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[EarthNSky <erthnsky AT bellsouth.net>]

Clansgian AT wmconnect.com wrote:
> > > If you pick them now, will they keep all winter?
> Alas, not likely.

Damn it!
I grew all these squashes and now you say they won't keep? Crap!  Oh 
James, surely you jest!



> I have here on the table two large Lakota squash from LAST year.  They are 
> still good enough to eat.   I am going to plant seeds from those squash next 
> week, and then more acorn, butternut, and sugar pumpkins in the couple of 
> weeks after that.

Well, I do still have more seeds, and I could replant since I know I 
still have 100+ days.


> Ironically, perhaps, right now is the time when seeding and transplanting 
> vegetables yields the most for your effort.  Turnips, beets, carrots and the 
> like planted about now will be maturing up around the onset of much cooler 
> weather and hold in the garden for months.  Cabbage and broccoli seeded now 
> will endure the first frosts as seedlings and then mature in the early winter 
> ... then hold bug-free in the garden for a long time. Etc.


I've reseeded broccoli(75 Green Goliath), cabbage(25 Danish Ballhead), 
Brussels sprouts-AGAIN!!!-LAST TIME!!!(25 Catskill).  I'll be replanting 
carrots, beet, turnips, kale, and collards  this week, and then in mid 
August, I'll plant more lettuce, spinach, chard, etc.  Actually, I 
already planted more carrots, but I think the ants ate them.  Lynn, you 
might check to see if there is an ant mound nearby.  There is a bed of 
fire ants in my carrot bed...not good.  I did learn of a new organic 
fire ant treatment that I intend to try tomorrow in fact.  Basically, it 
uses d-limonene, AKA orange oil. You use about 1/4 cup of oil to 1 
gallon of water and pour it on the mound.  From what I understand, 
usually two treatments works.  You do it mid morning, about 10 o'clock 
or so, when the ants are near the surface.  Stir the mound, get the ants 
fired up, and pour it on.  It is a contact killer, so you have to hope 
that the queen is high in the mound.  At worst, I'm hoping that the 
mound will move out of my raised bed.  No since wasting more seed until 
the ants are moved away.  I suppose it is possible that the ants did not 
eat my seeds and that I had some carrot germination issue as Lynn did.


Rob Walton wrote:
> I think it was James that said he plants some squashes late so that he has
> them ripening in fall. They benefit from cool fall weather, but if they are
> ripe, they are ripe and won't hold till fall.
> When they are really young and green, they are good to eat like summer
> squash, also.

Good to know.  I did not realize that you can eat them green.

Thanks everyone!  I suppose I will go ahead and pick the ones that I 
think are ripe, pull the vines and toss the green ones to the chickens 
or eat them, and then resow more butternut seeds for the fall.  I am 
almost out of garden space, so if I replant, I have to pull up the 
existing vines.  One good thing about that is that I would break the 
lifecycle of squash bugs should they be lurking-but I have been diligent 
about picking off eggs and haven't had too many bug issues with squashes 
this year.

Bev

--
"Never expect magic from no where"  Baringo (Kenyan) working motto
http://erthnsky.blogspot.com/
EarthNSky Farm, NW Georgia, USA