[little sweetpeas]

I'm growing buttercup and butternut squash this year can they be trained to grow up a frame or will they only grow along the ground. If they grow along the ground how much space should I give 6 plants?

Looking to save some space so I can grow a few of them.

[Trillium]

Squashes will grow both up trellises or along the ground. Depends on what sort of squash you're growing as to space. Courgettes are bush plants and don't need much. Vining types like butternuts and pumpkins need a lot...however, in the  UK climate you can snip the vine end off after you see about 3 or 4 fruit growing as the rest would not ripen before frost hit, and it allows the existing fruit to ripen and bulk up. If you do this, then 6 plants would need about a square metre each.

[Stripey_cat]

Which varieties do you have?  Some butternut squashes (and I have a nasty feeling that this includes Hunter, the one my Mum bought) are bush growers, like most courgettes.  So you can't train them up trellis.  Most are trailing, though, and can go up, although you may need nets (like for melons) to support the weight of the fruits.

[little sweetpeas]

Which varieties do you have?  Some butternut squashes (and I have a nasty feeling that this includes Hunter, the one my Mum bought) are bush growers, like most courgettes.  So you can't train them up trellis.  Most are trailing, though, and can go up, although you may need nets (like for melons) to support the weight of the fruits.

Waltham Butternut and Burgess Vine Buttercup

[celjaci]

Those varieties are vine type or trailing, and can be grown up a trellis. I found it worked better with a sloping, tent like structure rather than a vertical one.

On the flat they easily cover 2 or 3m. The bush ones are useful if short of space but harder to come by.

Hope they do well and remember there are 100+ more varieties to try another year, all shapes, sizes and colours

[Chuffy]

I'll be mostly growing Sprinter and Golden Hubbard this year. I was hoping to tempt them up a trellis, but now I'm not so sure. Does anyone know if these two are trellis friendly?

[celjaci]

Golden Hubbard is a large , heavy squash and would definately need support probably a ZZ cup size!

[Jay Dubya]

Hi, i always grow my courgetes up a pole it keeps them off the ground and easier to pick. As for butternuts i pinch the tops out at four leaves grow four runners and two fruits on each, you get better squashes and they don't run all over the plot.

Keep on a troshing J W

[little sweetpeas]

Hi, i always grow my courgetes up a pole it keeps them off the ground and easier to pick. As for butternuts i pinch the tops out at four leaves grow four runners and two fruits on each, you get better squashes and they don't run all over the plot.

Keep on a troshing J W

Sorry if I'm being thick but just so I understand this.

I let them grow and once they have four leaves I pinch out the growing tip. They will then grow two runners and it's on these two runners that fruit will still develop.

[Jay Dubya]

Hi, once you pinch the top out at four leaves you should get four laterals and i grow two fruits on each lateral giving you eight squashes in all. Maybe you can grow three on each but they might not ripen.

Keep on a troshing J W

[Paul Plots]

For the last couple of years I've stuck my butternut squash in along with the runner beans - with an initial bit of encouragement (tie in once or twice) they are happy to share the bean frame.

Once the runner beans are finished I find the butternut all over the place having shared the space with the beans. I only "prune" the plants back if they start to spread over other nearby crops.

Works for me using non bush variety.