A Guide to Types of Summer Squash: Touring the Varieties

What garden plant has all the flavor and color of summer and is great for grilling? Summer squash!

This guide covers everything you need to know about summer squash, the differences between varieties, and suggested ways to cook them, so you can go beyond a simple casserole, soup, or zucchini bread recipe.

The Power of Planting a Seed

I’m captivated by the creative potential of seeds. Every single seed, especially a squash seed, has the potential to produce an abundance of food! If you want to grow winter squash varieties or summer squash varieties, check out my favorite squash seeds!

To help you achieve success, I’ve also created these growing guides to help you grow a zucchini plant and pumpkin plant in your home garden.

The Difference Between Winter and Summer Squash

When it comes to squash, you have two main classifications: summer squash and winter squash. They are both Cucurbita Pepo, which can be confusing.

The biggest difference between them is the skin. Summer squash has a thin, edible skin and is picked when the skin is still soft. Summer squash includes zucchini, crookneck, round, and pattypan (scalloped) squash.

Winter squashes, like acorn, butternut, and delicata, have thick skins that usually harden and become unpalatable. They are commonly used as storage squashes and have a more complex taste.

The Benefits of Growing Varieties of Summer Squash

Growing your own squash provides you with nutritional, organic produce at the peak of freshness while saving money on groceries. The diverse culinary options and unique varieties make it worth the effort. You don’t even have to visit the farmer’s market!

Summer squash plants are known for being prolific and require minimal care. They can produce a large yield from a single plant, plus certain varieties can be grown vertically or in containers!

Who knows, you may grow enough squash to share with friends and family… and coworkers and neighbors… and even random people walking past on the street!

Many people don’t know that zucchini is a type of summer squash, so they try to classify it separately. This slender, straight squash with a smooth skin is the most popular type of summer squash.

Oftentimes, a zucchini plant grows in a bush-like pattern. A long growing season may allow the bushes to get 3 to 4 feet long, but they don’t vine in the same way that winter squash do.

Here are some of my favorite varieties of zucchini:

• Italian Striped Zucchini - This prolific producer has a distinctive pattern and a nutty flavor.

• Bianco Di Trieste Zucchini - A pale green, compact squash that boasts exquisite tenderness and flavor. Indulge in its rich, creamy flesh, packed with nutrition, and savor the gourmet flavor when these delectable squashes reach about 6 inches in length.

• Grey Zucchini - Perfect for small spaces, you’ve got to try this flavorful Egyptian-style zucchini with its beautiful grey-green color.

• Zucchini Black Beauty - Black Beauty is the cultivar most frequently found in grocery stores. It is wonderful grilled, in kebabs, or in zucchini bread.

• Golden Zucchini - Bright golden, cylindrical fruits are heavenly in creamy soups and make great “zoodles” drizzled with olive oil.

Zucchini is great for the body. Eating zucchini supports healthy digestion, heart health, and weight management. Elevate your culinary creations by using zucchini in fresh salads, sautés, breads, soups, and more.

Crookneck squash usually has a bent neck, but not always, as you can see from these varieties:

• Early Prolific Straightneck Squash - This is still a crookneck variety! The creamy yellow-skinned fruits are buttery and delicious with few seeds.

• Yellow Crookneck Squash - One of the oldest squash varieties still being grown! Its good meat and minimal seeds make it great for stir-fries and salads.

Crookneck squash is an inexpensive, healthy meal base. It is nutritious and versatile, with vitamins, folate, potassium, magnesium, and more. You can enjoy it raw or cooked, in slices or strips, roasted, steamed, or fried.

The next type of summer squash is scalloped squash or patty pan squash, which can easily be identified by the ridges around the perimeter of the squash. The ridges are called scallops.

Here are some delectable varieties:

• Green Scallop Bennings Squash - You’ll want to try this delicious, fun, unique-looking squash, which resembles miniature green UFOs.

• Yellow Scallop Squash - This extremely productive plant produces adorable buttercup yellow squash.

• White Scallop Squash - Dating back to 1591, this is an ancient heirloom variety! It is perfect for a modern garden, wonderful in size, creamy and flavorful.

Scalloped squash has a creamy texture and buttery flavor. It is high in fiber, vitamins, and minerals. For a summer treat, try grilling it until it is tender all the way through. It is also delicious roasted, sautéed, or fried.

There are many different variations of round squashes. Like other summer squash, they grow in a bush-like pattern.

Round varieties of summer squash are a fun twist:

• Round Zucchini - This is a compact, easy-to-grow variety, yet it still has excellent flavor.

• Lemon Squash - Lemon squash is a cute and cheery lemon look-alike with a mild taste that is excellent when grilled or roasted.

Try it raw, baked, fried, steamed, stuffed, grilled, or sautéed. 

Delicious Ways to Prepare Summer Squash

With a little creativity, you can enjoy this tasty veggie anytime: breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Try these non-boring zucchini recipes once you’re worn out on roasted veggies and traditional zucchini bread.

You’ll definitely want to preserve some for the off-season, too! Mrs. MIgardener and I love using a vacuum sealer system to preserve our summer squash harvest.