What did you do in the garden today?

[jerryse]

Thank you @WthrLady and @jerryse

I hope my plants can hold out a couple more days. I have my grandson for the weekend. Oh, gosh - it's a holiday weekend, too. I'll have to look and see if the store will be open on Monday.

Well... at least I know what do do, now. Another question: should I be planting my squash somewhere else, next year?

Gosh - can you imagine being a farmer and having these pests?

Try this.

 

[fuzzi]

Thank you! Do you know where I can get a hypodermic needle? I can't imagine a pharmacy just giving me one

Last year I used BT and hypodermic syringes. The plants survived but I didn't get much squash.

This year I grew my squash plants vertically, wrapped with cloth from below the soil level. I got more squash from that method than the BT method.

I bought my syringes from Amazon.

 

[fuzzi]

My back is telling me I worked yesterday. And my left Achilles. The first time that happened, I was surprised that I'd ache there. Yeah, from stepping on shovel on very heavy soil.

The good news? I have a few butternut squash! I had given up on them, and I even have one that will have some size to it, if it ripens.

Still not going to plant them next year. Yeah, see what I say in the spring.

Does anyone know WHY the female blossoms have been so late in coming? I'll have dozens of male flowers, but with no girls, it's all for naught.

I didn't get any zucchini from my one plant. The blooming of male and female blossoms never seemed to coincide.

 

[Sammster]

My back is telling me I worked yesterday. And my left Achilles. The first time that happened, I was surprised that I'd ache there. Yeah, from stepping on shovel on very heavy soil.

The good news? I have a few butternut squash! I had given up on them, and I even have one that will have some size to it, if it ripens.

Still not going to plant them next year. Yeah, see what I say in the spring.

Does anyone know WHY the female blossoms have been so late in coming? I'll have dozens of male flowers, but with no girls, it's all for naught.

I have had the same problem with the female flowers. Frustrating! And lots of blossom-end rot from all the blasted rain

 

[Sammster]

Last year I used BT and hypodermic syringes. The plants survived but I didn't get much squash.

This year I grew my squash plants vertically, wrapped with cloth from below the soil level. I got more squash from that method than the BT method.

I bought my syringes from Amazon.

Ooo! Thanks for that tip!

 

[Sammster]

Try this.

Thank you!

 

[jerryse]

Click to expand...

I didn't get any zucchini from my one plant. The blooming of male and female
Try a parthenocarpic variety like Dunja. I got mine off an Etsy seller. They can set fruit without pollination.

 

[Farmer13]

Last year I used BT and hypodermic syringes. The plants survived but I didn't get much squash.

Don't understand. Why would you inject a Bacteriological wormicide meant to be eaten by the pest, into a living plant? I have only used an IV injection in a living plant with Gibberellic acid as a Horticulture School experiment & you would not want to eat the plant or fruit.

 

[Sally PB]

Huh. This is interesting. I googled reasons why I didn't get many female flowers on my butternut squash, and found this:

This happens when the average daytime temperatures are above 90 degrees Fahrenheit and nighttime temperatures are above 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

The reason why high temperatures might be causing your squash to produce only male flowers is that under stressful conditions, the plant tends to conserve energy for the time when it can actually start pollinating.
When grown outdoors where temperature control isn’t possible, we suggest you start planting squash early in the spring. This way, you will get enough female flowers to bloom before temperatures rise in the hot summer months.

– Nitrogen Levels​

Fertilizer is very important for your squash plants. It adds beneficial nutrients to the soil and leads to healthy, vigorous growth. However, excessive fertilizer use could be causing your female squash flowers production to be suppressed.

Worried about your female squash flowers not opening despite low temperatures? Watering could be the key here. Female squash flowers tend to grow more in number when the soil conditions are kept moist. On the other hand, keeping your soil mostly dry has been seen to encourage the growth of more male flowers.

Make sure you are giving your plant at least 2 inches of water twice a week during the summer.

 

[jerryse]

Here is another variety.