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Zucchini Rotting on the Vine |
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I would like to know why my zucchini plants look great with lots of flowers and fruit but when the zucchini get about 3-4 inches they start to rot or go soft. The first fruit I picked was great but since then they have not been good! Thank you.
Hardiness Zone: 6a
Luigi from Lorain, Ohio
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RE: Zucchini Rotting on the Vine
Sounds more like blossom rot. (BER) That is a sign of lack of calcium. A few possible solutions to cure it.
--Egg shells- best added when you place them underneath the plant at planting time; but you could add into the soil whenever to gradually bring up traces of calcium. I grind my egg shells until a fine powder and add to the soil and water.
--Liming the soil with calcium carbonate [crushed limestone.] Best in the winter or off season, or before planting.
--There are commercial sprays available [calcium nitrate & calcium chloride] that you can spray on or around the plants themselves during the growing season.
-- Grind up a couple dozen calcium citrate dietary supplements, dissolved it in water and water your plants.
This will affect all the new fruit.
Posted on 08/21/2008 | Report Spam or Abuse
Answers: Zucchini Rotting on the Vine
Question:
My problem is with my zucchini, I grow it in containers on my sun deck where I have had great success with tomatoes in the past so I thought I would try some zucchini this year along with the tomatoes. To this date, they are doing great except that some of the fruit seems to be rotting on the vine. We have been having a lot of rain the past few days (approx. 4 inches). I thought about spraying with a mixture of antibacterial soap and peroxide. Any suggestions? Thanks for your sudden response.
Hardiness Zone: 6a
Ray from Pittsburgh, PA
Answer: Ray,
Spraying an antibacterial soap isn't necessary until your seeing signs of disease. From what you wrote, it sounds like the leaves and vines on your zucchini are fine (no signs of disease or insect problems), and it's just the fruit rotting on the vine that is the problem. Since your getting fruits, you must be getting flowers. This tells me you're probably just having pollination problems. Is the zucchini rotting from the blossom ends? When young fruit on healthy plants begin to rot from the blossom end, they are usually not getting pollinated properly. This can be due to a lack of bees in the area, or in your case, as a result of adverse weather conditions that may be keeping the bees away.
To get a successful zucchini crop, you're going to have to pollinate the fruit yourself. Pull off the male flower and pull the petals back to expose the pollen-laden stamen. Then carefully rub the male flower on the center stigma of the female flower making sure that the pollen makes good contact. The female flowers have a distinct enlargement directly behind their petals (this is actually the immature zucchini), while the male flowers are often smaller and attached to the vine by just a long, slender stem.
Another method is to use a cotton swab to transfer the pollen between flowers. This way is more efficient because you can pollinate up to three female flowers with the pollen from one male. If the rot is starting on the underside of the fruit where it's coming into contact with wet soil, raise the zucchini off the ground with a sling made from pantyhose or prop them up using a tin can or small plastic container to keep them off the soil.
Good Luck!
Ellen
Answers:
RE: Zucchini Rotting on the Vine
This is a common problem in climates where there are not enough bees to pollinate the plants. You may have the zucchini in an area where the bees don't bother with it. When the flowers are not cross-pollinated, the zucchini grows but rots at about 4-5 inches long. If you can, take a Q-tip and rub some pollen from one flower to the next when they first open up. Do this several times and the zucchini should then grow properly! (06/30/2006)
By jcs523
RE: Zucchini Rotting on the Vine
Maybe your plants don't have room to grow out like they would in a regular garden, or maybe you've got your soil too wet. We tried the gardening in a bucket a few years back, it was bad. We gave up on the whole idea. The desert winds burnt up our regular garden, this year. (07/02/2006)
By badwater
RE: Zucchini Rotting on the Vine
I am having the same problem and I live in Chester, WV which is not far from Pittsburgh. I want to agree with the weather issue because I have a good size garden and I am only having a problem with the zucchini. I had the same problem last year. I will try the pollination suggestion. If all else fails I pick the blossoms and dip them egg and seasoned flour and fry them or grill them. They are delicious! (07/08/2007)
By sandy
RE: Zucchini Rotting on the Vine
The flowers on the zucchini plant only open in the morning. So if you want to pollinate them yourself you have to do it first thing in the morning. (07/28/2008)
By Julie
Posted on 08/16/2008 | Report Spam or Abuse
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Other: Answers: Zucchini Rotting on the Vine
Archived on 08/16/2008
Question:
My problem is with my zucchini, I grow it in containers on my sun deck where I have had great success with tomatoes in the past so I thought I would try some zucchini this year along with the tomatoes. To this date, they are doing great except that some of the fruit seems to be rotting on the vine. We have been having a lot of rain the past few days (approx. 4 inches). I thought about spraying with a mixture of antibacterial soap and peroxide. Any suggestions? Thanks for your sudden response.
Hardiness Zone: 6a
Ray from Pittsburgh, PA
Answer: Ray,
Spraying an antibacterial soap isn't necessary until your seeing signs of disease. From what you wrote, it sounds like the leaves and vines on your zucchini are fine (no signs of disease or insect problems), and it's just the fruit rotting on the vine that is the problem. Since your getting fruits, you must be getting flowers. This tells me you're probably just having pollination problems. Is the zucchini rotting from the blossom ends? When young fruit on healthy plants begin to rot from the blossom end, they are usually not getting pollinated properly. This can be due to a lack of bees in the area, or in your case, as a result of adverse weather conditions that may be keeping the bees away.
To get a successful zucchini crop, you're going to have to pollinate the fruit yourself. Pull off the male flower and pull the petals back to expose the pollen-laden stamen. Then carefully rub the male flower on the center stigma of the female flower making sure that the pollen makes good contact. The female flowers have a distinct enlargement directly behind their petals (this is actually the immature zucchini), while the male flowers are often smaller and attached to the vine by just a long, slender stem.
Another method is to use a cotton swab to transfer the pollen between flowers. This way is more efficient because you can pollinate up to three female flowers with the pollen from one male. If the rot is starting on the underside of the fruit where it's coming into contact with wet soil, raise the zucchini off the ground with a sling made from pantyhose or prop them up using a tin can or small plastic container to keep them off the soil.
Good Luck!
Ellen
Answers:
RE: Zucchini Rotting on the Vine
This is a common problem in climates where there are not enough bees to pollinate the plants. You may have the zucchini in an area where the bees don't bother with it. When the flowers are not cross-pollinated, the zucchini grows but rots at about 4-5 inches long. If you can, take a Q-tip and rub some pollen from one flower to the next when they first open up. Do this several times and the zucchini should then grow properly! (06/30/2006)
By jcs523
RE: Zucchini Rotting on the Vine
Maybe your plants don't have room to grow out like they would in a regular garden, or maybe you've got your soil too wet. We tried the gardening in a bucket a few years back, it was bad. We gave up on the whole idea. The desert winds burnt up our regular garden, this year. (07/02/2006)
By badwater
RE: Zucchini Rotting on the Vine
I am having the same problem and I live in Chester, WV which is not far from Pittsburgh. I want to agree with the weather issue because I have a good size garden and I am only having a problem with the zucchini. I had the same problem last year. I will try the pollination suggestion. If all else fails I pick the blossoms and dip them egg and seasoned flour and fry them or grill them. They are delicious! (07/08/2007)
By sandy
RE: Zucchini Rotting on the Vine
The flowers on the zucchini plant only open in the morning. So if you want to pollinate them yourself you have to do it first thing in the morning. (07/28/2008)
By Julie
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