Mildew on pumpkins

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vikingraider

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Mildew on pumpkins
« on: August 30, 2023, 18:46 »
My pumpkins have been coming along well. However the plants that I put in first are now heavily covered in mildew. Is there any cause for alarm or do I need to do anything or is it to be expected? Also several of my pumpkins are now orange, do I leave them on the plant for as long as possible or harvest them? How do you tell they are ready to harvest? I was hoping they'd be halloween decorations which is still a way off yet

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Ali T

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Re: Mildew on pumpkins
« Reply #1 on: August 31, 2023, 14:59 »
Mine were fine too, until about a fortnight ago! I have just cut off the worst affected leaves and exposed the fruits to the sun to help ripen them. I've also cut back any long trailing stems to the last 'decent' fruit to focus energy on the main ones. I have already 'harvested' one fruit (I accidentally broke it off!) - it is slightly smaller than I would like but was perfectly okay for roasting. I'll keep feeding and watering the rest and hopefully they'll keep growing until I'm ready for them! Oh, the squash I 'harvested' was an Uchiki Kuri, but I have 'Polar Bear' and 'Crown Prince' too - I treated them all the same and they are still growing okay :-)

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vikingraider

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Re: Mildew on pumpkins
« Reply #2 on: September 01, 2023, 10:51 »
Mine have been grown for show rather than taste. One variety was 'freaky' a pumpkin with warty skin. The other varieties I can't remember or were plants given. I just wondered if the mildew would affect the good pumpkins currently growing. I've noticed in places the trailing stems seem to have re rooted

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Ali T

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Re: Mildew on pumpkins
« Reply #3 on: September 05, 2023, 19:15 »
I've been reading that the mildew - whilst it can look bad, doesn't do the fruits any harm (courgettes that I have grown in the past at home didn't seem to be affected, so I guess winter squash will be similar). This years squashes are still growing well and more healthier looking leaves have started to replace the ones I removed (See pic) You can leave the squashes to mature until the leaves die back, but I'm always impatient to try them before that happens! Also read that the taste will deepen the longer the fruits are left on the vine - so thats my next experiment - if it looks big enough and looks ripe enough, give it a try  :D
Squash patch 2023.jpg

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Ali T

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Re: Mildew on pumpkins
« Reply #4 on: September 05, 2023, 19:22 »
Apologies Viking, I missed the bit about growing them for show not taste - I'd keep feeding/watering (Keep the water off the leaves of course!) and apparently if the stems sprout extra roots that's good as they enable the squash to take up additional nutrients! I haven't seen any of mine sprout extra roots, but am thinking of covering the stem connection with earth to see if I can do the same for my Polars! - Have you got any pics of the warty squash, I'm intrigued :-)

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Subversive_plot

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Re: Mildew on pumpkins
« Reply #5 on: September 05, 2023, 22:26 »
You might try a treatment with fungicidal properties.

Neem is an organic option, if you are looking for that. A little research online might be good to verify if Neem works on mildew.  Other than that, I am not sure what fungicides are available there.
"Somewhere between right and wrong, there is a garden. I will meet you there."~ Rumi

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vikingraider

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Re: Mildew on pumpkins
« Reply #6 on: September 06, 2023, 11:22 »
I'm tempted to harvest these before someone else decides to lol
AWJD3330.JPG
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