[sarah-king]

My courgette is producing lots of courgettes but every one of them has started turning rotten at the end before they get to proper courgette size and look skinny compared to my ther courgette of the same type.. both are in pots, the other one is producing lots of good chunky ones any ideas?

[sunshineband]

Sounds like they have not been pollinated imho.

You could give them a hand by pollinating them yourself with a male flower - from either plant 

[potagerfille]

Oh mine have been doing this, get a few come out lovely, but others maybe an inch or two in size, turning yellow and dropping off.

I wasn't to sure if I had over watered, I know they're thirsty plants, but that wouldn't explain why I get some as surely if I had over watered I would lose the lot.

I will give the hand pollination thing ago and see what happens.  Just a bit of a tickle I presume with the male flower ?

[Livinhope]

Sunshine is most likely right on this because I haven't seen a bee for a while with all the wet weather we've had.

[cooperman]

yep - its the lack of proper pollination, same thing happens to other concubits such as cucumbers etc...

[viettaclark]

Sometimes there isn't a male flower actually flowering at the same time as a female so pollination CAN'T happen......

[potagerfille]

Had a 'tickle' about with a male flower on Sunday, hopefully this will help the situation.

At the begining of the season I decided to plant a lovely flower bed to encourage the bees, and the allotment certainly has them in abundance flying about.

However while I was tickling my courgettes I did notice there seems to be a lack on male flowers, and those that were present don't appear to fully open, which I figure they should?

Does this mean there is a problem with the courgette plants themselves? (ie: a desease) Or am  I just unlucky.

The allotment does get a fair bit of wind on occassions too, so maybe this is also a factor ??
 

[Yorkie]

I think you're just unlucky, don't think there's a disease on the plants.

Wind may be a problem if the insects get blown off course before pollinating, but we have windy sites here too so I'm not convinced that is actually what's going on.

Better luck next year 

[theakston_uk]

Has the flower started to rot too? I was watching 'The Beechgrove Garden' on BBC Scotland (much better than Gardener's World as it concentrates on GYO a lot more) a while ago and the bloke on there said as soon as the courgette is an inch or 2 long you can pull the flower off as it sometimes holds rainwater and rots then the courgette rots before it's had a chance to grow properly

[potagerfille]

Has the flower started to rot too? I was watching 'The Beechgrove Garden' on BBC Scotland (much better than Gardener's World as it concentrates on GYO a lot more) a while ago and the bloke on there said as soon as the courgette is an inch or 2 long you can pull the flower off as it sometimes holds rainwater and rots then the courgette rots before it's had a chance to grow properly

Yes actually the flowers do rot, both male and the female, and yes when the courgette is still small, I will try the removal of the female flower idea.

As for the flowers holding rain water, not had any rain for months now, but I water (with well water) on a daily basis, maybe I am clogging the flowers ... hmmm,  I do try to water round the edges rather than over the top of the plant, but I am sure a bit goes over the top now and again.

Did notice a fair few ants living in one of the male flowers I picked for hand pollination the other day, don't know if that has any bearing ?