Grow Your Own Magazine

Hurray! I have my first courgette flower, but now what do I do?

I don't want to eat the flower (although I know that I can), so do I just leave it and wait for my courgette?

On a similar front, I've got 2 or 3 baby cucumbers. Do I need to do anything, or just let them grow!

Thanks

OWG

__________________
"Its not who you are underneath, it's what you do that defines you" - Bruce Wayne

Just leave it, talk to it, encourage it, admire it! Don't be surprised if it just drops off - don't take it personally! Often the male flowers come first - they have a thin stalk behind them. When both male and female (chunkier stalk - the start of a baby courgette) are present you will get, through the wonders of nature, fertilisation.
So let them grow and enjoy the wonderful flowers. They remind me of lilies and people pay the earth for bunches of them.

__________________
Earth laughs in flowers. Ralph Waldo Emerson

www.vegheaven.blogspot.com

Updated November 17th - The Big Dig

You shouldn't need to do anything at all - let the plants get on with it!

Is the courgette flower male or female? The male ones have just a slender stalk which attaches them onto the plant, the female ones have a small courgette (looks like a fat stem).

Often, to our frustration, male flowers appear first when there are no female ones to fertilise! It usually all works out in the end, though, as the female flowers will appear eventually.

On occasion, perhaps if it is cool and there are not many pollinating insects, the female flowers may not be fertilised - in this case, the baby courgette does not grow and rots off. If you find this to be a problem, you can manually fertilise your female flowers by cutting off a male flower, stripping the petals and gently pushing it into the female flowers. It all feels a bit rude, to be honest!! Generally, it is not necessary to do this, but it's an option.

Your baby cucumbers should just grow without a problem.

Remember to give both plenty of water - the fruits are mostly water.

Thanks for your replies... I investigated the flower this morning, and found about 5 others!

A mix of male and female, so I've finally got courgettes! YAY!

If I wasn't in work, I'd do a little happy dance... well, I'll go and shut my door and do one anyway

__________________
"Its not who you are underneath, it's what you do that defines you" - Bruce Wayne

Glad it's not just me

Oh - and when the flowers wilt, don't worry, they're supposed to do that

In fact they'll drop off!

__________________
Earth laughs in flowers. Ralph Waldo Emerson

www.vegheaven.blogspot.com

Updated November 17th - The Big Dig