Not the easiest, but can be grown successfully outdoors in the Midlands.

Had mine in the greenhouse last year and they grew to twice the size, but we are on top of a hill and on heavy clay soil, so often get a late start.

The hybrids are easier than the non-hybrids. I believe cobnut (from Organic Catalogue) is the easiest to grow, but not very large.

Good luck

That's what I've Bought galina Cobnut....
Will you be growing them again this yeat, if so will you be willing to keep a log?
And Thank You for the Good Luck Wishes

I've grown butternut Ponca very successfully outdoors, along with various other squashes. My advice would be don't sow the seed until mid April (indoors), bury some well rotted manure or garden compost where you plan to plant your squash and mound the soil so you end up planting it on top of a hill. Plant out when you have two to three real leaves. Keep your squash very well watered (they are very thirsty) and feed weekly with liquid seaweed

That is good advice by pond, but bear in mind that in the midlands mid April may be too early to sow - it depends on your clocation. Don't know about your place, but we had a frost on 6th June in recent years here, so an early or mid May start is more appropriate. As well as cloche cover after planting out to get the plants growing away without check. However, my location is a bit exposed and I have 'cold' clay soil as well. You may have a much more sheltered micro climate.

The variety I am growing is Waltham Butternut. It is open pollinated. I hope by growing from my own seed year after year, to get a strain that is better adapted to my own growing conditions.

I will gladly compare growing notes.

Please and Thank You galina

Thank You Pond...

ninecrow and pond

well by now it is all over. We had a miserable year with non-existent summer and I ended up with 2 undersize butternut squashes from 5 plants. None of the other squashes did very well either. I have about 20 squashes to store over winter and most are not full-sized and won't probably store for long.

Hope you both had a more successful year. How did it go?

Well - I didn't even try butternut after lack of success in the past but courgettes were fantastic and there are still a few out there to pick. Also the best year for a long time for anything leafy, lettuces, chard, rocket, brassicas - they loved all the rain. Strangely runner beans have also been great. Tomatoes, however, turned black with blight early on and never even got to flower, let alone fruit.