[carlrmj]

 I've grown bns for the first time this year.
 
 They are quite large but are green in colour.

 I thought they should be a creamy/beige colour.

 There are courgette plants not far away,have they cross pollinated ,if so does this affect the way I store /use them .Here is a picture of what they look like?

 Thanks Carl

[DD.]

They are simply not ripe yet.

Cross pollination will not affect this year's fruit, just the seed inside for next year's plants.

[carlrmj]

 Thanks DD.
 If there looks like a frost,should I bring them in or try to cover them

Cheers Carl

[gavinjconway]

You must protect the plants and fruits as the frost will kill them stone dead!

[Chas62]

Butternut squash should as you say be beige.  However, the lack of sun this year has made many plants very late to ripen.

However, the picture on your post doesn't look like a typical Butternut squash; how big is it?  Did you buy seed from a catalogue or was it saved seed?  Catalogue squash seeds are often F1 (a hybrid), if you save those seeds and use them, they are edible, can revert to an another form of squash.

[mumofstig]

Barbara butternut stays green - is that what you grew?
http://www.thompson-morgan.com/vegetables/vegetable-seeds/pumpkin-squash-and-courgette-seeds/squash-barbara-butternut-f1-hybrid-winter/778TM

[boldondig]

My BNS were Hunter - and were never that green .....or that big.  They generally were beige with green stripes and eventually the green stripes faded as the BNS ripened.

[carlrmj]

  I got the bns seeds from  DT brown  they were Hunter F1.

 There was 4 plants with  about 20 or so fruits on them most of them a good size
 

[sarajane]

I have never been successful with BNS so well done you for getting them that size (whatever they are)

It will be interesting to see what is inside when cut open.

[Salmo]

Hunter are supposed to be light tan colour according to the catalogues so yours are not yet ripe.

Leave them out as long as you dare. As soon as a frost kills the tops cut them with plenty of stalk and bring them into a warm house for a few days. They will probably then change colour.

[Sue33]

my bns have never been that dark green, or that big to be honest, are any of them changing colour ?

[Paul Plots]

This is a bit confusing.   

Hunter are the typical light, sandy warm yellow type when ripe. Before they ripen they tend to be light green not dark.

There are a few / couple of bns varieties (as mumofstig says) that grow dark green and stay that way when ripe but most tend to have (as far as I know) a light-green sploshed pattern on the dark-green rather than solid dark green as shown in your photo.

If it were me I'd cut the smallest one and slice it open - if the inside has the typical orange firm flesh then you've got bns. If it hasn't.... your guess is as good as mine. Perhaps it is some other form of winter squash and will keep for several months. It might be a rather large courgette and have white pulpy flesh insdie instead. 

The one you cut into needn't be wasted whatever it is - use it straight away.

Whatever you have growing there I'd harvest it before the firsts frosts or it will be ruined.

Harvested winter squash can be kept in a frost free place until needed. My bns are all in the allotment shed ready to come home sometime soon.

Here's hoping your crop is enjoyable no matter what it is. 

[Paul Plots]

BNS not ripe yet....

       one of your two fruits does look the right shape & patterning but the variety ??

[BabbyAnn]

After viewing the link and comparing with the photos, I'm inclined to think they are Barbara butternut as mumofstig mentions - it would be nice to know if they are anything like proper butternut as I could quite happily grow green skinned ones if they can grow as big as that    I have grown lots of different squashes and there's no doubt that my favourite will always be BNS but despite all the suggested early varieties, they don't do as well as the other winter squashes.

[carlrmj]

 This is the BNS I grew ,The largest was over 16lbs ,still green though.
 Will they be ok stored in one of the bedrooms ?