Michael Fuller
Mandan squash on 29 May 2021 after being transplanted into the garden.
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Mandan squash bloom and first squash forming on 13 June 2021 (plant started in February)
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Adult squash bugs (Anasa tristis) on 29 August 2021. Time to harvest!
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I harvested 10 orange/yellow squash all from a single plant. One squash was already broken open and leaking milky fluid [the one with the fly!!]. It had rotted/fermented inside. Weight ranges from 260 to 490 grams with an average of 381 grams. Height ranged from 5.5 to 8.1 cm with an average of 7.0 cm. Diameter ranged from 9.3 to 11.0 with an average of 10.0 cm.
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Mandan Squash, February 2021. GRIN accession PI 615153. Ko-re is given as the Mandan word for squash by Rankin 2009;Table 41-2. in R. L. Rankin "Siouan Tribal contacts and Dispersions Evidence in the Terminology for Maize and other Cultigens" published in Histories of Maize.
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How hard is a Mandan squash? I had to hammer my knife through its rock art skin! A good reason to have a hammer stone in prehistoric times.
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Mandan Squash germinated indoors during February 2021.
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Mandan Squash on 28 July 2021. This was a squash planted in June. The squash plant started in February was badly damaged by a fat rabbit.
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Ko-re (Mandan, squash = Cucurbita pepo)
Mandan squash 23 August 2021
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The rotted squash was obviously inedible, so I tried a little taste. More fermented than rotted, but not worth eating unless on the brink of starvation. The seeds are perfectly mature and easily separated, washed, and dried.
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The meat of his squash has an aroma very much like an orange Halloween pumpkin. It tastes delicious when baked.
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Bent iron knife tip from trying to cut into a Mandan squash. It could only be opened with a hammer from direct percussion.
This squash, number 3, contained 172 seeds
6 September 2021
Mandan Squash 23 August 2021
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Mandan squash spreads on 1 July 2021. Photograph by Amira Fuller
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Mandan squash seeds freshly collected, washed, but not dried. Mean weight based on 10 seeds is 0.109 grams.
Length ranges from 10.95 mm to 13.89 mm and width ranges from 7.53 to 9.38 mm.
Length/width/thickness = 12.79 x 8.14 x 2.38, 10.95 x 9.04 x 2.64, 12.83 x 9.38 x 2.51, 12.14 x 7.53 x 2.29, 12.47 x 8.33 x 2.20, 13.30 x 9.23 x 2.33, 12.48 x 8.31 x 2.27, 13.02 x 7.61 x 2.20, 13.44 x 8.85 x 2.22, and 13.89 x 9.11 x 2.06
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