Late last spring I planted Tahitian melons. At least I thought I did. Instead I picked these mysterious squash.
Tahitian melons are more winter squash than melon. They have a crook on the top and a bulge for seeds on the bottom. Their thick skin is tan. These are good winter keepers often lasting into the next spring, if not eaten first.
I don’t really grow these for my eating pleasure. My goats love them. One melon lasts them several days as dessert after mealtime grain.
The vines are something of a nuisance as they get forty feet long or more with side branches, huge leaves and a tendency to grow over all their neighbors. These were one of my monster squash, or so I thought.
Instead I ended up with a mysterious squash. It definitely is not a Tahitian melon.
What Is It?
These squash are mostly green in a lacy pattern on white. They have no crook and no bulge. In size they rival Tahitian melons. I brought in one and weighed it at 12..6 pounds.
So far I have a pile of these mysterious squash in my pantry. There are still a few summer squash to consume before they go bad. Zephyrs are delicious, but have limited keeping even in the refrigerator.
There was one of the winter squash that didn’t finish growing. It had dropped off from frost and I had left it there meaning to pick it up later. The chickens found it first.
Chickens do like melons and squash. They pecked this one open revealing a golden yellow interior.
Next week I will cut open one of the ones in the pantry to cook up some for dinner. As most are far too large for two people, the goats will help eat them.
In the meantime I am looking over seed catalog winter squash pictures trying to identify my mysterious squash.
