Summer Squash, Winter Squash and Eating Squash Flowers
In this episode Ellen and C.L. squash a lot of information into about 25 minutes. We talk about how to prepare summer squash flowers, ways to judge if a winter squash is ripe, and coping with squash vine borers and powdery mildew on squash plants. Once we’ve been fully squashed, we move onto the berries on Staghorn Sumac.
:35 What’s for dinner: Eating squash flowers
5:26 Insider Information: How to tell if winter squash is ripe
10:08 Eat/Drink/Grow: Pests of Summer Squash
22:03 Love Letters and Questions: Are Sumac berries poisonous or edible?
Here are some squash flowers ready to be stuffed with kale and cheese.
Once the stuffing is in, tie them closed with a chive.
Bake on parchment paper in a 350 degree oven until they are wilted and cheese is melted.
Winter squash should have turned the color it’s supposed to have when ripe before you pick it. Google the name of the type of squash you’ve planted to compare your crop to what they should be when finished.
See the stems where the leaves have been cut off at the bottom of this photo? We’ve removed those leaves from the garden because they had mildew.
Male flowers have long, skinny stems under the bloom, but the females are thick and almost immediately look like baby squash.
As Ellen explains, Staghorn Sumac has upright, red berries. These are safe to use in beverages.