// SPECIES PROFILE · FOOD CROP · CULTIVATED

Summer Squash

Cucurbita pepo (Zucchini Group)

Summer Squash (Cucurbita pepo (Zucchini Group)) is a cultivated annual food crop grown for its edible fruit, flower. Family: Cucurbitaceae (gourd family). Originally from Mexico & North America. Grown as an annual in zones 3a–11a. Mature size 2'–3'. Harvest in northeastern Oklahoma: Jun–Sep.

// QUICK FACTS

Family: Cucurbitaceae (gourd family)
Group: crop · annual
Origin: Mexico & North America · cultivated
USDA zones: Zones 3a–11a (as an annual)
Mature size: 2'–3'
Sun: Full sun
Water: Medium
Edible parts: fruit, flower
Harvest (NE OK): Jun–Sep
Garden role: prolific bush squash & zucchini · edible blossoms · succession-sow to outrun squash bugs

Summer Squash (Cucurbita pepo (Zucchini Group)) — *Cucurbita pepo (Zucchini Group)* — Summer Squash. Photo by Evan-Amos via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain).

Field Notes

[ growing · ecology · siting · care ]

Why it's on this list: prolific bush squash & zucchini · edible blossoms · succession-sow to outrun squash bugs. A cultivated food crop — not a native — grown alongside regional natives in Rooted Revival's kitchen-garden and food-forest designs. Harvest windows are for northeastern Oklahoma (USDA zone 7a).

Companion Planting

[ guild · polyculture · cross-layer pairings ]

In a kitchen garden or food-forest guild, summer squash pairs well with: Sweet Corn (Zea mays var. rugosa), Pole Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), Dill (Anethum graveolens), Common Sunflower (Helianthus annuus).