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S & K, several tips that I have learned in my 50+ years of vegetable gardening are, 1st. Do Not water the leaves of any kind of squash , ONLY water the soil below the plants , 2nd. prune the old leaves as the plant grows and spreads out, this will force the nutrients to the new leaves and flowers, 3rd. powdery mildew can be effectively controlled with Whole Milk in a pump sprayer. And lastly.......... ENJOY ! ! !
@@skyethewylder I prefer using a hose for watering as needed. Drip line watering is better suited to trees and plants that are perennial, because vegetables are seasonal, you would be relocating the drip lines way too often.
I have pruned my zucchini plants for about 5 yrs now. Believe me it works. It keeps the leaves up off the ground and helps to keep the leaves from getting overly wet. The plants usually make it all summer long until fall. They never did that before pruning. Now I get fruit all summer!!
Thankyou😊 you're the first one to explain the importance of bee pollination. I've learnt so much from this video. I'm growing squash in my raised trough. God bless you!
Thank you for showing us that we need to prune these plants. I’m 66 years old and have never had a garden, until this year. I can identify mistakes that I’ve already made. But I’m learning and videos like yours have definitely helped me. Have a Blessed day.
This is my 1st year planting zucchini and squash. Now I know why all those little fruits are dying off. And I had no idea about pruning the plants either! Thank you!!
This year I'm running them up a string and trimming off the bottom. This will elevate the flowers where they are more accessible. Already producing a few a day.
I stumbled on to your site's lesson on pruning zucchini plants. Thank heaven I did! I'm new at growing veggies so it's turning out to be a steep learning curve. This lesson is right on time.
Ditto I just started growing zucchini this year and I’m thrilled to say I have 5 zucchini growing!! So happy 😃 can’t wait to learn more on how to prune my plants. My biggest problem here in central Fl is ANTS!! HELP PLEASE!!!! Choose to grow as natural as possible 🥰
Inspite of some other's criticism I pruned my squash, zucchini and other veggies too, my 1st year I pruned without any diseases (spraying for bug's is imperative) the 2nd year I was sick and unable to take care of it and couldn't persuade the other Gardners so they didn't produce 1/2 the amount taken care of so I'd highly recommend doing the pruning this is my 3rd year but I learned from experience BTW the Squash bug's are a brutal enemy of all watch out. !Best of luck😎
@@tammysummerfield183 That's Wonderful I was so happy after getting my 1st squash and zucchini I took pictures of them lol I learn all I can from these kinds of video's be a proud mama😎
@@tammysummerfield183 do a mixture of borax and sugar (for example 1 tablespoon borax to 4 tablespoons sugar) mix that together with enough water to make a paste. Put it on a cap of some kind and place it right by the ant hill. The ants will eat it and take it back to their nest and it kills them.
Excellent information! I planted zucchini and tomatoes last year with wonderful plant growth with very little yield. Pruning was the issue. This year I have watched my plants more closely, pruning as I go. I’m now getting great results applying your suggestions. Thank you.
Yes! I had zukes that were amazing. Then three shorter rotten at the ends. Now good ones again are growing. Now I know WHY those icky ones happened. I’ll make sure to plant bee attraction flowers next year. This year was first garden. This video was my first gardening video.
I got a mason bee house and bought some cocoons at the local nursery. They actually pollinate 90% more plants than honey bees. They aren’t part of a hive so they aren’t concerned with a queen. Just independent little workhorses!
@@jeancampbell4341 Yes I guess there are 140 different species so you do want to get some that are native to your region. Our local nursery carries local native species so I got them there.
@@karengrice2303 zucchini bees (yes zucchini bees)are special they follow the plant cycle they are up earliar in the morning then honey bees and by 10 in the morning are asleep sometime you will find them zzzz inside the closed flower so if you are like me and enjoy eating the zucchini flowers just don’t pop it in your month you may be in for a surprise. They are also browner then regular bees. If you want to see them working get up early like around sun rise and watch how much energy they have. I have to get into the garden the tomatoes are gossiping about the sex life of the zucchini.
@@MaLiArtworks186 The bee home isn’t too expensive, about 20 to 40 dollars. But if you have some wood scraps, you could probably find a pattern on line to build a bee home and just buy the nesting tubes. You need to buy the mason bees from your region because there are many different species. There are conservation groups that sell them where I live for 5 dollars a box of about 20 cocoons. I think it is important to have them because they are the native bees of the North American continent. Honey bees are native to Europe and were brought here. That could be part of the reason they haven’t thrived here.
I never knew that you could prune squash and zucchini. They say you learn something new everyday. At 64, I now know a new trick for our garden!! Thanks 😊
I just “found” you. Last night I found another that stated the same idea of pruning larger leaves / male stems / flowers. After 50 years of gardening, I learned something new. I had been trimming some larger leaves bc we had high temps that I thought had stressed the plant and the larger leaves had died. I knew about male and female flowers and pollination, but I didn’t know why I only got male flowers. This morning I went out and the blooms were all open. In one of the female blossoms I noticed a bee literally rolling in the blossom, covering itself in pollen. I looked further and found on one of my zucchini plants, and on one of my yellow squash plants I had fruit that had set. So this technique actually works, I just didn’t know it!! Thank you for the confirmation to what I was doing and didn’t know it!!
