By jessijordan
Experiments - Spaghetti Squash from Seeds I Saved
Submitted on Wed, 2009/04/08 - 5:36pm
Last updated on Wed, 2009/04/15 - 8:49pm
I love spaghetti squash and I saved some of the seeds from the one I made for dinner on Saturday.
I washed them and let them dry in a clamshell plastic container with holes for ventilation and them planted them today.
Wed, 2009/04/08 - 5:38pm
#1
Offline
Wow, Jessi. You keep finding room for enormous plants!
Wed, 2009/04/08 - 6:04pm
#3
And then it will become a jungle... :P
Wed, 2009/04/08 - 6:21pm
#4
lol! Well what can I say? I have an addiction 
Wed, 2009/04/08 - 7:21pm
#5
That's really sweet, having a backyard garden in New York!!!
I think I've convinced myself that I need a house with garden next place, preferably with space to put a greenhouse... Neighbors walk by while I'm gardening and say, "That woman needs a house." Probably not because they don't like me as a neighbor. 
Sat, 2009/04/11 - 3:16pm
#6
OMG! These seeds actually germinated!
Yay!
Sat, 2009/04/11 - 3:31pm
#7
Very cool! 
It's a bit early to plant them outside, though. You might want to consider these a dry run. Squashes don't really like being started indoors and transplanted out. If you do start them indoors early, it's usually like 2-3 weeks before setting them out.
< gazes morosely out window at pouring rain... 40 degrees, daytime high... >
It's not yet 2-3 weeks before setting them out. 
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 3:00pm
#8
These are soooo cute to me!
Perhaps they will survive the transplant Gisette... miracles can happen 
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 4:06pm
#9
Jessi,
My Mom planted Spaghetti squash a few years back for a couple of years, they can get pretty big.
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 4:54pm
#10
They'll survive transplanting, Jessi. Just don't wait too long.
How big did the spaghetti squash get, MaryH? 4 foot diameter? More?
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 5:11pm
#11
Yes Mary! Tell us!
I just planted these on a whim. I wasnt sure I dried the seeds properly or that they would even germinate. But now I'm committed to them!
What did you use to hold up the squashes? The spaghetti squashes I buy in the store are about the size of my head so I am soooo going to need more help here!
Can they be harvested earlier? Say when they are the size of a grapefruit?
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 5:21pm
#12
Spaghetti squash is a winter squash, isn't it? You don't hold them up, you leave them on the ground. And no, you can't pick them small, they're not ripe. Burpee on spaghetti squash - there are customer provided pictures. Doesn't look that big, smaller than a zucchini plant... Granted almost everything is smaller than a zucchini run amok.
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 5:39pm
#13
Yes, its a winter veg but wouldnt it be cool to grow it in the summer? I mean I still find them in the the supermarket in the summmer. And wow! The reviewers pictures are so cool! I think these would be great in Grandmas yard in a raised bed.
Ooooooor under my grow tent in a long window box type pot. I know, I know... I'm crazy!
I can't help it! I love to experiment!
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 6:06pm
#14
And I can't help it. I'm thinking it's like someone who wants to keep 6 giant dogs in a tiny studio apartment. 
Rover needs room to romp outside, Jessi! Think just how many lettuce plants you could grow in that amount of shelf space. Picture that plant vs. the size of your kitchen counters, for instance... Those pretty little white eggs are the size of your head, you say?
Winter squash is just what it's called. Essentially they take longer than the summer squash. Different life plan. Summer squash (cukes, zucchini) you can pick young, indeed never let the fruit reach maturity (or else the vine shuts down production). I haven't grown much winter squash (pumpkin, acorn, butternut...) But I think those you let ripen and often pick after frost.
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 6:54pm
#15
Oh! Lol! So much to still learn. If that's the difference they should have just called them Early Squash & Later Squash!
I know Non-New Yorkers can't really relate to how we live the way we do. I won't begin to tell you about my sister & her bf, who have 3 dogs including a red nosed pit named Nino, a Jack Russell & a Yorkie in her studio apt. I, at least have a 1 bedroom (2 siamese cats & a Maltese puppy who don't take up much room).
