Identification Please...

katholicos

Hey folks, can you help me with identification please?

I am seeing an increasing number of seedlings growing in and amongst my various raised beds and pots. I am mystified as the only thing i can think is that the birds have been picking up seed from one area of the garden and dropping it elsewhere in the garden {unless they are weeds, of course!}, but more experienced gardeners will no doubt be able to let me know what's what and whether i should pull them/move them/leave them (?). (I think they look a little bit like courgette seedlings to me, but i know next to nowt about gardening).

There are a couple of these 'seedlings' growing in my raised bed, along with the carrot and parsnip seedlings...



There is one growing alongside my (rather crappy -at this point-poundland) blueberry...



And there are two of them that have shown up in my pot of my germinating rhubarb seeds...



Any help would be appreciated, thank you.

PharmaAl

Looks like squash/pumpkin/cucumber/melon seedlings to me. Have you put 'home grown compost' on the area? If so just pull them out and re-compost them.

xxvickixx

Could it be sunflower seeds that birds have dropped?

diluvsdiscounts

xxvickixx wrote: »

Could it be sunflower seeds that birds have dropped?

I agree, all around my bird feeders I get these and have spent the last few years battling to keep on top of them. Last year I gave up and let them grow and the birds loved them.

£$&*"($£&(

It's impossible to say because all you have are the cotyledon leaves - the first leaves put up by the seed. Lot's of plants do this and they all look very similar with two flat roundish leaves. You'll need to wait for normal leaves to appear.

Lotus-eater

I thought that, but the first true leaves on the first plant look like a sunflower, not a cucurbit.

rosie383

I think they are sunflowers too. I have identical ones springing up around where I had my sunflowers last year. I'm just going to leave some to grow to save planting any more this year.

katholicos

Thanks so much to everyone who responded. I was thinking about buying sunflowers seeds to grow sunflowers (well they ain't going grow into anything else are they?) so will be wel pleased if they do turn out to be sunflowers! Must be growing from the bird seed that the birds dropped around the garden. I only used bagged compost in those beds and containers and haven't grown any pumpkin or squash or anything else mentioned...well i have some squash i'm trying to germinate in the plastic growhouse but it is all covered so the birds haven't got to it.

Now then, i think i shall move these seedlings and put them elsewhere in the garden. If they are sunflowers and if they do grow successfully, will i be able to eat the seeds from them eventually, with it being from bird seed? Stupid question but its one i don't know the answer to!

katholicos

Just to say....i dug them all up and planted them in pots and will keep an eye on them to see what they turn out to be...and which of you is right. LOL!