I have grown Zucchini with great success for over 60 years, I use a misting system that runs at night which is like nature does when it rains. My wife makes bread out of it, with nuts, berries, crushed grains, sometimes chocolate bits. Her little 6" loaves are a hit at the farmer's markets, she sells several hundred every year.
My sister used to grow commercially with organic certified produce. She told me to water the lawn at night and the garden at dawn. The reason for watering the garden in the morning is so the leaves dry fast to prevent mold.
Agreed! My 1st squash I'd ever grown I took that info into a reality and had beautiful production!I was so proud then last year 2021 I was unable to and someone else didn't do it, the proof was good enough for me! Thank you so much . Much love to you and all taking care of Mother Earth 😎
I have had some pretty good success training summer squash on a rope line, growing vertical. It keeps the plant airy and allows bees to pollinate when I do not get to the fruits. Also, I freeze the male flowers to have spares when there is female fruit and no male pollinators.
@Bd Dollen You can help the blooms pollinate by just vibrating the stems with your fingers, tap the stems gently or if you have an electric toothbrush, just hold it against the cluster of blooms for about 10 seconds and it scatters the pollen. Jude, from Kentucky ✝️🥀🐴🇺🇲💚
I have been growing zucchini for years, I always thought those little fruits that rot were caused by a disease. Thank you for setting me straight! I will now make a point of checking my zucchini (and cucumbers) in the morning and manually pollinating them. I haven't seen many bees in my garden. We let the clover grow in our yard to attract them. Good info!
@@brendamcallister5074 I had an 82 year old man with year's of experience who told me not to it wasn't his fault but just had never had of it back then, of course being me I had to tell him about it after we're all never to late to learn 😎
I am a new gardener and I really liked your video. I just planted some squash and zucchini. This was a great tip thanks so much enjoyed your video. Coming to you from Gray Tennessee
Thanks for the great tips! I have staked my zucchini for the first time this year. I also appreciate the note about the variegation on the leaves - this is the first time I have experienced that with my plants and I was worried they were already getting sick. Good to know it’s not an issue!
Great vid. Last year our plants did not produce any zucs or they rotted, looking back no bees pollenated the flowers. This morning the flowers opened up and we noticed a bee doing their work. That’s good. Also now can recognize male and female plants in case we need to manually pollinate with a q-tip.
I just found your videos and I am so thankful I did! I pruned my squash and zucchini like you said, and here came the bees! We had so many bees and I wasn't sure why they almost all but left. They couldn't see the blooms. I'll definitely share your videos and watch more of them. The tomato video came after this one and I pruned those right after. Thank you!
Same here. Im getting tons of small rotting fruits as well but had no idea that I needed to prune zucchini plants and they are enormous . The bees 🐝 in my garden are incredible but clearly they cannot find my flowers to do their thing. Thank you for your advice.
Thank you! I just learned why my squash fruit would rot before it had a chance to grow. I didn't realize it was a pollination issue. Also thank you for showing me how to prune my zucchini for continued harvest.
Started radically pruning squash a couple of years ago. Any leaf in the shade of another leaf or with powdery mildew gets cut. We train them up a small tomato cage. Now we get squash into september. It works.
I will try my hardest to keep up on the pruning of my squash this year. The best part for me was watching the bumble bee deep in the bloom...he was so happy! Love it.
I have been growing zucchini and squash for several years and had trouble with veggies rotting on end I hope this pruning will prevent this!! Thank you for your video I will watch more of your work!!
I appreciate your straight forward information. Although I’ve heard similar information before you present it did clear and simple to the point. Your short video was very helpful for my short attention span. Well done
Thank you for your video I’ve been pruning my cucumber plants and now my squash plants extremely heavily because I’m growing them indoors in my apartment and I’m actually growing them hydroponically in a 5 gallon bucket. I also use a tomato cage upside down on the bucket. The cage supports some of the weight of the plant and I run a pretty heavy gauge string from the ceiling down into the Center of the plant and it gives the tendrils something g to latch onto as they grow and they love to grow up the center strong. I have also been hand pollinating and I’ve tried a paint brush and a qtip but I found neither of those worked instead what I do is take the male flower and peel all the petals back and only when I have a female flower that is fully open and then I place the center of what’s left of the male flower and gently while holdin underneath the bottom of the female flower I place the center of the male flower down in as far into the bottom of the female blossom as possible gently and give it a brisk little shake and then I’ll turn the male flower a quarter turn one way and then back again and if the male center will remain in thr female flower I’ll just leave it in there until the following morning. Sometimes it will remain and other times depending on the direction the female flower is facing it will not. But that is the only way that I’ve found has given me 100% pollination rates. For whatever reason the pollen doesnt seem to stick to a paint brush or a qtip and if u are lucky enough to get it on either of them then it doesn’t seem to release the pollen into the female blossom where you need it to go. Just that’s been my experience in hand pollinating.🙏🏻🥰🇨🇦
@@leannekenyoung I don't cause I forget to water. I had a horrible year growing squash the year before last and I am a huge believer in people growing food especially now with all the crazy weather, the war, and supply chain issues, so instructions on how to grow something that normally requires pollinators indoors is just awesome.
