Hello !!

I sown some Golden hubbard squash I while ago and they look like they are growing well.

Any one had past experience growing this variety and has any advice for me so I will have a successfull crop please ? Any help and suggestions are welcome !!

Thanks alot !!!

Hopefully you don't have squash vine borers on Malta. They are a squash killer here and Hubbards are very susceptible. Other than that Hubbards are strong growers with huge vines. They do require space to roam and a loose , friable and fertile soil. Hopefully you don't have local squash predators. Yours are looking good and it looks like they have room.

farmerdill said:Hopefully you don't have squash vine borers on Malta. They are a squash killer here and Hubbards are very susceptible. Other than that Hubbards are strong growers with huge vines. They do require space to roam and a loose , friable and fertile soil. Hopefully you don't have local squash predators. Yours are looking good and it looks like they have room.

Thanks for your reply !! Yes they will have plenty of space.

They are in a place that has some shade in morning a but gets full sun from the afternoon onwards. Summer here is pretty hot and gruesome and its getting nearer !!

I will stay on the lookout for the vine borers. How do you notice them ?

You may want to check with your local agricultural experts to determine if they exist in your part of the world. They are not universal. They bore into the vine and leave a lot of frass ( sort of like wet sawdust) at the site.
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I've grown Golden Hubbard in the past, I consider it an excellent variety of squash! As FarmerDill said, check with local growers or experts to see if the vine borers are present in your area (as well as any other particular squash problems that you might encounter). If you see something that looks like a bright red bee flying around your plant once it is flowering, that is a squash vine borer adult. They lay their eggs on the stalk (usually near the base of the plant) and the larvae burrow into the hollow stalk, which causes a noticeable wilting of the leaves and then, unfortunately, death of the plant.

Weedwhacker said:I've grown Golden Hubbard in the past, I consider it an excellent variety of squash! As FarmerDill said, check with local growers or experts to see if the vine borers are present in your area (as well as any other particular squash problems that you might encounter). If you see something that looks like a bright red bee flying around your plant once it is flowering, that is a squash vine borer adult. They lay their eggs on the stalk (usually near the base of the plant) and the larvae burrow into the hollow stalk, which causes a noticeable wilting of the leaves and then, unfortunately, death of the plant.

Thanks alot !! Regarding fertilizing hubbards, what type of fertilizer or manure did you give ?

and did you do some pruning to the plant so it makes the fruit bigger ?

I pretty much fertilize all of my vegetable garden with a balanced fertilizer (10-10-10) plus my own compost. And I've never pruned my squash plants except when they get too "out of bounds" and start taking over some other planting area...

Someone else might have better advice about both of those topics than I do!

I use a fertilizer with a 1-1-1 ratio of N-P-K. Usually granular, but composted bovine (cattle) manure is excellent just less concentrated, Avoid high nitrate fertilizers whether granular or composted poultry manures. It will give you more vine than fruit. Golden Hubbard is slightly small than Blue or Green Hubbards which I normally grow, but it is still a big squash. The only time I would prune would be if I was trying to grow a giant size. In that case I would remove all the fruits except two perfect specimens per vine.

Weedwhacker said:I pretty much fertilize all of my vegetable garden with a balanced fertilizer (10-10-10) plus my own compost. And I've never pruned my squash plants except when they get too "out of bounds" and start taking over some other planting area...

Someone else might have better advice about both of those topics than I do!

Thank you for helping !!

farmerdill said:I use a fertilizer with a 1-1-1 ratio of N-P-K. Usually granular, but composted bovine (cattle) manure is excellent just less concentrated, Avoid high nitrate fertilizers whether granular or composted poultry manures. It will give you more vine than fruit. Golden Hubbard is slightly small than Blue or Green Hubbards which I normally grow, but it is still a big squash. The only time I would prune would be if I was trying to grow a giant size. In that case I would remove all the fruits except two perfect specimens per vine.

thanks alot you really was of great help !!

Hello..flowers have started to come up. Should i remove for now so plant will grow more first ?

I don't think picking off the flowers will make the plant grow faster but... I wait until they open, pick them and add them fresh to salad or to stir fry.

My season is too short to pick flowers off anything... I just let nature take it's course in that respect.

But, if your first flowers are female (a flower with a tiny squash under it) and there are no male flowers to pollinate it, then you probably might as well use them as Daisy suggested!

Weedwhacker said:My season is too short to pick flowers off anything... I just let nature take it's course in that respect.

But, if your first flowers are female (a flower with a tiny squash under it) and there are no male flowers to pollinate it, then you probably might as well use them as Daisy suggested!

Thanks for your help. I will leave everything as it is and hope for a good yield !!

farmerdill said:Hopefully you don't have squash vine borers on Malta. They are a squash killer here and Hubbards are very susceptible. Other than that Hubbards are strong growers with huge vines. They do require space to roam and a loose , friable and fertile soil. Hopefully you don't have local squash predators. Yours are looking good and it looks like they have room.

Hello again !!

I wanted to ask you a question regarding the Golden hubbard squash.

I have around three plants planted in the ground.

Do you usually prune the tip of the plant when 1 or 2 squash have formed ?

as i am afraid that if i leave too many fruit they will remain very small.

thanks alot in advance !

Saviour from Malta (europe)

Pruning squash vines for me is a last resort when the vines invade areas where they are not wanted. Usually plants are smarter than we and abort extra fruits when they have set the number the vines can sustain. If you want big perfectly formed fruits, then pick two perfect fruits on each vine and remove the other fruits. As these fruits mature, you can let new fruits set. Your season should be long enough for several sets.

farmerdill said:Pruning squash vines for me is a last resort when the vines invade areas where they are not wanted. Usually plants are smarter than we and abort extra fruits when they have set the number the vines can sustain. If you want big perfectly formed fruits, then pick two perfect fruits on each vine and remove the other fruits. As these fruits mature, you can let new fruits set. Your season should be long enough for several sets.

So If tree to grow natural without removing nothing I will have smaller fruits but with a bigger yield ?

Also as you can see in the photos the soil is not the very best. I enriched it a bit with manure and some compost where I put the seed. Is there any fertilizer I should add when fruits show up ? or will it help the plant If I dig holes around it and fill it with manure or compost ? I only have chicken manure tough.

I am posting some photos below of the progress they are making..they are fast growers !!!

Thanks alot for your kind help

Sometimes some of the fruit will be be misshaped due to damage or partial pollination. It is good to remove these fruits. Do not dig deep around a growing plant. These squash have immense root system that you not wish to disturb. Keep the top 3-4 cm loose and weed free either by cultivation or mulching. This variety send down additional roots at each leaf node. Assist them by pulling a little soil over the vine where they appear. A balanced fertilizer (1-1-1 NPK) watered in may help if soil is lacking in nutrients. Chicken manure has a high N ration and grows vine at the expense of fruit development. so use judiciously or not at all. Compost is fine as a top dressing.

Pruning a squash like that limits its ability to produce fruit as the vine needs every leaf it can grow to support the crop. Even with all its size, a Golden Hubbard squash plant can only support 3 - 5 fruits. If you trim the vine, it may be 1 or 2. And no, they won't be bigger because genes and environment determine size.

Be on the lookout for squash beetles. They'll eat your entire squash plant burrowing into the vines and main stem.

Adult squash beetles lay eggs at night on the under sides of leaves. Make it a routine and check the under sides of all the leaves on your squash plants every morning. Use a plastic knife and scrape off the eggs.

Don't wait. Once you see the Nymphs crawling around the undersides of the leaves, it'll be too late.

Squash Beetle Nymphs


Squash Beetle Eggs


Nymphs and Eggs