Courgettes - what to expect

Primrose

Actually once courgettes get going I find the stems are very prickly and the snails and slugs avoid them like the plague. It's just in the very early days when they are planted out and I avoid slug (and early frost) damage by putting one of those large 5 litre mineral water bottles over it with the bottom cut off. As well as protection from the weather this prevents slugs and snails getting anywhere near them until they're old enough to look after themselves.

xxvickixx

Quick update, I had a female flower open up today and I had a male already so I pulled the male thingy off and wiggled it in the female flower. I am hoping for good things now. How long do I need to wait for my babies?

Primrose

vicki - normally a few days' wait. But as it's getting towards the end of the growing season for courgettes now. don't let them get too chilly at night if you're in northern parts. It might help to cover them over with a little fleece.

xxvickixx

Thanks Primrose, I'm in Chelmsford, officially "the hottest place in the country" so should be OK for a while!

foxgloves

Agree something has gone a bit wrong with pollination here, as it's getting towards the end of the season for courgettes. I always have this problem with the first few early in the season then they seem to get their act together. I've got one in a plastic old laundry basket lined with an old compost sack and one that I planted straight into the top of my compost bin. The laundry basket one has produced quite a few courgettes, but as a previous post said, they are greedy feeders so the one on the top of the compost bin just goes mad cos it can get its roots down into all that great mushy stuff and I'm picking a new courgette from it at least every other day at the moment. What usually happens is that the colder nights slows down production & I think it's finished then discover 2 weeks later we've got a big marrow!