@@farmco6897 that’s the great thing about growing indoors hydroponically no need to worry about watering as long as you have a large enough reservoir, I have a roma tomato plant that is putting on all kinds of tomatoes and I couldn’t keep the 5gal pail filled with water it seemed every day it needed refilling so I moved it into a 120Litre tote box and it’s loving it! I estimate I’ll only have to add nutrient rich water once a week now. Much more manageable!!
Subscribed! I did my first vegetable garden this year and couldn’t have done it without the help of people like you on UA-cam. I hope you have videos for cool weather gardening because I’m about to start my first one very soon as well! Thanks for the great videos!
Really like your videos. You get right to the point without a lot of hype. Next time we drive through Shelby on our way to Charlotte, we’re stopping in, so look for us.
Thank you for taking the time to explain some of your tips for keeping your squash and zucchini healthy. I was looking for a video on how to prune my squash as well as how to avoid powdery mildew. I will definitely use some of your tips. Thanks
I have been gardening a along time and that was the first time I ever seen it done. So I have learned something new I can incorporate into my gardening
Just found this video, so glad I did! I had no idea I needed to pruned them to promote air circulation. I’ve got four planted in a raised bed and they are growing close BUT I’ve observed bees each morning I’ve gone out to water so that’s a great thing. 🐝 I’m heading out to start pruning right now! Thx for the info!
I hand pollinated squash one year waiting on my bees to show up. For two parts that never ever connect it’s absolutely fascinating how the stamen and the pistils so perfectly interlock together. ✌️
Growing a zucchini for the first time this year. Loved your easy to follow video tonight, looks like I’m heading into the garden tomorrow to do some pruning. Also taken notes from BigDogBob’s tips on the previous comment too.
I am 68 and this is my first garden too....sooooo much to learn. my hubby found this as I was telling him today that I thought my squash plants were just dying as the leaves on the bottom were brown. I will be busy in the morning!!
@s&K greenhouse I really appreciate that you showed the bees pollinating the fruits. It’s a great Opportunity to talk about the fact that that was not a honeybee it was a member of the Xylocopa genus, possibly Xylocopa Virginica aka carpenter bees. Honeybees don’t usually get up early enough to pollinate squash, instead native bees do an amazing job. It’s common to find long horned Melissodes bees or green sweat bees like Agapostemon working hard to get food for themselves and then feed us along the way. With more than 4,000 native bee species across America (Amd not talking about honeybees which were Brought here in the 1600s and are a managed agricultural resource), We should all be doing as much as possible to learn about the native bees in our area. I also appreciate the fact that you talked about making sure that there are other plants around for them to forage on to help bring them into the garden areas. Some of the tiniest bees want forage more than 100 feet away from their nest in the ground while others like bumblebees will fly a couple of miles. Adding native wildflowers can go along way towards feeding the native bees it will then pollinate your food crops.
Thankyou for your interesting comments about native bees! We have a few up here in Quebec. I noticed we also have a lot of black wasps, which live in the ground and are good pollinators. They are also mean. But not as allergenic as the yellowjackets.😅
Winston Salem here, wish I would have found you and your videos early in the year. I ve been doing so many things wrong. Keep these videos coming, I ll be ready for next year!
Thanks for the information ,I'm going to Prune my squash plants this summer. I am staking my squash plants this summer. I'm using hog panels bent into a U shaped tunnel with squash planted on both sides of the tunnel. Then as they grow I will encourage them to grow up the sides of the tunnel. Along with pruning this should keep my plants off the ground and productive. Thanks again
I've got a lot of marigolds scattered throughout the garden. Pollinators use them and unwanted bugs are staying away. Deadhead your marigolds and save the seeds for the following year. I had so many last year that I'm giving used jars full of seeds to the neighbors. Plant no later than July 15th and pick the seeds past the first freeze. My zukes and acorn squash need some more pruning! Great video.
@@robine.4248 Four years ago I got a small packet of marigold seeds. Saving the seeds and replanting them, I increased my seed load by a factor of thousands. The past two years, I have had to deal with nearly a five gallon bucket full. I've been giving people who want some 16 once roasted peanut containers crammed full. I gave my granddaughter two canisters yesterday for her outdoor space with the idea of giving some of the excess to her coworkers and patients at the hospital she works at as well as her neighbors. Marigolds, containing natural pyrethra, are great for insect control by decreasing crop damage in the garden. I just learned too, that in Mexico people will make a fresh planting of marigolds no later than August 20th each year to assure young vibrant plants for their observance of the November 1st, Day of the Dead. Good luck with yours!
