Cucumbers and Squashes

------------------------------------------------------------------------
The world's first domesticated vegetable may well have been the squash - evidence of 10,000 year old cultivation of squash has been found in Mexican caves. Grains were domesticated a couple of thousand years earlier.
Sadly, I'm a bit too far north to be able to grow the squash family reliably outside - but I enjoy cooking them, so I'll keep trying.
Technique
* In May, dig holes 12 inches square, and 12 inches deep. Fill the holes with a mixture of soil and compost or well-rotted manure - make sure you have a mound on the top.
* For cucumbers, the holes should be 18 inches apart;
* for bush squash, 24 inches apart;
* for trailing squash, 48 inches apart;* Two weeks later, in late May or early June, plant three seeds edgeways, 1 inch deep, a few inches apart, in the centre of each mound. Cover with a cloche, to aid germination.
* Keep the cloche on for a few weeks, and remove the weakest two seedlings.
* Cucumbers - pinch out the growing tip when the plants have 6 or 7 leaves. Allow the side shoots which develop to trail, or train them up strong netting. Pinch out any shoots not bearing flowers at the 7th leaf.
* Trailing Squash - pinch out the tips of the main shoots when they reach 2 feet long.
* All are very thirsty plants indeed, and need LOTS of water around (not on) the plants. The soil must always be moist.
* Place black polythene or a mulch round the plants before fruits start to form.
* In cold weather, you may have to help marrows - pull a male flower, bend back the petals, and insert it into the female flower (small marrow behind the flower) to ensure fertilisation.
* Feed the plants every couple of weeks with tomato fertiliser or equivalent after the fruits have started to swell. Limit pumpkins to 2 per plant. Lay a tile or glass under marrows to protect the fruit.
* Harvesting - all will benefit from continuous picking to encourage further fruiting. Cut the fruits with a very sharp knife - don't tug the stalks!
* Gherkins (young cucumbers) can be picked at about 4 inches long.
* Cucumbers at 6-8 inches long.
* Apple Cucumbers when they are the size of a duck's egg.
* Courgettes at 4 inches long.
* Marrows at 8-10 inches long.
* for Marrows, Pumpkins, and Squashes for winter storage, allow the fruits to mature on the plants and remove them before any frost. Store them in a cool room, and they should keep until Christmas.* You can raise seedlings indoors, and transplant them, but it is not easy to harden them off gently enough.