Varieties

• Harvest or purchase patty pan squash that are less than 3 to 4 inches in diameter.Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images
  
  Yellow squash come in several varieties:
  
  • Yellow crookneck --- Includes early yellow summer crookneck and sundance
  
  • Yellow straightneck --- Includes early prolific straightneck and goldbar
  
  • Scallop or patty pan --- Includes scallopini and sunburst
  
  • Other --- Such as sundrop, prized for its unique oval shape
  
  

Purchasing Yellow Squash

• At the supermarket or farmer's market, look for yellow squash that seem heavy for their size. This indicates that they are fresh and have retained their high water content. Fresh squash also have shiny rinds with few blemishes. Test the rinds for softness. Hard rinds indicate older squash that have hard seeds and a stringy interior. Store your squash unwashed in a bag in the refrigerator. You can store them this way for about seven days.
  
  

Growing Yellow Squash

• Harvest summer squash before the seeds mature and the flesh becomes firm.Tom Brakefield/Stockbyte/Getty Images
  
  Plant yellow squash from early spring to midsummer. Sow several seeds 24 to 36 inches apart and cover with one inch of soil in small hills. When the plants are 2 to 3 inches tall, thin them so that you only have one vigorous plant per hill. Most any well-drained soil will produce high yields of squash. Yellow squash develop rapidly after pollination, so be sure to pick them before they become overly mature. Harvest yellow squash when they are tender and small --- less than 2 inches in diameter for straight and crookneck varieties. Patty pan squash can grow to 3 or 4 inches in diameter before they are ready for harvest.
  
  

Preparing Yellow Squash

• Yellow squash can be steamed, roasted, sauteed, fried or eaten raw. They also take center stage in many recipes --- such as stir fries, ratatouille, and casseroles. However you prepare yellow squash, be sure to wash them thoroughly. Supermarket squash may be waxed, so scrub them with a vegetable brush. When you cook yellow squash, leave the skin and seeds intact. Slice the vegetable whole, removing only the woody stem.