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~ Seed for COURGETTES & SUMMER SQUASH ~ If you look at most seed catalogues, you'll find them full of modern hybrid courgettes , bred for the needs of agri-business, not home gardeners. But some really good traditional varieties do still exist, and these are the best we have found. (NB: "Summer squash" are picked young and used just like courgettes but are different shapes & colours.) A note about plant sizes, that not everyone realises: Some are big sprawling vines, others are dwarf bushes. But in general you get a set amount of produce per square foot of plant, so there's no free lunch (or dinner) - if you want loads of courgettes you need to plant up several square yards of plants. Ben would normally grow about 8 plants for our own use, which is why we give you at least 12 seeds. But then , he likes courgettes a lot, so you might only want to grow 3 or 4. 'Striato d'Napoli' Courgette From Italy - and consistently good in our trials. Big bushy plants giving lots of pretty, long thin fruit with alternating light and dark green stripes. Gently ribbed courgettes, when cooked the flesh stays nice and firm. We like it a lot because although very productive, it is well behaved & doesn't sprawl as much as some varieties, so it is a good choice if you have a smaller plot to grow it in. Early & stripey. Large bush but not too sprawling! Order CoSN - 14 seed £1.54 'Tondo di Piacenza' Courgette An early courgette which is almost perfectly spherical. Very productive, with pretty fruits which look good on the plant and on the plate. Most of the round courgettes available are very pale , but these are a nice glossy dark green colour, which helps them absorb a bit more heat. Definitely worth a try if you fancy something a little bit different. Kate would like to point out that we have actually found one small flaw with these. Because they're round, if you try to carry a huge armful all at once, it's very easy to loose control and end up with them rolling away in all directions! The bushes are also very big and sprawling - so better for the larger plot - but then they make an awful lot of courgettes. Dark green, round courgette Order CoTP - 14 seed £1.50 Trieste White Cousa Courgette This variety comes originally from the Middle East, and has performed excellently for us in our trials. Large dark green bushes are prolific producers of tasty courgettes. Do try this out, even if the shape is not what you're used to. Cousa courgettes are what are considered 'normal' courgettes in the middle-east; they have chubby fruit with really nice dense flesh, & stay tender to a bigger size than the cylindrical Italian varieties we are used to. The fruits are almost steel-grey in colour and make a nice contrast with the darker foliage. We haven't been able to maintain this one ourselves for a couple of years but it has been very kindly taken on by Tom & Liza Brown in North Wales and thanks to their heroic efforts we have a few packets available this year. Early, high production , particularly good flavour and texture Order CoTW - 14 seed £1.60 'Verde di Italia' Pale Green Ribbed Courgette This is a very good courgette in the traditional Italian style. It is a pale green with lighter green speckles, and very slightly ribbed. The large vines are early and productive. The flesh of these pale green courgettes is very soft and delicately flavoured. Order CoVi - 14 seed £1.45 'Verde di Milano' Dark Green Dwarf Bush Courgette This is a small bush (not a vine), making medium-sized very dark green (almost black) courgettes. Because it is smaller plant it is a good choice for those of you with a tiny plot ( and also for all those with a huge plot who are just always hopelessly over-optimistic about how many different things can be squeezed in!) We like this picked small and fried with garlic, when the skin has a particularly good flavour. Order CoVM - 14 seed £1.49 'White Volunteer' Cousa Courgette This variety starts early and is a prolific producer of short, fat, white (well, really a very pale green) courgettes. They start producing fast, and then just keep making more and more fruit as the season goes on. They also have a good dense texture and stay firm and delicious even when large. Our friend Rods verdict? "I only planted 4 plants & I just can't keep up with them!" Staggeringly early & productive. (note: the string in the picture is to identify the fruit as one chosen to be saved for seed production) Feedback: Rave reviews from everyone. Abi Gbbens from Sheffield wrote: "FANTASTIC!! Wow, not only have I got loads of courgettes, but they are the most beautiful I have ever tasted! I thought all courgettes were small and thin, but these big chubby beauties are just delicious, no matter whatsize they reach . . . Thank you for all your efforts, please keep it up" Sorry, sold out. ~ Seed for OTHER TYPES of SUMMER SQUASH ~ Summer squash are grown and cooked just like courgettes. They have a slightly nuttier flavour, and offer a whole new range of different shapes & colours. To avoid any confusion - we perhaps didn't make this clear enough last year - just as with courgettes, you should pick these plants regularly, and pick all these squash when they are small, only a couple of inches across. The plants rapidly make more! (Otherwise you will end up with - for example - the patty-pan equivalent of a marrow!) 'Pattison Blanc' Patty Pan Squash Patty-pan squash are flattened, saucer-shaped courgettes. This old French heirloom produces white saucer-shaped fruit, which are cut when young (about 3 inches across) and cooked or fried just like a courgette. The flavour is a little richer and more substantial than courgettes, with a slight 'nutty' taste. Very popular each year, they can be quite prolific indeed in a good summer. Saucer-shaped white courgette! Order SSPB 14 seed £1.50   'Summer Crookneck' summer squash This is an amazing knobbly yellow squash, with bulbous fruit and a curved neck (hence the name). Although botanically a 'squash' it is always picked early, sliced whole, & used just like a courgette - with a great nutty flavour. We think that it is much better than courgettes though - more productive, firmer fleshed and better flavoured! Always a favourite of ours Order SSSC 12 seed [CO1] £1.55   'Early Prolific Straightneck' summer squash SOLD OUT This one, above all, does exactly what it says on the packet! It is very early, it is prolific, and it is - as advertised - yellow with a straight neck. What more can one ask? Do keep picking them small - don't let it get marrow-sized or it will have a hard skin; you want to pick this when it is young and tender, with a wonderful soft yellow buttery texture. This is a very rare variety, a straight variant of the well-known 'Crookneck' above. They have the same bright yellow skin, with a slightly undulating surface, and a wonderful nutty flavour. However this straight version is much easier to slice for cooking. It was introduced in 1938, winning the AAS award when introduced, but has been forgotten in recent years. We don't have the space to grow it every year - keep your own seed if you like it. Special for this year SORRY - NOW SOLD OUT     Saving Courgette & Summer Squash Seed: It is very easy to save your own courgette seed, but you really do have to do it properly. For seed production, you really must pollinate the flowers by hand, otherwise they will cross with all the other squash and pumpkins, giving tasteless watery mongrels that are no good to eat. The rubber bands hold the flowers shut so the bees can't get in and cross-pollinate them before you get there. Don't be daunted! It only takes a few minutes to do this properly, and you'll get great seed. Seed-saving instructions are included with your seeds, so you can do this yourself. And of course, seed-saving is only possible because these are all real, non-hybrid varieties.