Abstract
Acorn squash ( Cucurbita pepo L.) is one of the three major classes of squash consumed in North America. Breeding improvements over the past 30 years have focused on more compact cultivars, earlier maturity, darker rind color, and powdery mildew tolerance (PMT). Our observations from sampling acorn squash from local supermarkets at different times during the year show that eating quality is highly variable, and most often, not acceptable. Our taste tests indicate that for acceptable eating, quality acorn squash should have °Brix of 10 or higher, flesh %DW above 16, and a smooth, nonfibrous texture. Most commercial cultivars fail to meet the above minimum criteria for quality. Proper harvest time is a major determinant of squash eating quality. To obtain adequate °Brix levels, squash should not be harvested until at least 50 days after pollination (DAP). If squash are harvested between 25 to 40 DAP and then stored for two or more weeks, °Brix levels may increase to acceptable levels, but some mesocarp reserves will be remobilized to developing seeds, reducing mesocarp %DW and lowering eating quality. A major goal of the squash breeding efforts at the University of New Hampshire has been to increase mesocarp %DW for obtaining more consistent eating quality. We have evaluated several experimental PMT hybrids during the past 5 years, and in some of these, flesh DW has averaged 17% or higher, and eating quality has been rated consistently very good. The adoption of better quality acorn cultivars together with implementing proper harvest times and storage conditions could appreciably increase per capita consumption.
Abstract from the paper’s OpenAlex record, shown for indexing and research. Copyright remains with the authors or the publisher. Read at the source ↗
The text the model read, with the source record’s inline markup (italics, sub- and superscripts) rendered and its character entities decoded; quote offsets refer to the raw text.
Claims 12
Claim · model-written summary
Supermarket acorn squash eating quality was highly variable and often unacceptable.
- Taxon
- Acorn squash
Cucurbita melopepo subsp. melopepot0 - Outcome
- eating qualitye0
- Direction
- highly variablee0
- Setting
- local supermarketse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“sampling acorn squash from local supermarkets at different times during the year show that eating quality is highly variable, and most often, not acceptable”
t0“Acorn Squash”
Claim · model-written summary
Acceptable eating quality required at least 10 °Brix.
- Taxon
- acorn squashCucurbita melopepo subsp. melopepoe0
- Outcome
- °Brixe0
- Direction
- highere0
- Value
- 10 or highere0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“quality acorn squash should have °Brix of 10 or higher”
Claim · model-written summary
Acceptable eating quality required flesh dry weight above 16%.
- Taxon
- Acorn squashCucurbita melopepo subsp. melopepot0
- Outcome
- flesh %DWe0
- Direction
- abovee0
- Value
- 16e0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“flesh %DW above 16”
t0“Acorn Squash”
Claim · model-written summary
Acceptable eating quality required a smooth, nonfibrous texture.
- Taxon
- Acorn squashCucurbita melopepo subsp. melopepot0
- Outcome
- smooth, nonfibrous texturee0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“a smooth, nonfibrous texture”
t0“Acorn Squash”
Claim · model-written summary
Most commercial cultivars did not meet the stated minimum quality criteria.
- Taxon
- Acorn squashCucurbita melopepo subsp. melopepot0
- Material
- commercial cultivarse0
- Outcome
- fail to meet the above minimum criteria for qualitye0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Most commercial cultivars fail to meet the above minimum criteria for quality”
t0“Acorn Squash”
Claim · model-written summary
Harvest time was a major determinant of squash eating quality.
Not reportedDirection
Verbatim
e0“Proper harvest time is a major determinant of squash eating quality”
Claim · model-written summary
Squash should be harvested at least 50 days after pollination to attain adequate °Brix.
Verbatim
e0“squash should not be harvested until at least 50 days after pollination (DAP)”
Claim · model-written summary
Storage after harvest at 25 to 40 days after pollination may raise °Brix to acceptable levels.
- Taxon
- squashe0
- Treatment
- stored for two or more weekse0
- Outcome
- °Brix levelse0
- Direction
- increasee0
- Qualifier
- harvested between 25 to 40 DAPe0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
e0“If squash are harvested between 25 to 40 DAP and then stored for two or more weeks, °Brix levels may increase to acceptable levels”
Claim · model-written summary
That early harvest and storage remobilizes mesocarp reserves to developing seeds.
- Taxon
- Acorn squashCucurbita melopepo subsp. melopepot0
- Organ / stage
- mesocarpe0
- Outcome
- mesocarp reserves will be remobilized to developing seedse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“some mesocarp reserves will be remobilized to developing seeds”
t0“Acorn Squash”
Claim · model-written summary
Early harvest and storage reduces mesocarp dry weight and eating quality.
- Taxon
- Acorn squashCucurbita melopepo subsp. melopepot0
- Treatment
- stored for two or more weekse0
- Outcome
- mesocarp %DWe0
- Direction
- reducinge0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“If squash are harvested between 25 to 40 DAP and then stored for two or more weeks, °Brix levels may increase to acceptable levels, but some mesocarp reserves will be remobilized to developing seeds, reducing mesocarp %DW and lowering eating quality”
t0“Acorn Squash”
Claim · model-written summary
Some experimental powdery mildew tolerant hybrids averaged flesh dry weight of at least 17%.
- Taxon
- Acorn squashCucurbita melopepo subsp. melopepot0
- Material
- experimental PMT hybridse0
- Outcome
- flesh DWe0
- Direction
- highere0
- Value
- 17% or highere0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“We have evaluated several experimental PMT hybrids during the past 5 years, and in some of these, flesh DW has averaged 17% or higher”
t0“Acorn Squash”
Claim · model-written summary
Some experimental hybrids had consistently very good eating quality.
- Taxon
- Acorn squashCucurbita melopepo subsp. melopepot0
- Outcome
- eating qualitye0
- Direction
- consistently very goode0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“eating quality has been rated consistently very good”
t0“Acorn Squash”
The same questions in other papers
storage · quality: sugar starch · Cucurbita (pumpkins)Positive and negative results
1 paper in the same direction as this paper · 1 in the opposite direction
- no effect
- positive
Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.