So here’s an update on my teeny tiny courgettes ! They were starting to be eaten by slugs and looked like a bit of rot developing on the end, so I picked the few that had developed and added them to a small stir fry. The plants are still producing flowers so I’ll persevere with them for now & try again next year. Anyway the photo may give some of you a laugh! Oh well they were very tasty.
This is how mine often look if they havn't been effectively fertilised. This goes hand in glove with poor weather as the flying insects aren't as efficient at doing their job.
I now snap off male flowers, strip the petals away so i have a 'pollen stick' and keep them in a glass jar in my greenhouse. Whenever i see a female flower open i pick out one of the male pollen sticks (not from the same plant!) and hand fertilise the female flowers. Its worked wonders for my yield this year...when the slugs aren't getting there first!
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I now snap off male flowers, strip the petals away so i have a 'pollen stick' and keep them in a glass jar in my greenhouse. Whenever i see a female flower open i pick out one of the male pollen sticks (not from the same plant!) and hand fertilise the female flowers. Its worked wonders for my yield this year...when the slugs aren't getting there first!