Zucchini fruit not growing
My zucchini is producing male and female flowers. I have self pollinated atleast 3 of the fruit and they are still withering away and not growing. What could cause the fruit to wither after it's been pollinated?? Many thanks to anyone who can offer a suggestion.
Are you sure you pollinated them properly. I usually don't have to pollinate any of my plants since I have bees. I did do it a couple of times. Make sure you are pollinating the female flowers with a male flower. It can be from the same plant. You could also use a couple of male flowers. I usually do this the first thing in the morning, especially if I want to eat the flowers. It is easier to see the bugs and take out the stamen that way. 
The other reasons that fruit will abort
1. There are too many fruit. The plant will abort some fruit if there are more than the plant is able to support
2. The young fruit get stung by fruit flies. Here, this is the most common reason why immature fruit turn yellow and rot.
The other reasons that fruit will abort
1. There are too many fruit. The plant will abort some fruit if there are more than the plant is able to support
2. The young fruit get stung by fruit flies. Here, this is the most common reason why immature fruit turn yellow and rot.
-
jal_ut
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 7447
- Joined: Sun Jan 18, 2009 10:20 pm
- Location: Northern Utah Zone 5
I see that when the squash first start to bloom. I suspect it has to do with pollination. All I can suggest is try again. I have never hand pollinated so can't offer any tips there.
Curious, do you see any honey bees in your garden or on dandelions? They will pollinate if present, but sometimes it takes a while for them to get right after the squash bloom. Even though I have bees, some of the early squash female flowers do not set.
Curious, do you see any honey bees in your garden or on dandelions? They will pollinate if present, but sometimes it takes a while for them to get right after the squash bloom. Even though I have bees, some of the early squash female flowers do not set.
Thank you everyone! I have had success with pollinating in the past so I'm pretty confident I am doing it correctly. I haven't seen any bees for quite some time so I don't think the fruit will get pollinated without my help. I also haven't seen any fruit flies but that could be something to look further into. The fruit are growning to about 4" and then withering. The plant is fairly young so hopefully with a little more growth I will have success. Thanks again!