Last year I stored about 10 regular sized butternut squash in my basement on a plain wood shelf. I made sure they weren’t touching each other, and they all lasted just fine (about a year).
This year, I am in possession of some very long-necked butternut squash type things, like Tahitian butternut squash. I am unable to store them sitting on their bottoms because they fall over, and they take up a lot of shelf real estate when stored on their sides.
I keep reading on various sites about how when storing squash, they should not touch each other. But, they never say why. The squashes in the above picture are touching, albeit for not an entire year.
So, why? Do both plants rot at the place where they touch each other? Can I put a single sheet of newspaper between them? Presumably they need good airflow. Can I prop them up with something instead?
It is, as you guessed, to prevent rot.
If one of them rots (and it might), then it’s going to spread to any of the touching squash. And if they’re touching, there’s a nice little crevice that can hold a bit of moisture and encourage the growth of a microbe, and there they go.
I don’t think newspaper would be enough. You want an air gap so that microbes cannot spread as easily, and so any dampness is dried out quickly.
Keeping them from touching is important because you need air circulation around the outside to let them air dry and get a hardened skin. The squash get a natural kind of waxy coating around them. Where they touch, this coating does not develop and moisture is exchanged between them.
It is not just squash. If you want to keep your homegrown apples from rotting you can wrap them lightly in newspaper and store them on a shelf too. These vegetables and fruit are out-gassing ethylene for a while and need to be kept apart while the outside cures.
The reverse is also true, if you have fruit that you would like to mature faster, you put them together in a closed bag and the ethylene gas promotes ripening.
So by keeping your squash separated you are slowing down the ripening process.
http://www.frontlineservices.com.au/Frontline_Services/Fruit_ripening_gas_-_ethylene.html
depends on the squash too, if hard or soft.
rot spreads and tightness can keep to moist.
let them dry and harden. you can put near each other after. lighter and softer squash can be on top of heavier and harder ones. inspect frequently to catch rot, if it happens, early.
Yep, it’s that moisture retention thing and shared rot.
Plus the more intelligent squash can exchange information if they touch (like smartphones) and you don’t want that going on in your pantry.
I cannot believe no one has made a joke on the subject line yet. Consider it done.
This bump is allowed because the thread is not moldy yet.
