"Tromboncino" Summer Squash

Cucurbita moschata

An Italian heirloom butternut squash that has been selected to eat in the summer squash stage. Light green in color and can grow very long creating beautiful shapes, indeed like a little trumpet! Tromboncino is incredibly rich in flavor, far surpassing many of the more widely available C. pepo zucchinis and summer squashes. This is a fully vining variety and we recommend trellising. Not bred to be eaten as a winter squash, but if any do get by you they make beautiful decorative squashes that you can then save your own seed from! Enjoy this beloved traditional culinary treasure.

Growing Instructions:

Sow indoors 2 to 3 weeks before setting out after last frost or direct seed after last frost. 

Plant spacing: 24" apart

Row spacing: 5’ apart

We recommend a 5-6 foot tall trellis

Amend soil with good compost. We also recommend a fall or spring cover crop of peas or another annual legume to fix nitrogen for the squash plants.

Mulch with leaves, or whatever you have available, to retain moisture and suppress weeds.

Make sure soil pH is between 5.8 and 7.0. If plant needs a growing boost, water with nitrogen tea or compost tea a few times. If trace minerals are inadequate, sprinkle a small amount of woodash in each planting hole.

Harvest:

Harvest between 8-14 inches according to your preference and before the seed develops.