Ended up with over 60lb of squash from the food forest this season.

We have grown squash in the food forest for the last 4 years. The first year we grew very little but the second year we were able to get over 60lb. Last year was similar to the first, very little squash but this year we grew over 60lb again. There has pretty much been no consistency when it comes to planting times and techniques, so I'm not surprised by the inconsistency. It would cost almost $80 to buy at this much organic squash at the grocery store, right now. While the seeds were cheap, I did spend some time planting the squash. I didn't keep track of how long it took exactly but I bet it was less than 2hrs total to plant. Plus, by integrating the squash bed into the food forest I was also fertilizing the perennial plants at the same time. The only additional interaction I had with the squash was harvesting it, no watering or weeding. All things considered, even though squash is fairly cheap to buy at the moment, I think it was worth it to grow my own. There is also something special about eating food grown with homemade soil and the sunlight and water that falls on the homestead.

#homesteading #permaculture #permies #meshtadel #foodforest #selfsovereignty #squash #subsistancecrop #gardening #forestgarden #garden