@@jennymallin9404 Are you seeing other plants in the area also suffering? You'll have to use your powers of observation to try and ascertain what might be getting to them. Marigolds are pretty hardy once established. Question: were they getting adequate water? Look for thirsty insects that might not be affected by the pyrethrums the marigolds naturally produce or have not yet produced in the younger stage of life. My vegetable garden is thick with young marigolds, the fourth year since planting the first few, so much that they are getting to a state of becoming perennial. Don't forget that you can replant and replant until mid August. Also, Jennie, any good garden center will have someone who can help you diagnosis many of the problems in plants, be it insect, viruses, Ph imbalances, over and under watering, pesticide and herbicide misuse nearby your plantings as well as fertilization issues. Soil testing is a very good place to start. Your State Extension Services are backed by agricultural departments at your universities and are the very best for your particular area. Good luck. I would replant the marigolds, maybe try a different spot.
Thank for being just plain clear down to earth! No pun intended!! But seriously I had the pollination problem and didn’t know what to do, now I do! Thanks a bunch!🙂
@@lizherbst7393 have you actually tried this and do you believe it works? Because it’s been my experience that using a brush or qtip simply doesn’t work. The most helpful way that I have found is to actually cut off the male and carefully remove all the petals and then hold the male flower by the very bottom and insert it down into the female flower as far down in as possible and then I let it sit in there for a minute or so and then I’ll trying turning it a half turn one way and a half turn the other way, and I usually hold the base on the female blossom so that I don’t accidentally break it off. So I hope this method helps someone if they have tried the paintbrush or qtip methods and not had success perhaps this way will work. I know for a fact that it does because I’ve grown cucumbers and it has worked really well for them. The reason I know my method works and that they aren’t subsequently pollinated by an insect is because my plants are growing indoors in my apartment and there are no flying insects and no crawling ones either. Lol! So that’s how I know my method actually does work. 🙏🏻🥰🇨🇦
@@leannekenyoung I use the paint brush method on my squash as a backup. I have found that I need to get going before the bees arrive. If I wait, the pollen is all taken. Since I don't cut the flower off, there is still plenty of pollen available for bees when they start their shift. My female flowers are only now starting to appear after several days of large numbers of male flowers. This morning I found 3 females and only one male so I was able to ensure a good set by hand pollination.
@@leannekenyoung I think what you have suggested will ensure that we get what we planted bc its possible the pollen shared on the bees body may be from another squash! the seeds I pulled out of an acorn squash turned out to give me zucchini or half yellow half green squashes mostly although I did manage to get a few acorns. But it was such a consternation how such a thing could happen... I actually thought it could have happened bc it might have been a hybrid. They were very good but this advice will be another good experiment to see what develops this season, thank you so much!
This was great, thank you! Please make more - you make everything so clear! Would love to hear your tips on carrots, radishes, tomatoes, everything else pretty much! :)
OMG! This video was extremely helpful for me! A first time trying my hand at gardening person. Currently have squash and zucchini growing past the normal N Florida growing season. Glad to hear there are things to do to keep my plants healthy!
Very helpful video-- thanks. I decided to prune my zucchini yesterday because some of the leaves were shading over the neighboring tomato plants and I was worried that I may have damaged the plant because of the huge gaping holes it leaves after pruning the large stocks. I'm relieved to see that this is not a problem
My zucchini plant has white patches on the leaves. I thought it was some kind of mildew, but this video taught me that this is absolutely normal on zucchini leaves!! Thank you for pointing this out, and also for the tips on pruning!
I have learned so much from your videos. I have never liked working out in my yard, that has now changed because of your videos. I have landscaped my front yard and measured out the length and width and planted some arborvitaes, loropetalums, florida sunshine and everything came out looking amazing. I purchased two of your raised beds and have been following your tips on pruning and flowers to plant for pollination. My vegetable garden is doing amazing. I have been showing pictures of my landscaping and raised beds to coworkers and they have ordered raised beds as well. Thank you for the tips, love your videos!
Thanks for the video! I will be pruning my squash plants now. I was previously told that pruning would set them up for diseases and that it was to be avoided. So now I can prune and have more squash and healthier plants. Many thanks! :)
Really appreciate your channel, & your knowledge you are sharing!! I’ve always been a believer in pruning and I have never found you can over prove unless you get right down to that base of the plant but nobody would do that I hope. I want to give my father a beautiful sunset maple tree and hold at 700 miles to give it to him in the first thing he did was pull out His pocket knife and strip all the leaves off of it except the ones at the top… I was gasping for air as I watched him and he shared with me that if you do this before you plant, you will have the nicest shaped tree win it grows up and he was TOTALLY RIGHT...It is a stunning well shaped tree in my parents yard. I do pruning with my flowers as well as my zucchini but I’ve never thought about cross pollination and I’m going to pay closer attention to that so thank you for this video. I’m becoming very concerned for the Bee pollination in our USA, So everyone does need to do their part in terms of planning something to help your gardens… My Parents always had rose of Marigolds and rose of Zinnias carefully placed at the front of gardens ..& then A large variety different flowers every so many rows and I always thought it was for making it pretty out there but it was later it was my grandfather who explained how important it was because we also had orchards and we needed as many bees as we could get. I wish I could talk to all of them… My parents and grandparents because gardening is a bigger part of my life now than it was in my 20s , And I didn’t pay as much attention and tap into their vast knowledge. It’s videos like this did help us be better gardeners and most of us don’t have the acres and acres of land that our parents had. Good luck to you and I look forward to more videos.. I eat zucchini 12 months a year FYI
Vicki I think you mean ROWS OF MARIGOLDS & ZINNIAS, yes? that these brightly colored flowers attracted the bees etc. to stop by & have a little visit. on the vegetables...
