Zucchini

Growing zucchini vertically

Troubleshooting

GROWING MISSHAPEN ZUCCHINI?

This occurs when the plant has not been properly pollinated. Inside the female flower are multiple seeds which need to be pollinated. If they aren't all pollinated then the fruit will grow misshapen or if very poorly pollinated will start growing and then die.

This is caused by too few bees who have not pollinated the flowers for you. This has been common this year as increased rain has made bees less active.

You can manually pollinate your female flowers. Use a paint brush and brush the male flower and then brush the female flower. Male flowers are much smaller than females and usually flower first to attract pollinators.

Going forward try planting marigolds, calendulas or Borage to attract bees.

Here is a video on how to hand pollinate....

White mould on leaves?

A white mould growing on cucurbits (zucchini, cucumbers, melons and pumpkins) and grapevines is called powdery mildew. If ignored it can cause your plant to die prematurely.

It occurs in autumn or cooler periods when water does not fully dry on the leaves. This is a good reason to water your garden at dawn instead of dusk.

When you see any leaves with this mildew on it remove them and throw in a bin (or you can place them in an out of the way corner of your garden to feed the yellow and black ladybirds who feed exclusively on it).

Then combine one cup of milk with 9 cups of water and pour over the plant. The calcium has been shown to combat powdery mildew.

Sunburn

Did you know zucchini can get sunburnt? Yep! Their large leaves have the dual purpose of catching and directly water down to their roots but also shading the fruit.

Turning brown and dying?

This is a disease called blossom rot. It begins at the end of the zucchini and quickly spreads causing the fruit to rot. It is caused by a lack of calcium. Usually calcium does not need to be added to the soil, instead consistent watering seems to prevent the issue.

However, going forward sprinkle half a cup of milk powder around the base of the plant to give it a boost of calcium and be sure to water regularly gand consistently going forward.