15 Heirloom Squash Varieties Perfect for the Thanksgiving Table

Heirloom winter squashes bring exceptional flavor and diversity to the table. The seasonal favorites yield unique and versatile fruits in flavor, form, and color.

Heirloom vegetables represent our heritage crops, cultural foodways, and selections preserved for exceptional flavor and growing qualities. The term “heirloom” varies when it comes to vegetables. It can mean plants grown before 1951, when the first hybrids became commercially available, or antique varieties passed down from generation to generation for preservation.

Heirloom Winter Squash Overview

Winter squashes, like butternuts and pumpkins, mature in late summer and fall, while summer squashes, like zucchini and pattypan, tend to produce more quickly over the summer. Winter selections take longer to develop their hefty fruits with thick skins.

Easily grown from seed, winter squash is usually sown in spring or early summer to yield the autumn harvest. Their long vines grow along the ground, on vertical supports like trellises and arches, and in raised beds and containers. Dwarf varieties may mature earlier and suit both small space gardens and those with a short growing season.

The cucurbits grow best in full sun (six hours or more of daily sunlight). They prefer organically rich, moist, and well-draining soils. They often boast a long storage life post-harvest and are lovely fresh or displayed.

‘Speckled Swan’ Hard-Shelled Gourd

	botanical name Lagenaria siceraria
	height 8-12’ vines

These ornamental gourds bring late-season interest to the display. Their dark green skin has flecks of creamy, lighter green. They reach 14-16 inches long with wide bases that funnel to a swan-shaped neck.

‘Speckled Swan’ is a fun addition among other gourds and fall-themed decor. They’re excellent for long-lasting fresh arrangements and for drying and craft uses.

These swans grow vigorously on climbing supports and can bring a little shade to hot garden areas. The adorable young goosenecks turn into full-fledged swans by season’s end.

‘Tromboncino’

	botanical name Cucurbita moschata ‘Tromboncino’
	height 15’ vines

‘Tromboncino,’ also called ‘Zucchino Rampicante,’ is an Italian heirloom squash. While the long fruits mature in the cool season, they’re equally tasty when harvested young, green, and tender in the summer. They provide a flavorful stand-in for summer squash and develop their butternut characteristics in the fall.

Trellis or arch the vigorous vines to watch the long, narrow fruits develop as they hang. The unique squash is a conversation piece and reaches up to three feet long.

C. moschata is more resistant to squash vine borer infestations than other species. Its thick, smooth stems make them less accessible during egg-laying and larval cycles.

‘Honeynut’

	botanical name Cucurbita moschata ‘Honeynut’
	height 2-3’ vines

‘Honeynut’ is another moschata selection with good squash vine borer and powdery mildew resistance. This hybrid is out of Cornell’s breeding program and crosses butternut and buttercup varieties for a very sweet and smooth texture.

The petite fruits are four to five inches long. They start mottled green and ripen to mellow orange-red. These butternuts store for up to six months. Short, bushy vines make the dense grower perfect for vertical situations and small spaces.

‘Jack Be Little’

	botanical name Cucurbita pepo ‘Jack Be Little’
	height 3-5’ vines

This adorable miniature pumpkin is ideal for trellising in containers as a specimen plant. You can also grow it on small A-frames or obelisks. 

The little pumpkins grow only three to four inches in diameter and two inches high. Six to ten fruits per plant light up the vine in bright orange. Use them for eating and stuffing or for decorations. They store for up to one year.

The small fruits grow on compact vines. To grow them in containers, choose a five-gallon or larger pot at least 18 inches deep. 

‘Green-Striped Cushaw’

	botanical name Cucurbita argyrosperma ‘Green-Striped Cushaw’
	height 20’ vines

These striped crook-necks are as attractive as they are tasty. White skin has light and dark green mottling. A reliable producer, ‘Green-Striped’ has vigorous vines that resist most pests, including squash vine borer. 

The flesh is medium-textured and light in color with a mildly sweet flavor. Fruits are 18 inches long and 10 inches wide at the base. These are best enjoyed and displayed close to harvesting since they don’t last as long as others in storage.

‘Seminole’ Pumpkin

	botanical name Cucurbita moschata ‘Seminole’
	height 25’

Seminole pumpkins are ideal selections for southern gardens. Multiple tribes in Florida, including the Seminole, Creek, Miccosukee, Muscogee, and Calusa, cultivated the selection.

The large vines produce six-inch bell fruits with firm, deep orange flesh. The flavor is sweeter than other butternuts, making it a good substitute for pumpkin. Harvest in autumn or pick young and early fruits for summer squash.

The cultivar features excellent mildew resistance and tough stems to defend against moths and caterpillars. Mature pumpkins weigh six to twelve pounds and develop on long, leafy vines.

‘Lakota’

	botanical name Cucurbita maxima ‘Lakota’
	height 10-20’ vines

This decorative variety is as delicious as it is ornamental. Deep crimson orange with variations in green mottling, the pear-shaped fruits weigh between four and eight pounds.

This baking type has orange flesh that’s smooth, sweet, and nutty. It performs in various conditions with ease but is frost-sensitive and best harvested before the first heavy freeze. Roast the seeds for a healthy snack.

