Butternut Squash. Image provided by M. Mazourek, Cornell University.
The squash and pumpkins we commonly grow belong to three different species in the genus Cucurbita. Buttercup, Blue Hubbard and Kabocha squash are found in Cucurbita maxima. Butternut squash and commercial pie pumpkins are in Cucurbita moschata. Cucurbita pepo is the most commonly grown and diverse species and includes Halloween pumpkins, zucchini, summer squash, acorn and delicate. Other species are also valuable in other countries and have served as sources of disease resistance for the species we grow in the US. The primary squash diseases of focus for the CucCAP project are Phytophthora rot, powdery mildew and several viruses.
