Why zucchini flowers with no fruit

Q: My zucchini plant has made lots of flowers but no zucchini. What am I doing wrong? This happens to everyone, and you were just an observant enough gardener to notice.

Many vining garden plants put out male flowers first. Squash, melon, and cucumbers all do this. You can tell the flowers are male because they have a stem. Female flowers are stemless, and you may see a tiny fruit at their base. If that sounds too tedious, you can also just remove the male flower and gently roll its pollen onto the stigma of the female flower. Also keep in mind that squashes can only be fertilized by their same species. A zucchini cannot be pollinated by a winter squash and vice versa.

Got questions? Call toll free at , Monday to Friday, 9 a. A Question Of The Week. Friday, June 29, Author s. Hello, I planted two zucchini plants two months ago in large containers in potting soil for flowers and vegetables. The plants have barely grown! They have lots of sun and I keep the soil moist, never had a problem growing zucchini before, any ideas? Zucchini are notoriously tough to grow in containers. Make sure each plant has its own pot and the container holds at least 5 gallons of high-quality potting soil.

Fertilize with a liquid organic fertilizer every two weeks. Sounds like they might have been grown from seed that accidentally cross pollinated. This is why purchasing seed from reputable seed companies is key. Saving your own seeds is tough when it comes to members of the squash family because they cross-pollinate so readily.

One of my zucchini plants is producing large eggplant shaped zucchini. They start out round and just get bigger, growing into giant oval shape. What could be going on? If you saved your own seeds, its likely your new plants are a natural hybrid. The plant and the squash are out of control. Squash grow very quickly so you have to pick them almost every day. My squash are still pretty young and I just noticed recently that there are a ton of little bugs flying and sitting on my squash when I move them.

The squash is also starting to wilt. What is going on? Their presence often means the potting soil is too wet. Overwatering would also cause the plant to wilt. I find your site to be very helpful, I planted one zucchini sapling yellow And it loves to push out a lot of zucchinis and leaves.

Some of the zucchinis come out a deeper shade of yellow, and seem more hard than the lighter yellow which you might more commonly see you in the store, and seem to be more soft. I have assessed For calcium and water deficiencies but I add ground up eggshells and water early on in the season and this has seemed to help with production. What could be the cause of a darker yellow zucchini? This could be a varietal issue, or it could be due to the age of the fruits. Sometimes, as they mature, the fruits get darker and thicker skinned.

This is especially true of yellow crook-neck squash. Could be a chipmunk, squirrel, or groundhog. Even a rat would do that. I would surround the plants with a cage or fencing of some sort. I am glad I found this article.

My zuzzchini leaves have small yellow or white dots. Small like pin pricks. NOt all over. Is some discoloration normal? They do not wipe away. Some zucchini varieties do naturally have white or creamy white markings and patterns on the leaves. Loved this article! I am a first year gardener and made the misstep of planting all 3 of the seedlings from the tiny pot into the same space. My questions: should I dig up the plants and try to separate the roots and transplant or cut back one or two of the three plants that are on top of each other?

Or better yet, leave them alone! I know better now for my next planting. I would use a scissors to trim off one or two of the plants at their base, leaving only one.

Unless you just planted them a few days ago — in which case I would say to dig them up and try to separate them. Thank you for this article! I am new to growing veggies and I have crispy edges and powdery mildew on my zucchini plant leaves.

They are about a month old from seed and seem to be struggling to grow. I live in Montreal and we have a cool climate so they have been inside with a grow light and I have been slowly hardening them off on nicer days. Is there anyway to save my plants? Should I start over? Thank you so much! Hi Liz — You sowed your seeds a little too early. It sounds like they are stressed. I would suggest sowing new plants by directly seeding them out into the garden soil after the danger of frost has passed.

Zucchini almost always do better when planted by seed outdoors, rather than from seeds started indoors under grow lights. They resent being transplanted.

Hi, My newly planted zucchini plants are turning brown around the edges of the leaves. They were planted a few weeks ago as small plants. Why are the edges brown? Hi Elaine — Sounds like the plants could have a little transplant stress, which they will grow out of as they settle into their new home.

