Kitchen Garden Forum

A couple of month ago KG mag gave a pack of courgette seeds with the magazine. I tried it and got a rather amazing plant growing almost by the minute... [I discovered this is normal] It is now planted out in a pot. Flowers are coming up nicely and I can detect some micro courgettes already. Am busy compiling courgette recipes.
But... The big leaves are showing very odd white marks - photo below. Should I be worried?

Any advice welcome ...

This is normal for courgette plants, so no need to worry. And if you are brave enough, it pays to nip of the first couple of courgettes as they are just developing, as this always makes for a better producing plant.

Blimey OscarSidcup! You must have some brilliant micro climate where you are to get your courgette to this size already! Mine are still in small pots in the back room as I wouldn't risk planting them out yet with the fluctuating temperatures & I'm about as South as it gets on the mainland.

Read into that jealous!

Westi

Thank you guys, I can now go to sleep without worries - for now.
With regards to the size of the plant, I should disclose that I put 10 seeds in a propagator and only 3 came up to something. Two are very small and growing at bonsai pace, while this one decided to try to become a baobab... There was no more space in my conservatory so I had no choice but to put him out. Well I will give him a little drop of seaweed extract as a treat over the weekend...
I will think about nipping out the micro courgette too and see if I can muster the courage to do it. I may need a couple of fortifying drinks first. I shall report!

Again thank you for taking the time to assuage my worry.

Wow! My seedings are having small plant envy!

This is the first year ever that I've struggled to get courgette seeds to germinate. Don't know what I'm doing wrong as I've tried several packs and different compost. Panicking slightly...... What will my husband cook all summer without our usual 20 courgettes a day I only have four decent looking plants......

Last year the seedings got a bit upset when I put them outside to harden off.... I say upset.... They died.... So starting ones off late is nothing new.... Just frustrating.

Only half of the free seeds I sowed have germinated, but another variety I like have all germinated, so I'm wondering if the free ones might have been a bit old.

I've had poor germination as well. My yellow courgettes came up fine but I have just sown my 4th green courgette seed. (New Seed).The same with my patty pan - yellow up but not the green.

Strange!
Westi

I've had a disaster with germination of courgettes this year. I sowed Wilko Back Beauty new seed (previously have given me good results) and some Suttons out of date old seed yellow courgettes, 30% of the old seeds germinated and are now good plants whist none of the Wilko's germinated. I duly took the packet back and they gave me another to try and I'm still waiting for them to germinate.

Barney

Talking to a few guys at the lotty yesterday - same problem. Really poor germination of courgettes and squash! It can't be the seed as everyone's using different types and providers. Something strange is going on.....

I'm going to put a few seeds straight in the ground surrounded by straw to see if they will come up while I'm away. You never know.

Question time..... Cucumbers (outdoor varieties as no greenhouse) - the books and instructions appear to say to start these off later than earlier. Is leaving starting germination until mid June too late or will they catch up? Not sure where I go wrong as they've never been my most successful crop.

Thanks

Hedge your bets Pawty, sown in end of June will allow them to romp away if weather is kind, but could try to sow direct before you go. I did this year before last (or maybe the one before that), as slimey things bit the stems through on my home sown ones. They germinated & did fine even though I occasionally forgot I'd sown them & they didn't get much of a drink. Have you got someone to water your plot while you're away?

Westi

Oscar, i,ve been growing courgettes for years and invariably find that the first fruit which I,m looking forward to picking always seems to rot and die on me. They suffer from the curse of King Herrod's first born,

As for cucumbers Pawty, my two are already planted out in a border under a cloche as I also don't have a greenhouse. I recommend trying the mini cucumber varieties for outdoors . They grow quickly and are very prolific once they get going so you could probably afford to start them off a little later than normal. If you sow them outdoors I'd make a hole the size of decent flowerpot, fill it with compost and sow the seeds in that to give them the best start at being in a moisture retentive medium if it's dry while you're away. You could even mix a few water retaining crystals in with the compost to help the seeds along, but don't forget to sprinkle some slug pellets around the spot as well.

I planted out two small pots of parsley yesterday and surrounded them with slug pellets. When I checked them this morning the area around them was a sea of slug slime but the plants were intact. If I hadn,t used the pellets there wouldn't been a single leaf of it left.

Thanks westi and primrose.

I've put a few more in pots to see if I can get them started. Bit of a controlled experiment (that's the scientist in me) - same new seed, different compost types, one pot in the cold frame, one in the kitchen window, one in the bedroom window (different sun time lengths).

My allotment neighbour will water the tenders if looking a bit dry, things like garlic, potatoes and broad beans will be what they will be. I feel guilty as we have to pump water from a standpipe at our allotment which is hard work if you have to do two plots.

He has a greenhouse so I'm going to put my sweetcorn in there which he'll keep along with along with anything else which comes up. Again, had hoped to put them in, but a bit two small (perfect Starter size for slugs!).

The courgettes I do have will go in this week along with some picanti plants which I've hardened off.

Lettuce - slow to get going - I might put a row of seeds in and hope it rains.

I've put four times the number of runners bean seed required around one wigwam in the hope that something will come up. My luck will be they all germinate!

Pawty

That's the problem with gardening - there's never a good time for going away, except in January ! It makes life doubly difficult when you have to make all these contingency plans

Thank you for all your advice, which I have followed. And commiserations to Pawti, Westi and Cider Boys. I still think I just have beginner's luck, so please no vegetable envy!
So, I nipped the first couple of courgettes, and now lots of things are growing... One flower has just open overnight! It looks lovely, but I do not think this is a flower we can eat (the impatience of the beginner!) yet? Also I wonder if I should add some liquid fertilizer (bought a large vat of seaweed liquid). The plant is in a large pot with fresh new soil.
Thank you!

Look very healthy to me. I wouldn't bother feeding them for a couple of weeks. Male flowers always come first, particularly with early plants when it is a bit cooler, but I think there is a good looking female one with its developing Courgette in the background so you won't have long to wait.