Naked Seeded Squash Breeding

[extremegardener]

Jan 7, 2010 2:21:42 GMT -5 canadamike said:

Am I dreaming here or what? This sounds like a serious post, with people talking breeding, I offer 15 unknown to westerners cultivars and nobody answers...

If you need me I am in the back house trying to do something with myself 'cause it seems a better idea than doing nothing ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

missed it, too. I'm chasing you to the back house, and begging for naked... seeds.
Pretty please... one or two varieties...

[canadamike]

They don't have an ''envelope'' of skin, you get the inside naked, hence the name. They are very good and healthy, taste a bit like sunflower seeds, but much bigger. And yes, in Europe, there are some small niche companies making a delicious oil, very green, out of them, very expensive as it is rare, and loaded with healthy goodies. The curator at Grin wrote me to tell me she added 14 other b=naked seeded to the 15 I ordered, so I'll have 29 to try...

[bunkie]

29! wonderful michel! now what can we cross them with to get an edible flesh AND the naked seeds?

extreme, that's too bad that the sprouted taste bitter. i wonder why thaat is?

[canadamike]

I am not sure it is a good idea...I'd rather have no flesh and loads of seeds...

[extremegardener]

Bunkie - All the cucurbit sprouts I have ever tasted (with one exception) have been bitter - and not just a little bitter - really bitter. I once had a salad in a restaurant that had what I thought were sprouted watermelon seeds, and they were really delicious, but I've never been able to duplicate that. I may be missing something, but if anybody has some insight, I'd love to hear it.

Michel - I agree - I'd go for seed production and forget about the flesh. Good squash/pumpkin flesh is easy to come by, but a high protein/high oil content delicious food like naked pumpkin seeds is a valuable commodity...

[mjc]

I too am of the 'more seed/less flesh' stripe myself. Yeah, good squash/pumpkin is easy. I was very happy with the Lady G's I grew this year and would like to experiment some more, but I have enough projects for this year...so I guess this goes on my list for next year.

[raymondo]

I can see why you'd want more seeds and less flesh, but I'm just after a winter squash type with good flesh and seeds I can eat without hassle. An added bonus if you like. Hence my Lady Godiva x Thelma Sanders Sweet Potato. I'll be harvesting the F1 in a month or so fingers crossed.

[bunkie]

wow raymondo, that sounds like an excellent cross! will keep my fingers, and toes, crossed.

[canadamike]

Dunno about the F-1, butthere should be a lot of fun with the F-2.

Thelma Sanders seems an exellent squash to breed with as the monstrous Thelma/Sweet Dumpling chance cross I got last year...

[canadamike]

Got 30 naked seeded squash from Grin today,,,a lot of breeding work in sight.

I am planning to plant them all this year in small numbers, then let them mass cross, as anyway I do not know what the moms are, so at least I'll be able to look at them for this year, an provide you folks with breeding fun for a while later...

[Alan]

Feb 4, 2010 21:19:40 GMT -5 raymondo said:

I can see why you'd want more seeds and less flesh, but I'm just after a winter squash type with good flesh and seeds I can eat without hassle. An added bonus if you like. Hence my Lady Godiva x Thelma Sanders Sweet Potato. I'll be harvesting the F1 in a month or so fingers crossed.

Raymondo here has the right idea for my taste. The thing is, it is worth breeding one for those who like to eat sweet flavored flesh along with high protein and high oiled seed and insanely easy to test/select for the traits your looking for.

Upon opening up the squash you automatically know weather it is naked seeded or not, a quick hit with the refractometer will give you an idea of brix, and pulling out a small sample of seed prior to cooking one and testing the qualities and texture of the flesh would be easy.

If anyone comes across such a cross I'd be willing to grow, evaluate, and help select lines.

[canadamike]

I would certainely not dispute the merit of such a squash, Alan, and if it happens, of course I'll make sure to do something with it. It is simply that I am not aiming for it, this is not what fires me. Heck, who knows, maybe something totally unanticipated will come out of this, like a delicious fleshy squash You never really know, and I would not say no to that either.

Speaking of unintended results, I have 2 accessions of melons from Asia ( a STAN country, too tired to remember tonight ) that have embedded seeds ( in the flesh).

I have been desperately scratching my head to find something positive about that characteristic Anybody more creative than me that can see why they are worth working with them???

[shivani]

I found this discussion by Google searching for "squash breeding." I live in SE Wisconsin and am in the 2nd year of a winter squash crossbreeding project that is waaaay too big a project for just one person. (200+ hills of umteen varieties and crosses. Many hours daily at present doing the hand pollinations.) I'm looking to create new varieties in general and also edible-fleshed, naked-seeded squash. I'm happy to trade seeds and would like to get some seeds that Canada Mike and others here have mentioned. Is there a way to respond to folks who post here, or does one just post and wait for them to notice it?
Shivani

[mjc]

Can you give a few more details about your project?

I'm guessing you probably have LadyG already?

[johno]

You can post and wait, or you can click on a member's name and you'll get their info page, where you can click on 'send private message' and correspond privately. You still might have to wait. There's also a live chat feature at the top right of the screen, opposite 'home.'

Your project sounds great! I think you'll get some takers on that. I've had the same project in mind for a while, but have just about decided the only squash that do well here are mixtas...