Given to me by a friend who grows it at Lough Hyne, ‘Dakota Black’ is a hardy early maturing popcorn (Zea mays) so is a good candidate for growing in Ireland. Plants are sturdy and don’t get overly tall at around 2m. Some cobs rotted before ripening but most ripened well. If the weather is wet at ripening time, it helps if you can pull up the whole plants and bring them in for a while to dry further.
Beautiful purple-black kernels which have a red glint when the light catches them. Not as starchy as commercial popcorn, so the popped corns are not as big as those you’d buy in the shop. Bred by Prairie Road Organic Farm in North Dakota.
‘Delicata’ is a squash from the courgette family (Cucurbita pepo) so has a bush growth habit. For this reason, they are efficient with space and won’t sprawl all over the place like pumpkin plants. Fruits are small (400-600g) and long with yellow-green stripes. They store very well but not as long as pumpkins. An heirloom variety, the flavour is excellent and approaching sweet potato. ‘Delicata’ squash have a reputation as one of the best tasting squashes.
Sow from May in 9cm pots and plant out around 4 weeks later after hardening plants off a bit outside. Allow roughly a square meter of space per plant, for example, spacing plants 100cm apart within a row and with 150cm between rows.
Buttercup is a dark green winter squash (Cucurbita maxima – not to be confused with the butternuts which are Cucurbita moschata). After trying many different squashes over a few years I found Buttercup to be the open pollinated variety with the best flavour. They have a sweet dry nutty flesh which can be used in a variety of recipes. As the flesh is quite dry they hold their shape when used in curries and stews. They can be grated raw into salads too.
Later I read that they were bred at North Dakota State University as a squash to substitute sweet potatoes. I have been growing only this variety for a few years and saved the seed from squash which stored for a few months. They are varied in shape from flat round to the more squashed and pear shaped form. There is often light green/grey ‘button’ at the blossom end of the fruit.
Average 15 seeds per packet.
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A productive Cucurbita moschata which grows and ripens well outside in Ireland. Striking panther print pattern on the skin which lightens in colour as the squash cure. Fruits ranging from around 25 – 35cm in diameter.
The firm flesh is a vibrant orange colour and the central cavity is small. I found it not so good for roasting as other squash – it seems to be wetter and almost mushy when roasted compared to the more starchy maxima type squashes. Perfect for soup and pies and eating raw.
Sow in 9cm pots in early May and plant out when plants are robust enough.
