I was chatting with a gardener, cook and good friend of mine last fall about the latest trends in gardening. We both agreed that smaller versions of unwieldy vegetables are getting more attention by the folks who breed and bring new vegetable varieties to market. During my annual April trip to California, I saw quite a few new pint-sized versions of veggies. One of those, the new butternut squash Butterbaby, fills the bill of a miniature and manageable version of something that typically runs amok.

Growth

While the typical vining squash plant roams 15 ft. or more across a garden plot, Butterbaby keeps itself to a spread of just 7 to 10 ft. This is a much more manageable size for the small-plot gardener. With vine growth so limited, it would even be possible for a home gardener to grow Butterbaby vertically with the help of a trellis.

Butterbaby’s leaves are smaller, too, making it much easier to spot those developing squashes. The breeder (PanAmerican Seed) also claims Butterbaby has intermediate resistance to powdery mildew. Even if this variety is partially resistant, it’ll go a long way in keeping those small leaves working for the benefit of the growing fruits.

Timing and Size

Along with a small spread and small leaves, Butterbaby has smaller fruit, too. Each plant produces about 10 1-lb. squashes. Rather than being overburdened with 15 or more large squash that ripen all at once, Butterbaby’s smaller harvest of 6-in. long squash is much more in line with how people are eating today. These small Butterbabies are just the right size as a side dish for one family meal. And you don’t get so many that you are eventually say, “Butternut squash for dinner again??”

Even if you do get tired of eating squash, no worries. People often store these Butterbaby squash in a cool place (fridge or basement) for several months. I saw a sample of one that had been stored for four months and it was still looking good!

If you seed Butterbaby directly into the ground, expect harvestable squash in about 100 to 105 days. You may be able to find Butterbaby in seed catalogs now. I expect you’ll see Butterbaby as transplants and in seed packets in garden centers in 2019.