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Fri, Sep 30, 11 at 9:34
| It is almost time to harvest buttercup squashes (200 plants) and I usually wait until the first light frost thinking that the starches get turned to sugars with the cold and the quality improves (but not the storage)...........this year powdery mildew is infecting 33% of the leaves and they are beginning to turn brown ( healthy plant leaves are still green)...........should I harvest now (the stems are getting mostly corky and brown) or should I wait till the first light frost of October? Powdery mildew can change the taste of the fruit according to Rodale.......I have sampled some of the infected fruits and they are good but not great.....I am inclined to harvest 25% now and wait for the frost for the other 75% ........thanks from Atlantic Canada |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Over here, powdery mildew's just part of the end-of-season scene and not something I worry about. It should have no effect on the fruit, but taking them in too early will drastically reduce flavour and keeping qualities. I leave my winter squash lying around till the plants have pretty much disappeared. |
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| Same here, we get the mildew late in the season. I harvest mine by looking at the stems - when they get mostly brown and corky-looking, I'll bring them in. Storage seems to be best if I can keep them in a warm, bright, dry, airy room on newspaper with air good circulation. But I do that with the yield from 20 plants, not 200. |
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