Climbing courgette - which variety?

budgetboo

My general growng ethos:- SKINT + v growing small space + heirloom/seedsaving whenever possible.

We want courgettes but need to limit the space available to them so one plant doesn't take up half the veg patch so thought we'd try a variety that can be trained up the back fence. Never tried a trailing variety before and online reviews for all the varieties of courgettes I've found are mixed cos of the odd weather last year.

So I thought I'd ask the voices of common sense on here : )

I can't decide which to choose, an F1 hybrid or one of 2 heirloom types I've found.

1/The F1 option:-
Via thompson and morgan it's not cheap either £2.99 for just four seeds!
http://www.thompson-morgan.com/vegetables/vegetable-seeds/pumpkin-squash-and-courgette-seeds/courgette-black-forest-f1-hybrid/783TM

2/ Sicillian white:-
How well are these likley to cope with the UK weather?
http://www.moreveg.co.uk/shop/article_COUSL/Courgette-Sicilian-Long-White.html?shop_param=cid%3D20%26aid%3DCOUSL%26
75p for 4 seeds

3/ Another Italian variety - weather concerns once more & odd shape lol!
http://www.moreveg.co.uk/shop/article_COUTB/Courgette-Tromborcino-Albenga.html?shop_param=cid%3D20%26aid%3DCOUTB%26
90p for 6 seeds.

Has anyone here grown or have a reasoned opinion as to which might be the best choice for this years experiment?

wallbash

I went with option 1)

Is £2.99 expensive ?? if they all germinate ( all 4) will 'sell' one/two seedlings and get my money back .

Lets compare notes in the summer

mi_jardin

I have black beauty, but I've never actually managed to get it to climb!:o

budgetboo

Ok in the interests of science I'm gonna go for one of the Italian ones for the following reasons:-

1/ heirloom seeds are money saving as you can use the seeds from this years plants next year. This is fantastic once you've been at it a few years as your annual seed spend becomes minimal + it preserves varieties the supermarkets, EU & monsanto would see off otherwise.

2/ The initial cost is cheaper & I'm pretty skint. take care of the pennies and all that jazz.

3/ It would be nice to compare how we got on at the end of the season for next year. Courgettes are a versatile "meal bulker" but the space issue is a problem for many so it'd be nice to have a definitive mse "answer" to share with others. You guys up for a comparison post in September?

wallbash

Do we just count the courgettes or is it weight ?

Ps a reminder about june/july time would be nice.

GreenTricky

These are currently on sale

w w w . thompson-morgan.com/vegetables/vegetable-seeds/salad-seeds/cucumber-picolino-f1-hybrid-organic/


(sorry i cant post active links yet)

ladylouise62

I wouldn't worry too much about the cold resistance - squashes in general are not lovers of cold so all would be affected to some degree... take last year - there was a thread about how badly many had done! But generally, they produce reasonably unless it's a really terrible year. I'm sure that last year was an exception.. at least, I blinkin' well hope so!!!