For nearly 20 years I have tried, unsuccessfully, to grow my own. Some years, the plants were sickly and failed to set fruit, while other years they thrived until they were suddenly stricken with some disease or infestation. I stopped planting multiples and confined myself to one plant.
One year, the plant flourished and set fruit, several miniature green squashes. Success was within my grasp! And then I went away for a week and when I came back, the plant was dead, the little squashes shriveled and gnawed on. When I pulled the plant out of the ground, it came away easily. Gophers had eaten the roots, probably even as I was getting into my car to hit the road for vacation. I was utterly discouraged and gave up on growing my own butternut squash.
This year, I decided to try again. I expected it would follow the same path of failure, but much to my surprise, this beauty survived to maturity. I checked on it every day, cautiously allowing myself to hope.
This weekend I harvested the lone squash. It is perfectly healthy, feeling heavy for its size, smooth and symmetrical. These squash last a long time, so I am leaning toward cooking it for Thanksgiving dinner, perhaps roasting it with a spiced maple syrup glaze. I will save the seeds and roast some of them, but will save a few for next season. My hope has been renewed, maybe next year I'll double my harvest and get two squash!
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