• The kabocha squash, is an Oriental squash encased in a dull, deep green, thick, mottled rind with pale, uneven stripes and random markings. Round with a flattened top, it ranges from one to eight pounds but generally weighs an average of two to three pounds.
• Providing vitamin A and vitamin C, some of the B vitamins, all squashes are a good source of fiber. Approximately 100 calories are in one cup of cooked squash. Kabocha squash is a sweet-fleshed, hard-skinned variety. Peel or bake with the skin on. Dice and roast squash chunks with oil and spices or combine with cream and cheese, baked into a gratin. Add roasted squash to soup, stew or risotto. Puree and mix into softened butter.
• Sow indoors in pots April to June or sow direct from mid May to early June.
• Sowing indoors: Fill a 7.5cm (3in) pot with compost and firm gently. Sow a seed on its side, not flat. (reduces the risk of damping off) 12mm (½in) deep and cover. (You may choose to sow two seeds per pot, and remove the weaker seedling later; the strongest plants are kept.)
• Sow four weeks before the last frost is expected is about right. Sow two or three seeds 2.5cm (1 inch) deep on their edges under cloches or glass jars with 38 to 60cm (15 to 24in) between plants. Remove the weaker seedlings later.

The kabocha squash, is an Oriental squash encased in a dull, deep green, thick, mottled rind with pale, uneven stripes and random markings. Round with a flattened top, it ranges from one to eight pounds but generally weighs an average of two to three pounds.