Not technically a true heirloom squash, ‘Lakota’ is a result of a century of hybridization. It began with an unnamed variety that cross-pollinated in personal gardens and as spread as shared seeds. Later, it crossed with a ‘Hubbard’ squash. The University of Nebraska made it genetically stable.

‘Red Kuri’

	botanical name Cucurbita maxima ‘Red Kuri’
	height 4-6’

‘Red Kuri’ is excellent in the kitchen and small space gardens. Vines reach only about five feet and grow well in containers and on vertical supports. They produce three to four-pound teardrops that are melon orange and sweet like pumpkins.

Also called ‘Orange Hokkaido’ or ‘Baby Red Hubbard,’ these are popular for their creamy texture and chestnut flavor. They’re good options for short-growing seasons and cold climates, developing quickly on compact forms.

‘Red Kuri’ is a Japanese variety (kuri means “chestnut”) that produces two to five plants per plant. They’re ideal for steaming, roasting, and baking.

‘Pink Banana’

	botanical name Cucurbita maxima ‘Pink Banana’
	height 12-15’

‘Pink banana’ makes a statement in the harvest display as a large, salmon pink variety (18 to 24 inches long!). In the dish, it’s sugary and tender, perfect for baking into pies in addition to side dishes. Grow this one, and you’ll want to show it off.

Each fruit weighs 10 to 12 pounds and has a bright golden-orange interior. The seed cavity is narrow, leaving more room for the “meat.”

Native to Argentina and Uraguay, ancient cultures utilized banana squash, as did American pioneers. ‘Pink Banana’ brings a historic staple to the Thanksgiving table.

‘Vegetable Spaghetti’

	botanical name Cucurbita pepo ‘Vegetable Spaghetti’
	height 8-12’ vines

Spaghetti, or “gold string melon,” is native to the U.S. and Mexico. Its stringy interior masquerades as strands of pasta. 

When cooked, the flesh separates easily into thin pieces for a nest of healthy “spaghetti” with a neutral flavor ready to go with anything. It also stands alone after boiling or baking with a bit of butter or oil.

Rinds and interiors are pale yellow, and each fruit reaches 8 to 12 inches long.

‘Galeux d’Eysines’

	botanical name Cucurbita maxima ‘Galeux d’Eysines’
	height 10’15’ vines

If you’re enjoying the offbeat pumpkin trend as much as we are, ‘Galeux d’Eysines’ is a beautiful addition to the group. In buff peach, the pastel gourds have bumpy outer skins for a unique texture. Sugars crystallize under the skin and cause the raised areas; a warty pumpkin is a sweet pumpkin!

Also called the “peanut” pumpkin because of its rough and bumpy shell, ‘Galeux’ has smooth orange flesh. The 12-inch diameter rounds weigh 10 to 15 pounds. 

The French heirloom has a high sugar content, is rich in soups and sauces, and is versatile in cuisine. Save some for eating (they store for up to six months) and others for the centerpiece.

‘Luffa’

	botanical name Luffa aegyptiaca
	height 20’ vines

For cleaning up after the Thanksgiving feast, these scrubber gourds come in handy! These heirloom squash also make fun gift accessories.

Grow these long vines on a fence or arbor (great partial shade to underplanted crops in hot summer climates) and reap the interesting rewards in late summer.

Luffa (also spelled “loofah”) produce one to two-foot-long green fruits with a densely fibrous interior. Skins are easy to peel, revealing the scrubbing sponges we’re used to. 

Let luffa ripen (skin will brown or yellow and pull back easily from the fibers). Peel and shake out interior seeds for use on dishes, in the bath, and gifting an all-natural spa accessory.

Luffas do well in warm soils and are best sown outdoors two to four weeks after the final frost. They’ll thrive in summer heat in full sun and tolerate light shade.

‘Table Queen’

	botanical name Cucurbita pepo ‘Table Queen’
	height 10-15’ vines

This acorn heirloom sets the standard individual-sized fall squashes. The Iowa Seed Company introduced ‘Table Queen’ out of Des Moines in 1913. 

Vines yield shiny, dark green one-pound rounds with high-quality yellow-orange flesh. With a sugary interior, the petite acorns are perfect for baking. 

An early maturing, compact variety from the University of Connecticut in 1974 is ‘Table King,’ an All-America Selections winner. It matures in 80 days on compact, four-foot bushes.

‘Delicata’

	botanical name Cucurbita maxima ‘Delicata’
	height 12’

A favorite even now, ‘Delicata’ is an heirloom squash from 1894 and boasts a high sugar content in its fine-textured, golden interiors. Fruits are sweet right off the vine with a thin skin for easy work in the kitchen.

The elongated loafs are creamy-white with orangey tones and dark green stripes and flecks. Each grows about eight inches long and four inches wide, weighing in at one to three pounds. Storage time is only a few months, so enjoy this one to warm up chilly fall and winter evenings.

‘Rouge Vif d’Etampes’

	botanical name Cucurbita maxima ‘Rouge Vif d’Etampes’
	height 10’ vines

‘Rouge Vif d’Etampes’ is the famous ‘Cinderella’ pumpkin, and our heirloom list would be remiss without it. The melon-orange beauties are a seasonal favorite from Paris in the 1880s and the inspiration behind the fairytale princess’ cucurbit carriage.