Award-Winning Squash for Next Year's Garden

All-America Selections (AAS), with over 90 years of trials and award winners, is the only national, non-profit plant trialing program in North America. Reiman Gardens is proud to be both a trial site for ornamentals, edibles, and perennials showcased as both in-ground and containerized trials and a display garden highlighting recent winners. Check out the AAS website for trial and display sites, winners, blogs, and so much more! 

It's fall, y'all! Time for all squash, all the time! 

Cucurbita pepo 'Green Lightning': 'Green Lightning' is a new pattypan squash that had judges raving about early maturity and delicious flavor. One judge noted that with a faster finish time, this squash could be planted a few weeks later to avoid pests like squash vine borer. 'Green Lightning' has a mild flavor and a small seed cavity and would be just as lovely as a decoration as on your plate! 'Green Lightning' needs just 18-24" of garden spacing, so surely you can find a little room for this big impact pattypan!

Cucurbita maxima 'Sweet Jade': Kabocha squash might not be a type many home gardeners are familiar with, but let’s change that! Kabocha squash is sweeter and has a firmer texture than butternut squash. 'Sweet Jade' is a truly personal-sized fruit, weighing between 1-2 lbs. and would be ideal as a soup bowl or a picture-perfect appetizer stuffed with cheese and topped with nuts and dried fruit or preserves. 

Cucurbita moschata 'Butterscotch': So maybe you like squash, but you don’t LOVE squash. Or maybe you’re the only one in your household who will eat it. Welcome 'Butterscotch' into your garden next year; these fruits are just over a pound each, perfect for one or two people. Plants boast resistance to powdery mildew and a compact vining habit.

A basket full of small, green striped squash.
Cucurbita pepo 'Green Lightning.' Photo by AAS.
Five small, round, green squash.
Cucurbita maxima 'Sweet Jade.' Photo by AAS.
A wooden box full of small, butternut-shaped squash.
Cucurbita moschata 'Butterscotch.' Photo by AAS.

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