Squash North Georgia Candy Roaster

Why I chose it

I'll admit the extraordinary shape and history got my attention, but there's a practical experiment happening here too.

I'm always interested in plants that can extend the garden harvest beyond the season they're grown in, so I'm trying North Georgia Candy Roaster to see how well it stores for me. A squash that's delicious when harvested is useful; one that's still sitting happily in the pantry months later is considerably more useful.

This is my first season growing it, so we're finding out together whether it earns a permanent place at A Garden Between.

At a glance

Type: Winter squash
Heritage: Yes
Species: Cucurbita maxima
Fruit: Very long, pinkish-orange with green/blue tips
Flesh: Smooth and sweet
Growth: Very vigorous sprawling vine
Position: Full sun
Maturity: Around 90–120 days from transplant
Best for: Roasting, baking, pies and storing Kings Seeds NZ

In the kitchen

The clue is rather wonderfully in the name: Candy Roaster.

Its sweet, smooth flesh is particularly suited to roasting and baking. Use it anywhere you'd use a good pumpkin or winter squash — roasted in great chunks, blended into soups, mashed, baked into pies or turned into whatever autumnal squash recipe takes your fancy. Kings Seeds NZ

No recipe yet. This is my first season growing it, so it can bloody well prove itself before it earns one.

In the garden

Give this one room. Seriously.

North Georgia Candy Roaster is a vigorous trailing squash rather than a polite little bush. Kings recommends approximately 1 metre between plants and 2 metres between rows, which gives some indication of its intentions. Kings Seeds NZ

Let it ramble somewhere it won't engulf something precious. As the squash develops, put a piece of cardboard, a lid, wool mulch or something similarly dry beneath the fruit to keep it away from damp ground and reduce the risk of rot. Kings Seeds NZ

Harvest & storage

This one deserves its own little section because it's genuinely useful.

Harvest once the skin has hardened and the stem is drying. Cut the fruit from the vine rather than pulling it, leaving a decent length of stem attached.

North Georgia Candy Roaster is grown as a keeping squash, but storage life depends enormously on maturity at harvest, curing and storage conditions. I'm particularly interested in testing this one myself, so I'll update this page once I've actually stored and eaten my own crop rather than pretending I've already done it.

Then cure the squash somewhere warm, dry and well ventilated for around two weeks before moving it into storage. Properly matured and cured fruit should store for roughly 2–3 months. Kings Seeds NZ

Care

Plant into rich, fertile, well-drained soil in full sun after frost risk has passed. Water consistently while establishing and developing fruit, feed during the growing season and give those vines plenty of freedom.

Kings puts maturity at approximately 90–120 days from transplant, so this is a plant to get established and let get on with its summer takeover plans. Kings Seeds NZ

What you'll receive

One healthy, established plant grown here at A Garden Between. Plants naturally vary in size and shape and may be supplied in reused nursery pots or growing bags — perfectly useful plastic doesn't need replacing simply because it doesn't match.