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE INFO ON HOW POLLINATION WORKS. I’M A NEW GARDENER AND THERE’S SO MUCH TO LEARN! I NOW KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MY HUMUNGOUS OVER CROWDED ZUCCHINI PLANT!
Thank you for this valuable information. I had given up on growing zucchini because the fruit would always rot and and the plant would get powdery mildew. I decided to give it one more try this year. I’m excited to try all your suggestions, which make total sense.
Yes, I have never pruned my squash & zucchini plants. I will this year. I have had the powdery mildew so this is great to get a jump on getting air circulation in there. Thanks!
This is a wonderful video, I often wondered if this was possible or would harm my plants if I cut. Thank you for taking the time to how us home gardeners this tip...
I'm just now seeing this, a yr late, but I'm eternally grateful. I am a hit or miss zucchini grower ! You provided some great advice and in a very pleasant way. Thank you.🌱
New Gardner here! This is my second year. I’m excited to try the pruning of my squash and zucchini plants! I want more veggies this year. Thanks for the info.
I don't know why I haven't considered pruning zucchini and squash before. I was a horticulture major in college some forty years ago. So it's not like I'm a rookie on the subject but your spot on with this. Not only will this do all the things you mentioned, including making it easier for the pollinators to find the blossoms ( let's not forget the humming birds) it will make it easier for the Gardner to find the fruit when still a more preferable size. You know those wonderful little fruit, not the huge ones that are ready to take over the world. And as long as we are talking about pruning and blossoms how about collecting some blossoms also. Stuffed blossoms are a wonderful part of Italian cuisine. Go ahead and plant more then one zucchini plant if you want. Just remember to be removing some of the blossoms for the table and keep the number of fruits manageable. Have a great day. 👍 🌤🍻🌱
@Jael Louis Good question. I believe each blossom has both male and female parts. So any blossom will do. Tip, harvest blossoms that are more difficult to find first. That way the fruit you allow to grow are easier to find before they get to large. Also add blossoms to salads and use as garnish.
First time growing squash and zucchini. This helps so much! Didn’t know what to do with the flowers, etc. tried looking it up with not much success and you absolutely nailed it for me. Thank you 😊
Thank you for this! I always plant my zucchini closer together and prune them (same with tomatoes, cucumbers or squash). Though I always get loads of harvest, I've been told by this or that gardener that I'm doing it all wrong. You confirmed that I'm doing it right, so does my own experience.
I actually knew all about this from my last years of experience. I’ve also trained my summer squash even to grow up, on trellis, until I broke one. Though, I really appreciate this video because I’m going to share it. Hopefully, it’ll help out new gardeners with the simple method of cutting out older growth to aerate. If they’re paying attention 😂
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Is this pruning method applicable with pumpkins as well?
I just happened across this video and after gardening for 40 years, I learned a lot. I had no idea zucchini plant should be pruned. I like this guy!
Me too!
S & K, several tips that I have learned in my 50+ years of vegetable gardening are, 1st. Do Not water the leaves of any kind of squash , ONLY water the soil below the plants , 2nd. prune the old leaves as the plant grows and spreads out, this will force the nutrients to the new leaves and flowers, 3rd. powdery mildew can be effectively controlled with Whole Milk in a pump sprayer. And lastly.......... ENJOY ! ! !
Thanks for the tips! Sounds like you have a ton of experience!
Yes on that not wetting the leaf. Same for cucumber, African Violet, most any plant with furry leaves. .
Thank you so much!
Would you drip line water like a tree, or gently put the hose down near the base of the stem and water that way?
@@skyethewylder I prefer using a hose for watering as needed. Drip line watering is better suited to trees and plants that are perennial, because vegetables are seasonal, you would be relocating the drip lines way too often.
First time coming across this gentleman, I like him.
I have pruned my zucchini plants for about 5 yrs now. Believe me it works. It keeps the leaves up off the ground and helps to keep the leaves from getting overly wet. The plants usually make it all summer long until fall. They never did that before pruning. Now I get fruit all summer!!
Thankyou😊 you're the first one to explain the importance of bee pollination. I've learnt so much from this video. I'm growing squash in my raised trough. God bless you!
Thank you for showing us that we need to prune these plants. I’m 66 years old and have never had a garden, until this year. I can identify mistakes that I’ve already made. But I’m learning and videos like yours have definitely helped me. Have a Blessed day.
Sweet ♥️
Thanks for Making me smile 🙂
I’m over 60 and I started planting flowers when I was 12. Food came later. Lol
Same as myself ! So helpful .
I’m a beekeeper and a gardener! Love watching my bees help pollination. I’m gonna try pruning this year!
