squash and melons

[Doll is Mine]

Do most people plant squash and melons separate from their other garden veggies of tomatoes, peppers, etc. because of the space they consume? I have a TON of plans for melons and squash and am a bit of a gardening novice, as well. Also - I ate a nice melon from the farmer's market the other day. It was the size of a softball with a yellow/green/brown mottled outer, and white, sweeter than honeydew or canalope inner. It was called an "Italian gata" melon by the man who sold it to us. I'd never heard of it before, but I saved the seeds to plant. Anyone heard of this before? Is it one of those hybrids I need to be careful of? Should I even waste my time?

All info appreciated.

[junkyardcat]

I usually plant my Summer squash pretty close to my maters...they don't seem to take up that much space to me. I don't know about other squash varieties. My main problem with squash is that they start off real well, and I get a good crop, but then some kind of mildew forms on them and they shrivel:(

Angie in the Boonies of East Texas

[JS]

Hi- Last year was my first gardening year. My own garden. I planted a little bit of everything. Just a warning, the squash and pumpkin vines took over most of the garden. The vines went out of the garden and even grew up the fence. The squash was delicious and the pumpkins were awesome. However, the ended up growing over other veggies and killing them. My advise is to give them plenty of room because they really take up a lot of room. JS