Question for gardeners re zucchini

Soon you will have more zucchini then you can handle

My zucchini is doing great. I have a few set on, and will have zucchini ready to eat within another week. :) (God willing!) My yellow crookneck squash are also coming on nicely.

I used plants that were already started, from the local nursery. And yes, you should plant at least three to a hill.

It could be a weather issue ... where are you, OP, and what has the weather been like?


As to the person with yellowing plants, it could be air pollution. If the neighbors have been spraying their yard for weeds, some of the weed killer may have drifted over to your garden.

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Look up recipes for zucchini blossoms... great battered and fried or stuffed.

these are tasty

Same thing here in central Texas - NO BEES !
Usually they are everywhere in my yard. My tomato plant's are full and healthy and flowering - but no tomato's.

I've seen more honey bees than usual this year. Although that may be because I have, in the past two years, planted a few flowering plants that attract honey bees ... (lavender and echinacea to name two).

It's nice to see the honey bees back!

You probably have squash worms. (I get them every year, and this year I've already replaced my crooknecks twice and my zucchini once)

If you look at the area where the stem goes into the dirt, you might notice a "woody" looking spot that isn't green anymore, like the rest of the stem going up. If there's a slit or a hole in the stem, you've got squash worms.

You can buy BT (bacillus therangensis..spelling?) and spray, but you won't save the plant UNLESS you can get the worm out. To get the worm out, use a pair of looooooong thin hemostat pliers, and stick the tips in the (hollow) stem with the pliers open, then "grab" a few times up in the stem and bring out the pliers and see what you've got.

A lot of times, a creepy huge slug looking thing will come out with your pliers!

Once you've gotten the worm out, put (not kidding) duct tape carefully around the injured area, and make it hard for a worm to reach any of the hollow stem area at the base.

If you do this successfully, your zucchini will start growing again as if nothing happened! The stem damage doesn't seem to prevent growth, so long as you get the worms out.

HTH!

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Finally!

... a use for all that duct tape we bought eight years ago.

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