70 & still learning! Thank you so much. Can’t wait to try pruning this year!!!!
ditto, Rhonda ! Judy
Wish I knew this sooner in life!!! Getting old and gardening is getting tough!
Thank you for sharing 🙏. I am in a zone 4 with very short growing season. squash and zucchini do well. Thanks for all the tips 🥰
Thanks for describing the Male and female parts and the importance of trimming the foliage to assist the bees in pollination.
Thanks for watching!!!
This is my 1st year planting zucchini and squash. Now I know why all those little fruits are dying off. And I had no idea about pruning the plants either! Thank you!!
This year I'm running them up a string and trimming off the bottom. This will elevate the flowers where they are more accessible. Already producing a few a day.
I stumbled on to your site's lesson on pruning zucchini plants. Thank heaven I did! I'm new at growing veggies so it's turning out to be a steep learning curve. This lesson is right on time.
Ditto I just started growing zucchini this year and I’m thrilled to say I have 5 zucchini growing!! So happy 😃 can’t wait to learn more on how to prune my plants. My biggest problem here in central Fl is ANTS!! HELP PLEASE!!!! Choose to grow as natural as possible 🥰
Inspite of some other's criticism I pruned my squash, zucchini and other veggies too, my 1st year I pruned without any diseases (spraying for bug's is imperative) the 2nd year I was sick and unable to take care of it and couldn't persuade the other Gardners so they didn't produce 1/2 the amount taken care of so I'd highly recommend doing the pruning this is my 3rd year but I learned from experience BTW the Squash bug's are a brutal enemy of all watch out. !Best of luck😎
@@tammysummerfield183 That's Wonderful I was so happy after getting my 1st squash and zucchini I took pictures of them lol I learn all I can from these kinds of video's be a proud mama😎
@@tammysummerfield183 do a mixture of borax and sugar (for example 1 tablespoon borax to 4 tablespoons sugar) mix that together with enough water to make a paste. Put it on a cap of some kind and place it right by the ant hill. The ants will eat it and take it back to their nest and it kills them.
This first time gardener is very thankful for this type of content!
Thank you! My squash is growing on my porch so I have to learn to pollinate! Didn’t know that, thank you!
Excellent information! I planted zucchini and tomatoes last year with wonderful plant growth with very little yield. Pruning was the issue. This year I have watched my plants more closely, pruning as I go. I’m now getting great results applying your suggestions. Thank you.
Yes! I had zukes that were amazing. Then three shorter rotten at the ends. Now good ones again are growing. Now I know WHY those icky ones happened. I’ll make sure to plant bee attraction flowers next year. This year was first garden. This video was my first gardening video.
Gotcha! I'm glad I was able to help some and thank you for watching!
I got a mason bee house and bought some cocoons at the local nursery. They actually pollinate 90% more plants than honey bees. They aren’t part of a hive so they aren’t concerned with a queen. Just independent little workhorses!
@@jeancampbell4341 Yes I guess there are 140 different species so you do want to get some that are native to your region. Our local nursery carries local native species so I got them there.
@@karengrice2303 zucchini bees (yes zucchini bees)are special they follow the plant cycle they are up earliar in the morning then honey bees and by 10 in the morning are asleep sometime you will find them zzzz inside the closed flower so if you are like me and enjoy eating the zucchini flowers just don’t pop it in your month you may be in for a surprise. They are also browner then regular bees. If you want to see them working get up early like around sun rise and watch how much energy they have. I have to get into the garden the tomatoes are gossiping about the sex life of the zucchini.
How much do they cost?
@@MaLiArtworks186 The bee home isn’t too expensive, about 20 to 40 dollars. But if you have some wood scraps, you could probably find a pattern on line to build a bee home and just buy the nesting tubes. You need to buy the mason bees from your region because there are many different species. There are conservation groups that sell them where I live for 5 dollars a box of about 20 cocoons. I think it is important to have them because they are the native bees of the North American continent. Honey bees are native to Europe and were brought here. That could be part of the reason they haven’t thrived here.
I never knew that you could prune squash and zucchini. They say you learn something new everyday. At 64, I now know a new trick for our garden!! Thanks 😊
I just “found” you.
Last night I found another that stated the same idea of pruning larger leaves / male stems / flowers.
After 50 years of gardening, I learned something new. I had been trimming some larger leaves bc we had high temps that I thought had stressed the plant and the larger leaves had died. I knew about male and female flowers and pollination, but I didn’t know why I only got male flowers.
This morning I went out and the blooms were all open. In one of the female blossoms I noticed a bee literally rolling in the blossom, covering itself in pollen. I looked further and found on one of my zucchini plants, and on one of my yellow squash plants I had fruit that had set.
So this technique actually works, I just didn’t know it!!
Thank you for the confirmation to what I was doing and didn’t know it!!
I have grown Zucchini with great success for over 60 years, I use a misting system that runs at night which is like nature does when it rains. My wife makes bread out of it, with nuts, berries, crushed grains, sometimes chocolate bits. Her little 6" loaves are a hit at the farmer's markets, she sells several hundred every year.
