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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Growing Baby Squash

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  • From: Petersons family <petersns AT whidbey.com>
  • To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Growing Baby Squash
  • Date: Wed, 4 Aug 2004 06:54:17 -0700


On Aug 4, 2004, at 2:58 AM, Allan Balliett wrote:


I'm very interested in the 'how-to' of baby squash. One of my concerns is loss of yield. Do you wind up getting as many pounds of squash when you pick early...or do you lose wt to pick up on 'novelty'?
Yes, you probably lose some weight by picking early, but the price per pound more than makes up for that. I suspect that picking off the squash at a small size prolongs the productive life of the plant.
I find it difficult to sell more than 5-6 full size zucchini at a Saturday market - and people don't want to pay much for a zucchini. I think about the time it took me to start the seed, prepare the soil, transplant, weed, and then harvest. Then I stand there with scratched arms and hands trying to sell that squash, and someone wants to argue about whether it's worth the price I'm asking. But I can sell many, many small cellophane bags of mixed " baby" squash. I grow several different shapes and colors. My bags have 4-7 squash, 2+" diameter for patty pans, about 4" long for the straight ones. I sell them for $2.50 a bag; they are usually gone in the first two hours of market and no one questions the price. So there are lots of factors beyond loss of yield.
Also, is there some way you have planted your squash to make finding small squash 'easier'? Do you prune your plants?
Definitely bothersome to pick. I tried pruning (took off several leaves) a patty pan I'd unwisely planted in a hoophouse next to some basil. In two days I couldn't tell the difference. I do pick squash blossoms as I pick the small squash. They are also a big draw at market.





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