Spaghetti Squash Gardening

With its origins beginning in Mexico as an all-white fruit, Spaghetti Squash has come a long way to become the wonderful yellow squash it is today! Sadly, spaghetti squash remains low on the list of popular squashes. Although it's not well known among the masses, don't pass up the chance to grow this underrated fruit in your garden!

Starting from Seed:

When it comes to spaghetti squash, you'll most likely have to start your plants from seeds as most superstores and garden centers do not carry young plants ready for transplanting. Not to worry though, spaghetti squash seeds are a breeze to germinate! In order to give your plants a jump start on the growing season, it's best to plant seedlings indoors 2-3 weeks before the average last frost. Using artificial light or a well-lit south facing widowseal, plant the spaghetti squash seeds in individual containers a half inch below the soil. Two liter bottles cut and filled with a good organic potting soil is a great way to start your seeds. Keep the soil moist but not overwatered and your seeds will emerge in 7-10 days. Continue to keep soil moist until the young plants ready for transplanting.

 Transplanting:

A couple weeks past the threat of frost, it's time to transplant the young spaghetti squash plants to their final destination. If you plan to grow the squash plants directly into a garden or ground, it is best to create a mound in which the plant will sit atop. Mounding the soil will help distribute water  better to the roots. When planting in a garden, make sure to keep at least two feet between plants. Another productive way to grow spaghetti squash is to grow using containers. I would reccomend that one spaghetti squash plant be allowed at least a 5 gallon container to grow in.

 Watering, Fertilizing & Harvesting:

Once in their final growing spot, spaghetti squash will need to be watered daily. The soil should be moist but never over-watered. Growing a good sized squash will require a good deal of nutrients. It is reccomended to fertilize 1-2 times bi-weekly if in the garden and 1-2 times weekly if your squash plants are in containers. For a fertilizer, I would reccomend a homemade compost tea. If this is not available, any organic grow nutrients will do. After keeping this routine up for aprroximately 100-120 days, you should have squash  big enough for the picking! You can pick at any size, with smaller ones being much sweeter than their larger grown counterparts. I always like to pick some small and let others get larger. When to pick is up to you!