My sister used to grow commercially with organic certified produce. She told me to water the lawn at night and the garden at dawn. The reason for watering the garden in the morning is so the leaves dry fast to prevent mold.
Although this was 11 months ago, this is right on time for me.
ditto, and it was in my recommended
Me too!!!!
Me three 💯🤞
Same! I never thought of doing this!
Same
Agreed! My 1st squash I'd ever grown I took that info into a reality and had beautiful production!I was so proud then last year 2021 I was unable to and someone else didn't do it, the proof was good enough for me! Thank you so much . Much love to you and all taking care of Mother Earth 😎
You are so helpful Justin. I love your videos, please keep them coming!! I have learned a lot from you.
I’ve never even thought of pruning squash/zucchini - makes total sense. Thanks!
I have had some pretty good success training summer squash on a rope line, growing vertical. It keeps the plant airy and allows bees to pollinate when I do not get to the fruits. Also, I freeze the male flowers to have spares when there is female fruit and no male pollinators.
- HOW DO YOU KNOW THE “ MALE” FRUIT, & HOW DO YOU THEN POLLINATE WHAT …??
Would love to see a picture of your vertical squash. Can you describe more on how you freeze the male flower. Very interesting idea!
@@bddollen7384 he shows the male and female flowers at 2:22. Use a small brush to transfer pollen from male to female flowers.
@@bddollen7384 There isn't "male fruit". The female has the zuke behind the flower, the male flower just has a stem.
@Bd Dollen
You can help the blooms pollinate by just vibrating the stems with your fingers, tap the stems gently or if you have an electric toothbrush, just hold it against the cluster of blooms for about 10 seconds and it scatters the pollen.
Jude, from Kentucky ✝️🥀🐴🇺🇲💚
I have been growing zucchini for years, I always thought those little fruits that rot were caused by a disease. Thank you for setting me straight! I will now make a point of checking my zucchini (and cucumbers) in the morning and manually pollinating them. I haven't seen many bees in my garden. We let the clover grow in our yard to attract them. Good info!
I've never before heard of pruning squash plants; however, you've explained this so well that I can't wait to try it. THANKS!
I did this last year and it really worked.
@@brendamcallister5074 OK!! WILL DO AS YOU HAVE DONE FOR SUCCESS!!
@@brachashighhopeshomestead226 Good Luck!! It worked for me😎
@@brendamcallister5074 I had an 82 year old man with year's of experience who told me not to it wasn't his fault but just had never had of it back then, of course being me I had to tell him about it after we're all never to late to learn 😎
me too
I am a new gardener and I really liked your video. I just planted some squash and zucchini. This was a great tip thanks so much enjoyed your video. Coming to you from Gray Tennessee
I never heard of pruning zucchini or squash before! Thank you for the great videos!
Thanks for the great tips! I have staked my zucchini for the first time this year. I also appreciate the note about the variegation on the leaves - this is the first time I have experienced that with my plants and I was worried they were already getting sick. Good to know it’s not an issue!
Great vid. Last year our plants did not produce any zucs or they rotted, looking back no bees pollenated the flowers. This morning the flowers opened up and we noticed a bee doing their work. That’s good. Also now can recognize male and female plants in case we need to manually pollinate with a q-tip.
I just found your videos and I am so thankful I did! I pruned my squash and zucchini like you said, and here came the bees! We had so many bees and I wasn't sure why they almost all but left. They couldn't see the blooms. I'll definitely share your videos and watch more of them. The tomato video came after this one and I pruned those right after. Thank you!
Way to go!
Simple and descriptive.
Yay! Tomorrow my plants get their beginning.....all 6"
Thanks for this
Enjoy
David
Thank you, I didn't know what you shared in this video and will be pruning my squash plants as you described in this video. Have a blessed day!
Definitely learned a lot. My zucchini plant is quite dense and bushy with small rotting fruit. You helped me solve my issues in one video - thanks!
Fantastic video-learned so much! Thank you
Same here. Im getting tons of small rotting fruits as well but had no idea that I needed to prune zucchini plants and they are enormous . The bees 🐝 in my garden are incredible but clearly they cannot find my flowers to do their thing. Thank you for your advice.
@@heatherupton6558 You don't Have to. Just an attempt at keeping powdery mildew away. But I haven't found anything that works.
You can pollinate using a Q Tip. I do that for pumpkins, watermelons, zucchini and squash.
Thank you! I just learned why my squash fruit would rot before it had a chance to grow. I didn't realize it was a pollination issue. Also thank you for showing me how to prune my zucchini for continued harvest.
Started radically pruning squash a couple of years ago. Any leaf in the shade of another leaf or with powdery mildew gets cut. We train them up a small tomato cage. Now we get squash into september. It works.
I will try my hardest to keep up on the pruning of my squash this year. The best part for me was watching the bumble bee deep in the bloom...he was so happy! Love it.
I have been growing zucchini and squash for several years and had trouble with veggies rotting on end I hope this pruning will prevent this!! Thank you for your video I will watch more of your work!!
