The release of two new squash varieties to North Dakota by the Department of Horticulture and Forestry in 1990 is given. The two varieties were the Discus Bush Buttercup and the Dakota Gray Turban

Boe, A.A.

Chaput, L.J.

Holland, N.S.

NDSU Libraries Institutional Repository

Discus Bush Buttercup and Dakota Gray Turban New Winter Squashes for North Dakota Gardens N.S. Holland, L. J. Chaput and A.A. Boe The Department of Horticulture and Forestry announces the release of two new squashes for home gardens and commercial production in the Upper Great Plains. They are the sixth and seventh squash varieties released by the department. The squash breeding program has been active since the early 1920s. 'Discus Bush Buttercup' is an early maturing buttercup type sq uash , The vine is a bush with very short internodes . The internode length increases towards the end of the grow­ing season . Most of the fruit are set very near the main stem of the plant. The fruit of Discus Bush Buttercup are a flat­tened buttercup weighing 2 to 3 pounds . The fruit color is dark green with a light green navel. The ground spot is a bright orange when the frui t is mature . The fruit flesh is orange. A major attribute of this variety is its small seed cav­ity and very thick flesh . Each fruit contains only a few seeds, which may make seed production costly . The fruit store modestly well at room temperature and for 2 to three months at 50 degrees Fahrenheit. The cooked fruit are of good quality . The texture is of desirable moistness and the flavor is rich and squashy. Discus Bush Buttercup was developed from a cross be­tween Bush Buttercup and ND9165 and has been tested as ND77-3. 'Dakota Gray Turban' is an early maturing buttercup type squash . Its vine is a semi-bush. Each plant produces a few short branches 5 to 6 feet long. Most of the fruit are set near the main stem of the plant. The fruit of Dakota Gray Turban are a flattened buttercup shape and weigh 3 to 4 pounds . The color of the fru it is a greenish-gray with a light green navel. The ground spot is orange when the fruit is mature . The flesh is a bright orange. The fruit of this variety has very thick flesh , a smaU seed cavity and store very well. The cooked fruit are of high quality. The texture is smooth and of desirable moistness. The flavor is mild, sweet and pleas­antly squashy. Dakota Gray Turban was developed from a cross be­tween the varieties 'Emerald' and 'Sweet Meat.' It has been tested as ND729-3 . Seed of these varieties is available from the Department of Horticulture and Forestry, NDSU. Breeders seed will be provided to seed companies. 'Discus Bush Buttercup' 'Dakota Gray Turban' Holland is professor, Chaput is research specialist and Boe is pro­fessor and choir, Deportment of Horticulture and Forestry . 30 ------Comparison of performance of squash varieties and selections, 1987. Fruit Fruit Fruit Yieldl Percent Dry WI. Variety or Selection number1 weight t size acre2 flesh3 (%) (Ibs.) (lbs.) Gold Nugget 13.5 19.0 1.4 5.7 94.8 13 Buttercup 10.3 36.4 3.5 10.9 90.8 21 Emerald 6.3 24.7 4.0 7.4 91.0 19 Green Hokkaido F1 8.8 30.6 3.5 9.2 90.3 25 Honey Delight F1 14.5 55.1 3.8 16.5 94.4 23 Dakota Gray Turban 7.8 32.6 4.2 9.8 92.8 15 ND729-2 6.3 23.2 3.8 7.0 91.3 13 ND729-1 6.8 28.4 4.2 8.5 93.7 16 Discus Bush Buttercup 11 .8 33.1 2.9 9.9 96.0 14 Sweet Mama F1 7.0 38.1 5.5 11.4 91 .5 17 Bush Buttercup 7.8 18.3 2.4 5.5 92.3 13 1 Average per hill of four plants. 2Tons at 600 hills per acre. 3Recovery after seeds removed. 31 ------~---------~~~~~ ----

Discus Bush Buttercup and Dakota Gray Turban. New Winter Squashes for North Dakota Gardeners

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