As for the squash versus lettuce... eh, I'm good with all the lettuce I already planted and in the AG and its just 2 squash plants not 15 like the person in the pic. If I get a squash or two great! If not... I could say it was fun trying! Just think you get to live vicariously through my craziness!
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 7:36pm
#16
My Mom grow them two years but not sure what type of Spaghetti squash they were since she got the seeds / seedlings from a friend in trade. The seeds from the 2 years may be different for all she knows.
I think one year they were more oblong, the largest one she think was probably a bit over 1 ft at the end and less than 2 ft long. They next year they seemed to be smaller but it may be she planted a few closer together whereas the first year she planted one at the corner of the plot. how big was the one you ate? That might be the best yardstick for size.
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 7:56pm
#17
it was smaller than the ones I usually buy. i would say the size of a honey dew melon but oblong
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 8:01pm
#18
How do you cook it / eat it?
My mom bakes it, scrape them out and put spaghetti sauce on them..
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 8:24pm
#19
Thanks, Mary. But I meant, how big was the plant the squash grew on?
Jessi - that picture was of at most 2 squash plants, not 15. The person said 15 sprouted and she kept 2.
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 8:25pm
#20
I cut them in half, scrape the seeds out, bake them cut side down at 400 degrees for 45 minute to an hour depending on the size. (Or you can boil them like I do in the videos below)
Then I sautee some onion in a skillet, fork out the squash, add it to the skillet and stir in my fav sauce. Once its all heated thru & sprinkle it with parmesian cheese.
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 9:26pm
#21
Gisette,
I don't know about the plant size and it is too late to call my Mom.
Jessi,
My mom based it too similar to what you wrote but I did not realize that you can boil them. That would be faster.
BTW, nice videos.
I cooked Easter dinner for my parents and did
* cream of wild mushroom soup
* simple roasted chicken with AG Thyme using recipe by Thomas Keller,
* roasted potatoes, onions and sweet potatoes
* salad with sun dried tomato dressing
* fresh strawberries with whipped cream
Sun, 2009/04/12 - 9:31pm
#22
I prefer it baked. Its easier to handle out of the oven then out of a large pot of boiling water. Thank u for watching the vids!
PS - your dinner sounds good! Don't u just love to cook! I can't wait to cook with food I grew myself.
Tue, 2009/04/14 - 12:15pm
#23
Jessi, those are a great bunch of videos, nicely edited.
You had my worried with that knife when you were cutting that squash. 
Tue, 2009/04/14 - 1:28pm
#24
I know! I had me worried too! that squash was soooo hard to cut into! but it tasted great! Guess whats for dinner 2nite...lol!
Tue, 2009/04/14 - 1:39pm
#25
Day 6
Tue, 2009/04/14 - 2:10pm
#26
LOL! Those 6-day-old seedlings are enormous!
Tue, 2009/04/14 - 2:32pm
#27
I know! It is a bit shocking! I will be trasnplanting them in another day or so
Tue, 2009/04/14 - 6:42pm
#28
Gisette, Jessi,
Sorry for the delay. I asked my Mom and she said her spaghetti squash went all over the place. She did not measure it but estimate about 15-20 ft worth of vines on the ground? Not a lot of yield for her though but I don't think her soil is that great so I have been thinking of trying to get her some raised beds / square foot garden things made.
Tue, 2009/04/14 - 6:43pm
#29
Jessi,
thinking about your videos, you might be interested in AG's contest
Aerogardener you tube video contest.
http://www.aerogrow.com/youtube/index.php
Tue, 2009/04/14 - 8:44pm
#30
Mary - I bet she'd love a raised bed!!! I really wanted to build one with these stacking corners things and wood, but the condo board wouldn't let me .
I can dream.
Though it sounds like filling it with good soil is perhaps as much of a challenge as building the bed.
Well, not really. If this germinates, it will be going to live at grandmas house. She has a backyard just with boring grass in it... well thats just till I get a hold of it!