Promoting fruit on squash plants.

[Don Perry]

My squash plants have tiny squash on them . They are the first fruits and don't seem to be growing. After 10 days they are only about 3" long. How do I promote new fruit and growth?. Do I harvest these for more production?

 

[headfullofbees]

Don't be panicked into removing fruit prior to their optimum size.
Removing them will promote more fruit, but, if summer doesn't end your season, time's a-plenty.

 

[YumYum]

Sounds like you are describing the female flowers. They are mini versions of the fruit with a flower. They have to be pollinated by the male flowers. Male flowers are the ones without the mini fruits and they typically come later so some of your female flowers may not get pollinated good. If the female flower isn't pollinated, it will yellow and fall off on its own. That is the reason they recommend planting more than one plant because it increases the chances of male flowers.

If they are 3" long they may have been pollinated and are now growing. What kind of squash is it?

 

[Chuck]

My squash this year are suffering from IMPROPER pollination. Many will get to 3 or 4 inches long before they fall off and show the blackened/rotted blossom end. The reason for this is the up and down nighttime temperatures I have been having. They will get to 3 or 4 inches because they have been partially pollinated. One grain of pollen equals one seed in a squash, so, if there hasn't been enough pollen transferred from the male flower to the female flowers' stigma, improper pollination has occurred and a seed will not form. You can cut open an aborted 3 inch squash and actually see where a seed is supposed to form but it isn't and then cut open a 3 inch squash that isn't being aborted and literally see the difference. But not to worry. As soon as the weather settles down and the pollinators arrive in numbers you will have more squash than you know what to do with. Personally, I have not seen any correlation between removing fruit, pollinated or not and increased fruit production. I have seen a correlation between numbers of pollinators and fruit production though. In Texas and in Oklahoma daytime temperatures will soon be a factor. When daytime temps reach a sustained 92-95F range it will greatly reduce the number of fruits. If you pull your plants and replant you can greatly extend high fruit production. For some reason young squash plants produce more than old squash plants regardless of the temperatures.

 

[Don Perry]

Both

Sounds like you are describing the female flowers. They are mini versions of the fruit with a flower. They have to be pollinated by the male flowers. Male flowers are the ones without the mini fruits and they typically come later so some of your female flowers may not get pollinated good. If the female flower isn't pollinated, it will yellow and fall off on its own. That is the reason they recommend planting more than one plant because it increases the chances of male flowers.

If they are 3" long they may have been pollinated and are now growing. What kind of squash is it?

. They have no seeds inside. I thought they are just too young to have seeds. They are yellow straight neck squash.

 

[Don Perry]

My squash this year are suffering from IMPROPER pollination. Many will get to 3 or 4 inches long before they fall off and show the blackened/rotted blossom end. The reason for this is the up and down nighttime temperatures I have been having. They will get to 3 or 4 inches because they have been partially pollinated. One grain of pollen equals one seed in a squash, so, if there hasn't been enough pollen transferred from the male flower to the female flowers' stigma, improper pollination has occurred and a seed will not form. You can cut open an aborted 3 inch squash and actually see where a seed is supposed to form but it isn't and then cut open a 3 inch squash that isn't being aborted and literally see the difference. But not to worry. As soon as the weather settles down and the pollinators arrive in numbers you will have more squash than you know what to do with. Personally, I have not seen any correlation between removing fruit, pollinated or not and increased fruit production. I have seen a correlation between numbers of pollinators and fruit production though. In Texas and in Oklahoma daytime temperatures will soon be a factor. When daytime temps reach a sustained 92-95F range it will greatly reduce the number of fruits. If you pull your plants and replant you can greatly extend high fruit production. For some reason young squash plants produce more than old squash plants regardless of the temperatures.

I have 6 yellow straight neck plants in that 8' x 4' bed. I haven't seen any male flowers in there. If I do I can pick the male flower and introduce it to the female flowers, I saw that on youtube and it makes sense to me.I understand about pollinating her flower
The weather has certainly been an off and on affaire this spring. Temps have risen and fell with thunder storms and wind. On the other hand , my corn, onions and potatoes are loving it.

 

[Chuck]

I have 6 yellow straight neck plants in that 8' x 4' bed. I haven't seen any male flowers in there. If I do I can pick the male flower and introduce it to the female flowers, I saw that on youtube and it makes sense to me.I understand about pollinating her flower
The weather has certainly been an off and on affaire this spring. Temps have risen and fell with thunder storms and wind. On the other hand , my corn, onions and potatoes are loving it.

How old and large are the plants?

 

[Chuck]

Both

. They have no seeds inside. I thought they are just too young to have seeds. They are yellow straight neck squash.

It is hard to describe what a pollinated fruit and a non-pollinated fruit looks like. When you have both cut them open and you will see the difference. The seeds start out as tiny opaque things and you can see if they are there or not. It is a lot like corn. Corn has one silk per kernel of corn and the newly forming seeds/kernels look similar. 6 plants in a 4 x 8 space. That is too many. 4 at absolute max and that is too many. Better keep an eye out for mildew

 

[Don Perry]

I looked closely at the flowers and I see the male and female difference. I have 5 plants in that bed, and I'm sure they will be just fine..
Thanks for your input.

 

[deckman22]

I've noticed on mine that the first squash or two usually is smaller. Once the plant gets bigger the squash do too. Now I'll twist off the first one as a rule.

 

[Don Perry]

I've noticed on mine that the first squash or two usually is smaller. Once the plant gets bigger the squash do too. Now I'll twist off the first one as a rule.

Did that. I found the male flowers and I introduced them to the female flowers . I'll just have to wait n see.

 

[Don Perry]

Sounds like you are describing the female flowers. They are mini versions of the fruit with a flower. They have to be pollinated by the male flowers. Male flowers are the ones without the mini fruits and they typically come later so some of your female flowers may not get pollinated good. If the female flower isn't pollinated, it will yellow and fall off on its own. That is the reason they recommend planting more than one plant because it increases the chances of male flowers.

If they are 3" long they may have been pollinated and are now growing. What kind of squash is it?

straight neck yellow summer squash

 

[YumYum]

straight neck yellow summer squash

That is what I grow. I'd rather have that as zucchini.

 

[Don Perry]

These were just some seeds I had left over from last year. I have a tin full of packets of stuff I never got around to planting. Corn, several kinds of beans, lettuce, cabbage and many others. I had two successive bad years trying to garden in a green house and out of elevated raised beds. Nothing seemed to work. This year looks a lot more promising.

 

[YumYum]

They grow and produce fast.