Winter Squash

Winter squash are squashes that have matured long enough to harden their skin making it good for storing and eating over the winter. The orange and yellow flesh of winter squash means its full of vitamin A, but also has vitamins B-6 and C, as well as potassium and fiber. Not only is the squash itself edible, so are the leaves, flowers, stems, and seeds.

Squashes, also called pumpkins, gourds, and squashes originated in the Americas, specifically what is now Mexico. They have been cultivated there for 8,000 years. Gourds were first used as containers or utensils. Popular squash varieties include pumpkin, butternut, acorn, delicata, kabocha, hubbard, and spaghetti (named for it’s stringy, spaghetti-like flesh).

This webpage includes a variety of educational materials, activities, recipes, and more about winter squash for use at home, in youth or family programming, in the classroom, and in the cafeteria. For more New Hampshire Harvest of the Month resources for November, click here.

Lesson Plan for Winter Squash

Developed in partnership with UNH Extension, NH Farm to School, and the UNH Education department, the Harvest Lessons lesson plan and curricular activities can be used by education professionals to incorporate apples into dynamic, long-lasting learning in the classroom and other education-based settings.