Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat

Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: Oliveview on July 22, 2008, 17:51

Title: Courgette fruit rotting
Post by: Oliveview on July 22, 2008, 17:51

We have not had a courgette off the 3 plants now for a while- 2 of the plants are normal shaped courgettes, the fruits are getting to about 2 inches long then they start to rot. The other plant is the round type of fruit- there are a few coming along now, not had any fruit for a month or so.  They are watered every night, the watering system is a drip feed.
Any suggestions?
Pamela

Title: Courgette fruit rotting
Post by: Oliveview on July 23, 2008, 07:27

The pumpkin has th esame problem, 2 fruit are getting quite big the other fruit, the size of a small melon has rotted :(   IT must be something to do with the watering.  The pumpkin gets watered every night using the hose not a drip watering system.  All I know about the pumpkin is it is going to be a large fruit- the seed was in the soil that was dumped on the neighbours patio in the bad storm last November (along with 4 cannabis plants, which neighbour has I need to add, not us!)
I´ve just checked the courgettes there are 4 rotted fruits nothing else growing :(
Pamela
ps I´ve looked in my gardening books and can find no help there :(

Title: Courgette fruit rotting
Post by: compostqueen on July 23, 2008, 08:43

wonder if it's getting too much water  :?

Title: Courgette fruit rotting
Post by: gobs on July 23, 2008, 10:47

There are so many rots in cucurbits, Olive. Some more to go by, would be good.

Title: Courgette fruit rotting
Post by: Oliveview on July 23, 2008, 13:45

Plenty of leaves and flowers it is just as the fruits get to a couple of inches long they go all brown from flower end.  I showed our Spanish  neighbour the rotten fruit this morning and he said he had the same problem and it is all to do with the excessive heat (45 deg thereabouts).  There are a couple of fruits about 2 inches long looking ok so I will pick them this evening when it cools down outside, before they get a chance to rot off.
Pamela

Title: Courgette fruit rotting
Post by: Space_Cowby on July 23, 2008, 19:39

I have started picking the flowers off when the fruit has formed and this seems to have stopped the rot.

Title: Courgette fruit rotting
Post by: gobs on July 23, 2008, 20:29

Quote from: "Space_Cowby"

I have started picking the flowers off when the fruit has formed and this seems to have stopped the rot.

In some case that helps, but if no other blemishes on the plants anywhere, then your neighbour might well be right, Olive, or for whatever other reason, these might be just aborted, unfertilised fruitlets.

Title: Courgette fruit rotting
Post by: Yorkie on July 26, 2008, 09:14

Someone just asked this question on the local BBC gardening phone-in.  The expert (head of northern horticultural society) said that it's often to do with moisture overnight.

We've had quite a few cooler nights this summer, which leads to dew forming on the veg.  This then encourages the rotting.

He suggested that if watering in the evening, make sure you water the soil and not onto the plant.

He was asked about removing the flowers too.  He said if they're male flowers he would remove them as they will be non-productive, but that removing female flowers from the end of courgettes which have started growing, shouldn't make much of a difference to the dew / rotting issue.

However, if it werks for you ...  :wink: