How to grow squash and other things...
Today is a little overcast...but I'm really glad about that because the blazing hot sun is really hard on our little Indiana plants. I'm not sure if I've said this before on here, but I really think most plants are sun to part shade...not Full sun..My fairy garden is in part shade and its doing fabulous, all my plants in part shade do fabulous, and there all full sun plants?? Sooo..My cantaloupe is doing very well...so excited!! I harvested my first mess of beans yesterday..wohoo! And 5 cucumbers!!!It's weird I'm not getting any yellow squash on my plant..not sure why?? Lots of flowers but no fruit???Hmmm...
Squash bears both male and female flowers. The female flowers are easy to identify by looking for a tiny squash below the blossoms. Male flowers, which often begin to show up a week or two before the female flowers, sit directly on the stem. To help female flowers develop into squash, bees and other small insects pay numerous visits, leaving behind trails of pollen brought from male blossoms. Male flowers often drop to the ground at the end of their life; don’t be alarmed, as this is normal.
If you’ve heard that squash blossoms are edible (they are!) and you want to try them, go ahead and pick the first blossoms that appear. Remove the inner parts, and use the petals to add color to appetizers and salads. Harvesting the first flowers won’t hurt the plants’ production, because the early flowers are males, which bear pollen but not fruit.
You may harvest yellow squash, zucchini, and other types of summer squash as baby squash, or you can cut them larger, up to 6 to 8 inches long. Use a sharp knife to gather your bounty at least every other day while the plants are producing. Should you miss a picking or two, remove the overripe squash as soon as possible to reduce demands on the plants for moisture and nutrients. If you find yourself with a bumper crop, squash pickles are easy to make, or you can grill marinated slices before storing them in your freezer. Summer squash also work well when dried.
Sometimes squash, melons, or cucumbers will not bear any fruit at all, or what fruit they do have will rot when very small. Both problems are a question of pollination. If the female flowers are not present, you won't get anything. If females are present but not pollinated properly, the small fruit at the base will yellow and fall off a few days after the flower opens. You're not doing anything wrong, but you may be able to help.
Both male and female flowers (see below) are necessary in order to bear fruit. If only one type is present, or if they're not open at the same time, pollination won't happen. Several plants will begin the season with only one sex present, and may wait as long as a couple of weeks before producing the other; this is normal. It may be all-male or all-female, but eventually it will produce the other type and start putting out fruit. Pollinators, usually bees, will transfer pollen from the male to the female flowers. It takes up to 40 visits to a female flower to pollinate it sufficiently enough to bear fruit, and the blossom is only open for a day or less in most cases. Having a good bee population is essential. If there are not enough bees, it is possible to hand-pollinate the blossoms. Additional causes of aborted fruit are excessively hot daytime temperatures, plant stress from improper watering, lack of nutrients, too much nitrogen, or the plant simply being too young to support fruit. In these cases, the plant may drop unopened female blossoms; correcting any stress, or waiting for the plant to mature, will stop the bud drop. �
Soil, Planting, and Care
Squash need plenty of sun and good drainage, and they love wrapping their roots around bits of decomposing leaves or other compost. Prepare the ground for squash by mixing in a 3-inch layer of compost along with a timed-release or organic fertilizer at the rate recommended on the label. Squash are usually big plants, so space plants at least 3 to 6 feet apart (follow directions on the stick tag). A light mulch is sufficient because squash leaves are so broad and dense that mature plants minimize weeds and provide cooling shade. When setting out squash seedlings in sunny weather, you may cover them with an upside-down flowerpot or other shade cover for a couple of days after transplanting to help prevent wilting.Squash bears both male and female flowers. The female flowers are easy to identify by looking for a tiny squash below the blossoms. Male flowers, which often begin to show up a week or two before the female flowers, sit directly on the stem. To help female flowers develop into squash, bees and other small insects pay numerous visits, leaving behind trails of pollen brought from male blossoms. Male flowers often drop to the ground at the end of their life; don’t be alarmed, as this is normal.
Troubleshooting
Squash bugs, squash vine borers, and cucumber beetles often injure squash, with damage most severe late in the season, when plants are failing anyway. In areas where pest pressure starts early in the season, grow plants beneath floating row covers, or use covers made of net placed over hoops. Remove the covers to admit pollinating insects when the plants start to bloom.
Harvest and Storage
You may harvest yellow squash, zucchini, and other types of summer squash as baby squash, or you can cut them larger, up to 6 to 8 inches long. Use a sharp knife to gather your bounty at least every other day while the plants are producing. Should you miss a picking or two, remove the overripe squash as soon as possible to reduce demands on the plants for moisture and nutrients. If you find yourself with a bumper crop, squash pickles are easy to make, or you can grill marinated slices before storing them in your freezer. Summer squash also work well when dried.
Sometimes squash, melons, or cucumbers will not bear any fruit at all, or what fruit they do have will rot when very small. Both problems are a question of pollination. If the female flowers are not present, you won't get anything. If females are present but not pollinated properly, the small fruit at the base will yellow and fall off a few days after the flower opens. You're not doing anything wrong, but you may be able to help.
Both male and female flowers (see below) are necessary in order to bear fruit. If only one type is present, or if they're not open at the same time, pollination won't happen. Several plants will begin the season with only one sex present, and may wait as long as a couple of weeks before producing the other; this is normal. It may be all-male or all-female, but eventually it will produce the other type and start putting out fruit. Pollinators, usually bees, will transfer pollen from the male to the female flowers. It takes up to 40 visits to a female flower to pollinate it sufficiently enough to bear fruit, and the blossom is only open for a day or less in most cases. Having a good bee population is essential. If there are not enough bees, it is possible to hand-pollinate the blossoms. Additional causes of aborted fruit are excessively hot daytime temperatures, plant stress from improper watering, lack of nutrients, too much nitrogen, or the plant simply being too young to support fruit. In these cases, the plant may drop unopened female blossoms; correcting any stress, or waiting for the plant to mature, will stop the bud drop. �
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