Last year I saw Jamie Oliver post an amazing Halloween display with scarred squash. I booked marked the idea in my mind and am now scoring all our volunteer squash plants. All you need is a sharp knife blade or skewer and a young winter squash. Without removing the pumpkin, butternut, or other variety squash from the plant, score a design lightly into the skin of the squash.
Then, let the plant grow. It will weep a little liquid in the first twenty four hours and then begin to form a brownish scar. As the squash continues to ripen and change color, the scar will balloon slightly but stay brown.
This intervention could potentially weaken or draw disease to the fruit but thus far our scarred squash are growing just the same as the non-scarred fruit on the same plants.
The possibilities for these decorations are endless. We've drawn shapes, jack-o-lantern faces, initials, and messages that we'll show off later in the season. And the best part is that the scarred squash will still be edible!
Are you already thinking about autumn? If you're looking for a few gardening ideas, try signing up for my Fall Gardening class where we'll talk about autumn crops, cover cropping, and season extension.