How big will a butternut squash plant get?

[Victoria26]

I've decided to pot one of them in a large planter and put it on my patio.

I'll loop the vines round like Matt says. Just wanted to try growing it.

[selfraising]

Well after reading the comments, I think I will only go with one as well but some great ideas guys!

[faerieprincess]

If you only go with one plant, you may have problems getting a female flower and a male flower at the same time, and so won't get fertilisation. Trail them up something, that should save you loads of room, and you could let them trail under a tree, or down some steps or anything, really.

When I grew them in Australia (an accident, they grew from some composting kitchen scraps I had dug into the garden to be) they had quite a bit of growth, but I had the space so didn't care. BUT - I lost a lot of the early female flowers simply because I didn't have any male flowers open at the same time to fertilise the female ones. As the garden was also a sandpit at the time and I had no flowers to attract bees I had to manually fertilise (just use a brush and get some male pollen and brush it against the female flower, or you can can just break off the male flower and use it directly on the female flowers - the females are the ones with the little fruit on the end so you can't miss them!)

[Victoria26]

Eek!! Never thought of that one Faerie!!

Well this year the butternut plant will be my wee experiment. If it fails miserably I'll chalk it up to experience and keep gracing the supermarket with my custom. Sigh....

Unless... I get this allotment! He he.

[SlugLobber]

OMG Can they be pruned back??

If you DO cut them back, don't do what I stupidly did, last year - cut the wrong stem and sever my only decent squash! Thankfully, it still tasted very nice!

Amazingly, I grew mine with no heating at all last year, and it did grow to over 6ft, but only one squash ripened.

[greendean]

i am trying buitternut squash for the first time this year

i found this last night looking up info
How to grow Butternut Squash - in pictures

[amandaandherveg]

I'm trying it this year for the first time too - that chaps allotment is amazing, so neat and tidy - I love it.

I'm going to give it a bash in the old wheelbarrow that I'll be moving the strawbs from and let it trail over the steps which are made out of old sleepers.

i am trying buitternut squash for the first time this year

i found this last night looking up info
How to grow Butternut Squash - in pictures

[Victoria26]

Hey - Looking at that link - They don't look so big. I think I'll be fine. Might even grow 2 now!

[jackie j]

I grew three you can use a little brush to pollinate them if you need to.

[Matt.]

Yes I'd go for three to ensure you get something. They can be a bit hit and miss but worth it when you get a fruit at the end of it. They're ideal on an allotment with lots of space - just plant and water to get going then forget about them. Come back just before the first frost and harvest all your squash!! I had about 12 last year (Avalon variety) and will be growing loads more this year.

[Alison]

I had a single butternut and a couple of other squashes last year in the garden. They were all huge even in a rubbish summer and we've recently eaten the last of the saved fruit. It was all yummy. This year I will have more space as I now have a lottie but was still thinking of limiting to 3 as they take up so much space and are hungry and thirsty plants. Won't be sowing until about mid April though, last year they were all sown on 9 April and gave a good crop.

[faerieprincess]

I'm going to give it a bash in the old wheelbarrow that I'll be moving the strawbs from and let it trail over the steps which are made out of old sleepers.

I think that will work really well! I like how they look when they trail down steps and such. I'm hoping to do that with some of mine. I'm going to grow a couple in pots, and then let them trail down some cement steps which have other pot plants on them, and just let them wind around the base of the other pots.

[selfraising]

Eek!! Never thought of that one Faerie!!

Well this year the butternut plant will be my wee experiment. If it fails miserably I'll chalk it up to experience and keep gracing the supermarket with my custom. Sigh....

Unless... I get this allotment! He he.

Ooops! Me neither

[Protea]

how big the plants grow is a little bit variety dependant, although they are all trailing vine type plants. Some of the newer F1 hybrids produce their fruit closer to the centre of the plant which means theyre more manageable in a smaller space. The newer varieties have also been bred particularly for UK conditions so the 'should' develop and mature in our climate (freak summer weather excluded!!!).

Look for Hunter, Harrier, Hornet, Hercules...these are all UK bred.

You can trim the tendrils back but wait until you have some fruit developing and make sure you cut after the fruit on the vine so you don't unwittingly remove your squash!

hope this helps :-)

[Victoria26]

Thanks Protea and thanks to everyone else for your valued input.

I have now planned to keep 2 of my plants. I'll pot them up in large planters and keep them indoors for a few months until they're safe to go out on my patio. I'm planning to swirl the tenrils around the pot as much as I can to contain them.

When hubby isn't around I might try to unravel it a bit to let them breathe! If I get fruit then fab - if not then I've tried and hopefully will learn from my experience.