Summer squash

Zucchini is the most well-known summer squash, but are other types worth growing, such as crookneck squash. Useful, all-purpose vegetables, summer squash of all sorts are delightful sliced or chopped into salads of all kinds, including pasta salads. It adds a texture and crunch all its own. Or use summer squashes in soups, simmering lightly to preserve their texture. For a simple summer side dish, saute in olive oil, garlic, and oregano.

Summer squashes come in quite a variety. They can be long, straight, and thin like zucchini, have a swollen base and thin, bent top like crookneck squash, be round like a baseball, or even be shaped like a flying saucer. Grow bush types in hills 2 to 3 feet apart in rows 3 to 5 feet apart. Plants are notoriously prolific producers, so you may need only one or two to supply your needs.

Light:

Sun

Plant Type:

Vegetable

Plant Height:

1-2 feet tall

Plant Width:

3-10 feet wide

Top Varieties

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'Black Beauty' zucchini

bears smooth, straight fruits on an open plant. 60 days
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'Early Prolific Straightneck'

is an open-pollinated variety with light cream color fruits. The neck end is thinner than the blossom end. 48 days
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'Early Summer Crookneck'

is an heirloom that has a bent neck and yellow fruits with bumpy skin. Use it as you would zucchini. 53 days
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'Gold Rush' zucchini

offers uniform golden yellow, smooth, straight fruits that are a colorful contrast to green zucchini. 45 days
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'Raven Hybrid' zucchini

produces dark green fruits in as few as 48 days from planting. The plant is a compact bush.
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'Sunburst' pattypan squash

is a deep golden yellow flattened, rounded, summer squash with scalloped edges. The vigorous plant is quite productive. 50 days
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