Winter squash

Kabocha- Sunshine: Short-vined plants give a fair harvest of cheerful round-shouldered, slightly flattened fruits with bright orange, sweet flesh. Fruits average around 4lbs and store well into winter.

Butternut- Butterscotch: Sweet, rich, complex flavor. The perfect size for dinner-- no leftovers! Matures early at 1 1/2–2 lb., with no curing needed before it can be enjoyed. Stores up to 3 months after harvest. Short vines.

Acorn- Tiptop: Large and tasty acorn squash. Holds its black-green color very well in storage. Vigorous, larger, semi-bush plant with later maturity. Avg. weight: 2–3 lb.

Delicata- Zeppelin: The lovely ivory-colored oblong 1 lb fruits with dark green stripes have the unsurpassed sweetness that gives Delicata its good reputation. In storage the green stripes turn orange and the cream background sometimes yellows. No need to peel—cooked skins are tender and nutty.

Black futsu: Grey-blue bumpy 2–4 lb fruits with transfixing crevasses develop a waxy bloom before ripening to buff orange. Smooth fine-grained orange flesh has a rich, almost pumpkin-pie flavor. No need to peel before cooking—edible skins are thin and tender enough to be served on the rind. Fruits are best after 1 month of storage and can keep for 3–4 months in a cool dry dark place. Long-vining and prolific plants.

Acorn- Carnival: Decorative acorn. Cute and colorful with patches and flecks of dark green, light green, orange, and yellow. Semibush plants. Hot weather promotes more green tones and less yellow/orange. Avg. weight: 1 1/2 lb.

Pumpkin- New England Pie: The standard sugar pumpkin for pies. Robust yields of 4lb pumpkins in warm years. During cold summers production is lower and only half will vine-ripen. However, ripening continues during curing.