This also happens sometimes when the plants were not properly hardened off prior to planting them. My two container zucchini plants are producing zuchini although two have rotted on the plant. But almost overnight the leaves are turning yellow and dying. I see no bugs or pests. For zucchini to perform well in containers, they need a lot of soil. Ideally, the pot should hold at least 5 gallons of soil per plant. If the containers are smaller than that, I suggest repotting them into larger containers so they have plenty of room to grow.

Be sure to fertilize every week with an organic liquid fertilizer as they are heavy feeders. Help, my daughter planted a whole pack of zucchini in one pot, they are starting what seems to blossom everywhere but the zucchini is growing from the roots and becoming entangled due to too many being planted, can I separate?

I suggest choosing the sturdiest 1 or 2 plants in the pot, and cutting the rest of the plants off at their base, flush with the soil level. This allows just the 1 or 2 plants to thrive without disturbing their roots. My zucchini is dwarfed. What can I do. Sounds like it may be poor pollination, especially if the zucchini is stunted on the end. I made the mistake of container planting delicata squash plant starts into garden soil instead of potting soil.

They might do okay, depending on how dense your soil is. Not much you can do about it now unless you transplant them into a larger pot of potting soil.

I have planted zucchini for the last couple of years and this is the first time I am seeing clusters of black spots under the leaves and several ants. Are these aphids and eggs? If so what is the best organic treatment if there is one? Sounds like it could be aphids. I would look closely at them with a hand lens or magnifying glass or take a photo with your cell phone and zoom in to confirm the identification.

If you let them go for a week or two, ladybugs and other predatory insects will likely show up and eat them. If they begin to reproduce so fast that you have more than 30 or 40 per leaf, squirt them off with a sharp stream of water from the hose. It dislodges them and easily takes care of the problem.

The tip of my zucchini leaf is yellow and mushy looking. Are there organic cures for any of the problems? I heard something about baking soda, another something about epsom salt. Sounds like a possible fungal issue. I recommend removing the infected leaf and tossing it in the garbage. Keep a close eye on the plant and if it starts to affect the other leaves, use an organic fungicide.

Avoid homemade pesticides and fungicides as they often cause more harm than good. Commercial products are always best since they are tested and properly labeled.

I tried two times now, second time was better than the first one, but not very good. The daily maintenance for borers is too time consuming. Zucchini itself is a relatively low maintenance but delicate plant, but the borers make it extremely hard.

I am now wondering whether I would use a net for the entire lifetime for the zucchini. This means first place a net with all sides connected to ground, and start from the seeds. Is this going to be safe or is there some fungal infection that can happen inside the nets.

Please comment. Netting will definitely keep the adult borers away, but it will also keep pollinators away. I have a raised aware foot garden bed w zucchini. This is my first time planting. I planted 3 plants and although they r growing tall the bottom 2 leaves are starting to turn yellow slightly and the flowers bud, flower and then die some flowers dienbefore opening up too.

Should I cut off the bottom yellow leaves and should I pick off the dead flowers? What causes the flowers to die? Is that from no pollination? I suggest fertilizing the plants with an organic granular fertilizer every few weeks. Zucchini flowers only last for one day. Hand pollinate in the morning to ensure pollen makes it onto the female blooms.

I have several zucchini plants in my garden. Thanks for any insight. Love these tips, thank you! Some of our plants stamps are turning black close to the soil. Any thought? Be sure not to have the mulch up against the stems of the plants or you could encourage stem rot. That could be part of the problem. I am having issues with my cucurbits always do.

More than I have ever seen before. Is this an issue that I need to address? Ants are great pollinators, so no need to worry about them. Give them a little thank you and let them do their stuff. Hi, my zucchini plants are overtaking my raised bed. Yes, you can cut off some of the leaves at their base. It sounds like poor pollination or stress could be the culprit. This is my first year growing zucchini.

Is that still blossom rot? Cut one of the fruits open and see if you find a grub-like caterpillar inside. Sometimes tomato fruit worms attack zucchini plants, too.