of green. The meat inside is a golden yellow similar to butternut squash and is creamy and sweet.

Chayote Squash or Christophen Squash

The apple green Chayote squash is mild-tasting: refreshing like a cucumber, tender like zucchini, but crisp like an apple. Like zucchini, it can be eaten or prepared almost in any way. Though similar to summer squash, chayote has a firmer texture and usually requires a longer cooking time.

Cheese Wheels or Cheese Pumpkin

This squash is squat and round like a wheel of cheese. The peach or orange exterior makes it a pumpkin look-a-like. They have very sweet flesh and are excellent in pies.

Chinese Okra, Luffa Gourd or Silk Melon

This squash is similar to zucchini and can be prepared the same way. Pick it young for tender flesh.

Cinderella Pumpkin or Red Etampes

As the name suggests this one resembles the pumpkin that Cinderellas Fairy Godmother transformed into a carriage. Although perfectly edible, most use the Cinderella pumpkin as a decorative pumpkin.

Crookneck Squash

A yellow squash with a thin curved neck; there are smooth skin and and warty skin varieties. Although they are summer squash, the taste is richer, like a winter squash.

Cucumber

Cucumbers are popular choices for salads and sandwiches, they can be pickled or made into a delicious relish. There are different varieties of cucumbers, but the main difference lies in the skin and seeds. Some skins are bumpy and some are smooth, some are full of seeds while others are almost seedless.

Cucuzza or Italian Squash

“Cucuzza” is the general term for squash in Italian. It can be prepared just like zucchini and has the same tender, mildly-sweet characteristics.

Delicata Squash or Sweet Potato Squash

This oblong squash has a lemon-colored skin streaked with green or orange. The flesh is a cross between butternut squash and sweet potato.

Eight-Ball Squash

The fat, round eight-ball squash is a spherical hybrid of zucchini. With the same dark green skin and plump insides, this squash can be prepared exactly the same way as zucchini.

Fairytale Pumpkin

A large, flat (cheese-wheel-shaped) winter pumpkin, growing to 20 pounds. The mature pumpkin has an orange-brown rind; the flesh is deep orange, tender and sweet, making it delicious as well as ornamental option.

Gold Nugget Squash

This dull-skinned squash (the dull skin indicates maturity) is as deep orangeinside as it is outside. It has a fairly bland taste and should be seasoned.

Gooseneck Squash

A winter squash with a natural bend which resembles a goose’s neck.

Green-Striped Cushaw Squash

The cushaw is a crooknecked shaped white squash, mottled with green stripes. Its yellow flesh is best suited for pies and fillings because it is slightly sweet, but thick and coarse. It tastes very much like a pumpkin.

Hubbard Squash (Blue, Golden, Green, or Gray)

Large and bumpy, this is one of the wartier skinned types of squash. The peach colored flesh is moist, but is best prepared boiled or baked and then puréed. Longer cooking helps breakdown its fibrousness and evaporates some of the excess water.

Kabocha Squash

“Kabocha” is the general term for squash in Japanese. The mossy-green rind with spotted streaks of gray teal encase tender, sweet pumpkin flesh, but without the stringy fibers.

Lumina Squash

A round, white squash that is sometimes carved like a pumpkin fordecoration.

Mo Qua Squash

Mo qua is a squash of Chinese origin. Like zucchini, the flesh is light-colored and slightly firm. It.s mild flavor can absorb the flavor of any food it is combined with. Peeled, seeded and cubed, Mo Qua is usually stir-fried, braised, boiled or added to soups.

Orangetti Squash or Vegetable Spaghetti

The pale, orange fleshed cousin of the spaghetti squash shares the samequality of separating into long spaghetti like strands as it cooks. The watermelon shaped orangetti squash is golden and smooth, and its delicate strands can be cooked like a conventional squash.

Pattypan or Sunburst Squash or Baby Summer Squash

Pattypans come in yellow, green and white. They have scalloped edges and, like most other summer squash, a thin skin and tender meat. Bake in the oven or cook on the stove.

Pumpkin

Perhaps the most easily identifiable of all the types of squash.

Drier, coarser and more strongly flavored than most other squash, pumpkins are staples of autumn, for Halloween Jack-O-Lanterns and pumpkin pie. There are many pumpkin variations, such as the Gold Dust, Jack-Be-Little, Lil-Pump-Kee-Mon, Wee-Be-Little, and various white pumpkins (Baby-Boo, Cotton Candy, Valenciano and others).

Red Kuri Squash or Uchiki Kuri Squash or Orange Hokkaido

With butter-colored flesh that is smoother than butternut squash, and a sunset-colored rind this squash has a distinctive chestnut flavor. It makes it a tasty soup base that lends itself to pairings with many other ingredients.

Spaghetti Squash or Vegetable Spaghetti

This watermelon-shaped squash is known for flesh that separates into long, blond, spaghetti-like strands as it cooks; the squash lends itself to any recipe that regular spaghetti would. The strands can be used in salads, casseroles or on a plate with sauce. The squash is mellow-tasting with a slight crispness. The more yellow the rind, the riper the squash.

Sweet Dumpling Squash

The cream rind of this squash boasts thick deep ribs, which are lined with green or orange. Sweet dumpling squash lives up to its name for being sweet and tender. It’s a great size for roasting or baking as individual servings.

Turban or Turkish Turban Squash

The turban squash is shaped like a sultans turban and is often strikingly colored. It can vary from orange, red, green and white, sometimes combining all four colors. The yellow flesh has a hazelnut flavor.