Hi! I'm hardly an expert but I do seem to have some success growing butternut squash for the first time in my new raised bed. I used coco coir & composted steer manure with some perlite mixed in for one bed. As an experiment in the second bed I used packaged raised bed soil from box store, manure & perlite. Both getting good results with 5' runners & multiple fruit already on the first.
Also, I used seeds from a store bought squash, not packaged. Just tossed them in & they are going gangbusters. (Perhaps I am just lucky!) I live in SoCal (zone 10b) & placed the beds in my west yard where they get quite a bit of full afternoon sun. Water almost daily here because we won't get rain again for months.
No problem with pests on the squash because they seem to prefer to decimate my peppers instead! It's all a work in progress. Good luck.
