Growing squash for winter feeding: what squash varieties to plant?

[NickB79]

Last year, when we bought our new house, the previous owners gave us their small flock of New Hampshire Reds and Plymouth Rocks, along with a pile of leftover squash from their garden. I broke open the squash over the course of the fall and winter as a treat for the birds, and they went nuts over them, eating them until there was only a 1/4" thick rind left. Unfortunately, I don't recall what variety of squash they were. I know they weren't butternut, because I tried feeding them a few leftover butternut squash from my dad's garden and they barely touched those. I think they may have been spaghetti squash? They had soft, stringy innards with LOTS of seeds (the birds love the seeds most of all).

Since we have 1.3 acres of yard, I was going to plant dozens of mounds of squash along our property lines just so that I can store 100 or so squash in the tool shed for the chickens next winter. What varieties have you found they like best?

Thanks!

 

[Ms.FuzzyButts]

I haven't found a best variety, but my chickens don't seem to be too picky. I normally grow straight neck and crook neck. But this year I plan to add spaghetti squash too!

 

[michickenwrangler]

Not sure where you live, that makes a difference for what you can grow. Winter squash: acorn, pumpkins, butternut, keep better over the winter than summer squash.

 

[tammyd57]

I grow Pink Banana Squash for my chickens. Those get HUGE and store for months in a cool spot. The seeds are sometimes hard to find but I save some every year so I can replant the next. If you Google it, you can get an idea of what they look like and maybe where to get seeds.

 

[KatyTheChickenLady]

Mine love Zuchini and cucumber (I know not squash) over anything else.

 

[Siler]

For 3 years now we've planted butternut and spaghetti squash and the girls go nuts over them. We save the seeds from most of them. We grew some volunteer gourds last year but they proved to be inedible by chicken and human.

 

[Organics North]

My girls enjoyed pumpkin all winter. I will be planting pumpkin this year. (A small size kind.) Know I am thinking that spaghetti squash or that Pink Banana Squash could be something to try...
on

 

[Ang]

Mine love butternut and pumpkins. We always have an abundance of both!