How to Plant and Grow Butterkin Squash

09.02.2024 - 10:32 / gardenerspath.com / Winter Squash

How to Plant and Grow Butterkin Squash Cucurbita ‘Butterkin’

Cue the classic Superman phrase, but make it about your next favorite winter squash – it’s a pumpkin, it’s a butternut squash… It’s butterkin!

‘Butterkin’ is a winter squash hybrid that combines the rounded, slightly scalloped shape of a pumpkin with the smooth, tan-colored exterior of a butternut squash.

The two- to four-pound fruit boasts a bright orange, fleshy interior that has the familiar sweet and nutty flavor of butternut squash.

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Under the right conditions, ‘Butterkin’ can be stored for up to six months and, like a butternut squash, can be used in soups or a roasted vegetable medley to keep you warm throughout the fall and winter.

Ready to grow this unique squash in your garden? Here’s what I’ll cover:

‘Butterkin’ is a relatively new winter squash cultivar, developed by Hybrid Seeds in New Zealand and released to the US market in 2014.

The goal was to combine the aesthetic shape of a pumpkin with the classic flavor of a butternut squash. As the name implies, it’s a cross between a pumpkin (C. pepo) and a butternut squash (C. moschata).

“Winter squash” is kind of a misnomer, as these plants are not cold- or frost-tolerant in the slightest! They are grown during the summer and harvested in the early autumn, for consumption during the winter months.

Unlike summer squash, which are harvested when their rinds are immature, winter types are harvested at full maturity, after the exterior rind has hardened and the vines have started to turn brown.

If you want to learn more about winter squash, check out our guide.

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