I grew Harrier last year and got a crop even in the most awful season - I was really impressed!
Haven't grown any this year solely because I have a forest of tomato plants in my garden courtesy of Italophile - next year I shall be more restrained in my tomato-growing .... I think
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
lbn, you make comfrey fertiliser from comfrey leaves. Soak them in water in a container with a lid for about a month depending on the temperature. The resultant liquid is then diluted before use.
Old compost mixed with water wouldn't have the nutrients you'd be looking for.
Soldacki are turning red Italophile and the others are looking promising.... Anna Russian are trying to join the runner beans up the wigwam - but the biggest trusses are on the Pink Gaetano
Apologies for talking tomato on the squash thread
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Dovefromabove, that is so encouraging to know you got a crop even during a bad season, I had read as much but you do wonder...
Italophile, thank you for that information about the comfrey fertiliser. It is going to be too late for me to make for this year but I shall research the leaf for next, definitely. I was up at 6.30 am doing my compost fertiliser as I knew I hadn't got time to get to the garden centre for a look around. The butternuts are probably doing well but their growth is nothing as quick as a month ago. I'm hoping pruning some of the excess growth will help.
ps just browsing the internet. Seaweed dug into the bed with compost at the beginning of the season is hightly recommended. Also, Seaweed Extract - I'm thinking that could be a good organic one to try if I can source it? I should have also taken the advice I read a while back about chicken manure pellets since the fox ate the fowl. I don't know if it would be too late for that now?
Dovefromabove, that is so encouraging to know you got a crop even during a bad season, I had read as much but you do wonder...
Italophile, thank you for that information about the comfrey fertiliser. It is going to be too late for me to make for this year but I shall research the leaf for next, definitely. I was up at 6.30 am doing my compost fertiliser as I knew I hadn't got time to get to the garden centre for a look around. The butternuts are probably doing well but their growth is nothing as quick as a month ago. I'm hoping pruning some of the excess growth will help.
Not a huge crop, if I remember correctly it was about 3 or 4 largeish squashes from two plants - but it was a crop - but the weather had been so awful people were telling me to pull them up as I had no chance of getting anything last year.
I also took off and cooked the smaller ones once the weather turned and there was no hope of them ripening - I cut them into quarters lengthwise and sort of braised them with courgettes and onions in olive oil, then wilted some ruby chard into the resulting concoction , added lots of black pepper and parmesan and served with spaghetti - it was fabulous
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
" I'm hoping pruning some of the excess growth will help."
Be careful when pruning, ladybutternut, I did this the other day and managed to cut off the branch with the biggest butternut! Follow the fruit back to where the stem starts before cutting anything off.
First year growing butternut squash I can only see one fruit at present in amongst an enormous amount of foliage ... Im going to put an upside down recycle bottle to mark the point of the main plant to water into ... lost the plot a bit where the plant started as I mulched with straw as well. Also pumpkins in same area ... brilliant ground cover but needs lots of space . Bit of advice on the male and female flower and what Im looking for would be good folks ... thank you
Ging, the male flower is just a flower on a stalk. The female flower is on the end of what looks like a miniature version of the fruit. It's actually an ovary that will become a fruit if pollinated.
Male flowers always outnumber females. The female flower opens in the mornings - usually early - and will often close later in the day.
If you want to try your hand at pollinating, you need to get up early. Remove a male flower, trim away the "petals" to expose the stamen covered with pollen. At the centre of an open female flower is the stigma. Rub the pollen-covered stamen gently against the stigma to transfer the pollen. Don't be too vigorous. Damage the stigma and and all is lost.
You usually get a day or so's notice of the female flower opening. First, you see the ovary forming, then the flower forming on the end of it. When the flower is formed but still closed, you can expect it to open within a day or so. At that point, it's worthwhile checking every morning.
Posts
I grew Harrier last year and got a crop even in the most awful season - I was really impressed!
Haven't grown any this year solely because I have a forest of tomato plants in my garden courtesy of Italophile - next year I shall be more restrained in my tomato-growing .... I think
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Yeah yeah, Dove, famous last words.
lbn, you make comfrey fertiliser from comfrey leaves. Soak them in water in a container with a lid for about a month depending on the temperature. The resultant liquid is then diluted before use.
Old compost mixed with water wouldn't have the nutrients you'd be looking for.
Soldacki are turning red Italophile
and the others are looking promising.... Anna Russian are trying to join the runner beans up the wigwam - but the biggest trusses are on the Pink Gaetano 
Apologies for talking tomato on the squash thread
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Dovefromabove, that is so encouraging to know you got a crop even during a bad season, I had read as much but you do wonder...
Italophile, thank you for that information about the comfrey fertiliser. It is going to be too late for me to make for this year but I shall research the leaf for next, definitely. I was up at 6.30 am doing my compost fertiliser as I knew I hadn't got time to get to the garden centre for a look around. The butternuts are probably doing well but their growth is nothing as quick as a month ago. I'm hoping pruning some of the excess growth will help.
ps just browsing the internet. Seaweed dug into the bed with compost at the beginning of the season is hightly recommended. Also, Seaweed Extract - I'm thinking that could be a good organic one to try if I can source it? I should have also taken the advice I read a while back about chicken manure pellets since the fox ate the fowl. I don't know if it would be too late for that now?
Not a huge crop, if I remember correctly it was about 3 or 4 largeish squashes from two plants - but it was a crop - but the weather had been so awful people were telling me to pull them up as I had no chance of getting anything last year.
I also took off and cooked the smaller ones once the weather turned and there was no hope of them ripening - I cut them into quarters lengthwise and sort of braised them with courgettes and onions in olive oil, then wilted some ruby chard into the resulting concoction , added lots of black pepper and parmesan and served with spaghetti - it was fabulous
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
" I'm hoping pruning some of the excess growth will help."
Be careful when pruning, ladybutternut, I did this the other day and managed to cut off the branch with the biggest butternut!
Follow the fruit back to where the stem starts before cutting anything off.
First year growing butternut squash I can only see one fruit at present in amongst an enormous amount of foliage ... Im going to put an upside down recycle bottle to mark the point of the main plant to water into ... lost the plot a bit where the plant started as I mulched with straw as well. Also pumpkins in same area ... brilliant ground cover but needs lots of space . Bit of advice on the male and female flower and what Im looking for would be good folks ... thank you
Ging, the male flower is just a flower on a stalk. The female flower is on the end of what looks like a miniature version of the fruit. It's actually an ovary that will become a fruit if pollinated.
Male flowers always outnumber females. The female flower opens in the mornings - usually early - and will often close later in the day.
If you want to try your hand at pollinating, you need to get up early. Remove a male flower, trim away the "petals" to expose the stamen covered with pollen. At the centre of an open female flower is the stigma. Rub the pollen-covered stamen gently against the stigma to transfer the pollen. Don't be too vigorous. Damage the stigma and and all is lost.
You usually get a day or so's notice of the female flower opening. First, you see the ovary forming, then the flower forming on the end of it. When the flower is formed but still closed, you can expect it to open within a day or so. At that point, it's worthwhile checking every morning.