help with courgettes plz

[robert0881]

Hi i recently got myself a 20x12 polytunnel with a thermal cover. have had it built for about a months and last week i decided to get some plants to get going. i put in a few courgette plants which i got from dobbies. now they seem to be very withered and sick looking. the ground is good well manured and not too wet. also put in a few tomatoes in grow bags and they have some yellow patching on the leaves. could it be that its perhaps a little cold for them just now? went first few days of them being in where weather was very warm. had both doors open in tunnel to keep temp down and clossed at nights. tomatoes after a couple days looked a bit withered but have picked up since. but still have the patchy leaves.
any ideas?
weather cloudy this week and dull averaging 54f durind day and 40f min at night
last week 70f and 40f at night.

[Jenegade]

I think it just might be a bit cool just now and although it was fairly warm the other week, during the day, it was quite cold at night. They probably would do better staying inside where there is a constant temperature for a bit longer.

But I'm just a beginner, someone else with more knowledge will be along soon!

[Two_Sheds]

You don't say where you are - can you put that in your profile?

Also, where had the plants been kept previous to going into the polytunnel? Indoors? If so, they would need to be acclimatised gradually to the change in conditions. aka hardening off.

[Creemteez]

If you've planted your courgettes into the ground already,it could be neck rot. This happens if you plant them too deep, but it does sound as if all your veggies are suffering from temperature shock. Time will tell, it a case of wait and see, I'm afraid. Good luck!

[robert0881]

im planning keeping them in the polytunnel all year. i got them from dobbies and i put the tomatoes straight into the tunnel in grow bags and the courgettes into the ground all on the day i got them, i figured that the ground should have been warm enough after 3 weeks with the polytunnel cover on. perhaps i was wrong?

[markwcel]

we are just putting courgettes and toms in the unheated greenhouse now...think a polytunnel will be about the same temp...so maybe they have been too cold

[Two_Sheds]

i figured that the ground should have been warm enough after 3 weeks with the polytunnel cover on. perhaps i was wrong?

It's not about the ground, it's about the plants. They need to be gradually acclimatised to a change in conditions. You can't rush it.

[edcave]

Hi,

hope you dont mind me hijacking your thread!

I too am a beginner and have planted some vegetables in pots recently and am experiencing a few problems. I live in London and bought some small lettuce, courgette, tomato, spinach and strawberry plants last weekend. I have potted them up and had them outside for the last week yet am seeing different results.

The strawberrys and lettuce are thriving, the spinach mixed results and the courgettes and tomatoes are experiencing dieing leaves and loss of colour. Earlier in the week I found the soil was very dry and so gave them a good soaking but the results are the same. I know the pots have good drainage as the water was coming out of the bottom.

After reading a lot of threads I am guessing I need to bring these plants in at night as it is still too cold (this will also prove quite hard due to lack of space) but I would be very grateful of any help, advice, tips etc...

I have posted a few pictures online which can be found here:

Courgettes 1
Courgettes 2
Tomatoes 1
Tomatoes 2

[Alice]

Your courgettes are just seedlings Edcave. Even in London I think April would be too early for them to be outdoors. Can you take them indoors even for a few days until they grow a bit - they do grow quickly, then try putting them out during the day and taking them in at night.
If you can't take them in you could try covering them with fleece.
I hope they perk up.

[marathon]

Hi i recently got myself a 20x12 polytunnel with a thermal cover. have had it built for about a months and last week i decided to get some plants to get going. i put in a few courgette plants which i got from dobbies. now they seem to be very withered and sick looking. the ground is good well manured and not too wet. also put in a few tomatoes in grow bags and they have some yellow patching on the leaves. could it be that its perhaps a little cold for them just now? went first few days of them being in where weather was very warm. had both doors open in tunnel to keep temp down and clossed at nights. tomatoes after a couple days looked a bit withered but have picked up since. but still have the patchy leaves.
any ideas?
weather cloudy this week and dull averaging 54f durind day and 40f min at night
last week 70f and 40f at night.

Hi Robert, I also have a thermal cover on a 20 x 14 tunnel.

My courgettes went into the PT 3 weeks ago, my tomatoes went in the 1st April as did my dwarf french beans.

Did you harden them off first. I sowed all the above indoors. The seedlings stayed on the windowsil until they were stroung young plants. I get cheap foil from tesco (value) and just fold a strip around the back of the pots to reflect more light, it works really well. Then the last week and a bit of March I took the plants out each day and they went into one of those plastic mini greenhouse things (if your PT is in your garden use that) and back in at night 1st of April they went on the staging in the PT and then they were planted in the beds.

The tomatoes appear to be doing well, the courgette seems bigger every day , leaves seem to appear from nowhere over night.

Currently growing in the beds in the PT I have 12ft of peas, 24 dwarf french beans in flower, 3 rows of beetroot, cut and come again salad leaves, tomatoes, courgettes, on the staging 30 something pots of strawberry plants, almost 200 leeks, broccoli, flowers, brussel sprouts, celeric, PSB, cabbages.

At home I have 35 pepper plants, more tomato plants, 16 squashes and 8 cucumbers which will all be going out mid May.

One thing that is a massive help is a digital Min/Maz thermometer. I reset it every day so I can tell how cold it got during the night. So I can then work out when I'm going to move crops into the PT without risking their health. £9.99 from B&Q. The highest this week has been 7.8 degrees when it reaches 10 I'll start thinking about the peppers and squashes etc.

Sorry about the long post hope it helps

[edcave]

Your courgettes are just seedlings Edcave. Even in London I think April would be too early for them to be outdoors. Can you take them indoors even for a few days until they grow a bit - they do grow quickly, then try putting them out during the day and taking them in at night.
If you can't take them in you could try covering them with fleece.
I hope they perk up.

Thanks for the advice Alice. I brought them in last night, along with the tomatoes, and they dont look too much better. Unfortunately I dont have any space that gets a lot of light inside . I have ordered a mini greenhouse so hopefully they will survive whilst I wait for that to arrive.

thanks again

Ed

[edcave]

Many thanks again for the advice Alice. Everything is thriving now after spending a few weeks inside. The current heatwave has the courgettes growing dramatically. I should have lots of tomatoes and chillis to make chutney with as well