Your butternut squash is growing and looking great, but how do you know when it’s ready to harvest? Many first-time gardeners mistakenly pick their butternut squash too early (or too late!) and end up disappointed. Oh no!
Picking butternut squash at the exact right time will ensure that they not only taste great but that they’ll store for up to 6 months. If you want to build up your food stores, definitely keep reading!
I’ve been growing butternut squash for 10+ years and can’t wait to share what I’ve learned along the way. They are a huge part of our self-sufficient strategy and we’re often eating them well into April. Let’s dive in!
*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links to products (including Amazon). I’ll earn a small commission if you make a purchase through my link, at no additional cost to you! Regardless, I only link to products that I personally use on our homestead or believe in.
When to Harvest Butternut Squash
Thankfully, it’s pretty easy to identify when a butternut squash is ripe and ready to harvest once you know what to look for. There are just 3 key questions that you need to answer a “YES” to and then you’ll be eating some delicious butternut squash in no time.
Time
The most “by the book” answer is to follow the days to harvest for the variety that you’re growing. Some varieties like Nutterbutter only need 90 days to mature whereas Honeynut needs a full 110 days. My favorite is the Havana F1!
However, we gardeners know that we are rarely blessed with a year of ideal weather that follows average patterns. Some years are hot and dry while others are cool and wet, so that will greatly affect how quickly your plants grow.
I like to use the days to harvest as a general guideline, but use the following physical tests to be sure that your butternut squash is ripe before you pick it!
Skin color
Looking at skin color is the easiest way to identify if butternut squash is ripe and ready for picking from a distance. The vines can get unruly and difficult to walk through, so it’s nice to be able to eyeball which ones are good candidates before climbing on in there!
While each butternut squash variety is slightly different, most of them start with a greenish tint that gradually turns to a soft orange as they ripen. The initial green streaks should also fully fade away.
However, keep in mind that unique varieties like Autumn Frost F1 has a grey tint and Honeynut is orange like a pumpkin, so be sure to refer to your seed packet or seed supplier photo to know what to look for.
Skin hardness
Once you’ve identified that the butternut squash is the right color, it’s time to test the skin. The skin starts out very soft and can be easily pierced with your fingernail. If that happens, it’s not ripe.
A butternut squash that is fully ripe and ready to be harvested will have dense, hard skin that is unable to be pierced easily with your fingernail.
Stem quality
Before you pick, be sure to investigate the stem! If the stem is green, fresh, and alive-looking, the butternut squash is not ready to be picked. That means the stem still is delivering vital nutrients to the squash. When the stem has begun to dry and turn brown in color, then it’s ready to be picked!
Weather
If you have a short growing season like I do in Zone 4 Minnesota, sometimes the weather dictates when it’s time to harvest our butternut squash. Squash vines and fruit are very sensitive to first and frost can damage the skin, reducing its storability.
If I see a hard frost in the forecast, I make sure to harvest all of my butternut squash the evening before, even if they aren’t all ripe. Once the frost sets in, the vines will shrivel up and die, so there’s no hope of them continuing to grow if you leave them.
How to Harvest Butternut Squash
If you plan to eat the butternut squash right away, you really can’t mess this up. However, if you want to store your squash for months to build up your food stores like we do, definitely don’t miss this part!
All you need to do is use sharp pruning shears (those stems are tough!) and snip the squash from the vine with at least 1” of stem remaining. You don’t want it too short otherwise the squash will dry out and you don’t want it too long otherwise the stem could pierce and damage nearby squash while in storage or transport.
Lastly, don’t be tempted to carry your prized butternut squash by the stems! They aren’t handles! This will stress the squash. Also, be careful when transporting them from the garden so that their skins don’t get damaged.
How to Cure & Store Butternut Squash
Butternut squash is an incredible food to have tucked away in your food stores. Ours will easily last at least 6 months as long as they are cured and stored properly. I highly recommend taking this extra step!
Curing is the process of getting those squash skins to harden even more, which will help seal off the insides from the outside environment and keep it preserved, in a way. It’s so easy to do and I love that it’s a low-effort method of food preservation compared to canning.
First, I like to wash my squash with diluted white vinegar (4 parts water to 1 part vinegar). Then, I set them out in the sun for 10 days while being careful to bring them into our garage if the temps dip below freezing to avoid damaging the skins. I like to keep them in my garden wagon so it’s easy to wheel them in and out.
Once fully cured, it’s time to tuck them away into storage. The ideal location is a root cellar or somewhere that is cool (50F) and dark. A basement or heated garage is great. If you don’t have these exact conditions, it’s okay! Just do your best.
Make sure to take inventory every month and if you notice any with blemishes or soft spots, be sure to eat those ones first. Lastly, don’t forget to make soaked and dehydrated seeds for snacking!
FAQ About Harvesting Butternut Squash
Can you leave butternut squash on the vine too long?
The one good thing about my short growing season is that I never really have to worry about this. However, if you have a longer season than I do, then yes! What can happen is that the flavor and the texture can get bland and mushy if the butternut squash is left past its ripeness.
What happens if you pick butternut squash too early?
This happens to me sometimes if we get an early frost. If a butternut squash is almost ripe, then it often ripens on its own while curing. However, if a squash is small and very underripe (green stripes, yellow coloring, vibrant green stem), then it will be bland and is best offered to the chickens or the compost pile.
Is the same method used to harvest pumpkins?
Yep! Everything that we chatted about in this article applies to all types of winter squash (pumpkins, acorn squash, delicata squash, etc.). However, not all winter squash stores quite as well as butternut. Butternut is typically the longest-storing variety, so be sure to eat up the other ones first!
Other Gardening Articles You’ll Love:
- Do Deer Eat Pumpkins? Plus, 6 Tips to Deter Them!
- When to Harvest Garlic Scapes (& How to Do It!)
- Basil Plant Flowering? Here’s What to Do About It
- 5 BEST Pumpkin Companion Plants (and 3 to AVOID!)
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Achieve Your Best Harvest Yet!
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