I appreciate your straight forward information. Although I’ve heard similar information before you present it did clear and simple to the point. Your short video was very helpful for my short attention span. Well done
Haha, glad you were able to get some value from it! I too have a short attention span. You won't see many long videos from me! Thanks for watching!
Thank you for your video I’ve been pruning my cucumber plants and now my squash plants extremely heavily because I’m growing them indoors in my apartment and I’m actually growing them hydroponically in a 5 gallon bucket. I also use a tomato cage upside down on the bucket. The cage supports some of the weight of the plant and I run a pretty heavy gauge string from the ceiling down into the Center of the plant and it gives the tendrils something g to latch onto as they grow and they love to grow up the center strong. I have also been hand pollinating and I’ve tried a paint brush and a qtip but I found neither of those worked instead what I do is take the male flower and peel all the petals back and only when I have a female flower that is fully open and then I place the center of what’s left of the male flower and gently while holdin underneath the bottom of the female flower I place the center of the male flower down in as far into the bottom of the female blossom as possible gently and give it a brisk little shake and then I’ll turn the male flower a quarter turn one way and then back again and if the male center will remain in thr female flower I’ll just leave it in there until the following morning. Sometimes it will remain and other times depending on the direction the female flower is facing it will not. But that is the only way that I’ve found has given me 100% pollination rates. For whatever reason the pollen doesnt seem to stick to a paint brush or a qtip and if u are lucky enough to get it on either of them then it doesn’t seem to release the pollen into the female blossom where you need it to go. Just that’s been my experience in hand pollinating.🙏🏻🥰🇨🇦
Thanks so much this is a treasure of a mini tutorial on indoor gardening
@@farmco6897 glad you like it. Do you grow indoors as well?
@@leannekenyoung I don't cause I forget to water. I had a horrible year growing squash the year before last and I am a huge believer in people growing food especially now with all the crazy weather, the war, and supply chain issues, so instructions on how to grow something that normally requires pollinators indoors is just awesome.
wow! you have a great system for apartment dwellers!
@@farmco6897 that’s the great thing about growing indoors hydroponically no need to worry about watering as long as you have a large enough reservoir, I have a roma tomato plant that is putting on all kinds of tomatoes and I couldn’t keep the 5gal pail filled with water it seemed every day it needed refilling so I moved it into a 120Litre tote box and it’s loving it! I estimate I’ll only have to add nutrient rich water once a week now. Much more manageable!!
Subscribed! I did my first vegetable garden this year and couldn’t have done it without the help of people like you on UA-cam. I hope you have videos for cool weather gardening because I’m about to start my first one very soon as well! Thanks for the great videos!
Really like your videos. You get right to the point without a lot of hype. Next time we drive through Shelby on our way to Charlotte, we’re stopping in, so look for us.
Thank you so much this is my first year growing zucchini in a raised garden bed I’m going to go now and sterilize my clippers and trim up my zucchini😍
Thank you for taking the time to explain some of your tips for keeping your squash and zucchini healthy. I was looking for a video on how to prune my squash as well as how to avoid powdery mildew. I will definitely use some of your tips. Thanks
You are a great presenter. Easy to hear and see what your point of interest is. Thank you gor the video.
Thank you! I appreciate you watching and glad I was able to get my points across! 😄
I have been gardening a along time and that was the first time I ever seen it done. So I have learned something new I can incorporate into my gardening
This is my first year growing anything and I'm so pleased with how well my squash is growing. Love the pruning tips I'll implement this tomorrow.
The right video at the right time. I want to prune my squash, pumpkin, and zucchini beds and this is perfect
Just found this video, so glad I did! I had no idea I needed to pruned them to promote air circulation. I’ve got four planted in a raised bed and they are growing close BUT I’ve observed bees each morning I’ve gone out to water so that’s a great thing. 🐝 I’m heading out to start pruning right now!
Thx for the info!
I hand pollinated squash one year waiting on my bees to show up. For two parts that never ever connect it’s absolutely fascinating how the stamen and the pistils so perfectly interlock together. ✌️
Reminds me of a Pink Floyd video
That's what she said🤪🤣💞
Growing a zucchini for the first time this year. Loved your easy to follow video tonight, looks like I’m heading into the garden tomorrow to do some pruning. Also taken notes from BigDogBob’s tips on the previous comment too.
Thank you for all the great advice-I did not know any of this stuff!! You are absolutely adorable and I enjoyed listening to you!! 🥰
I am 68 and this is my first garden too....sooooo much to learn. my hubby found this as I was telling him today that I thought my squash plants were just dying as the leaves on the bottom were brown. I will be busy in the morning!!
@s&K greenhouse I really appreciate that you showed the bees pollinating the fruits. It’s a great Opportunity to talk about the fact that that was not a honeybee it was a member of the Xylocopa genus, possibly Xylocopa Virginica aka carpenter bees. Honeybees don’t usually get up early enough to pollinate squash, instead native bees do an amazing job. It’s common to find long horned Melissodes bees or green sweat bees like Agapostemon working hard to get food for themselves and then feed us along the way. With more than 4,000 native bee species across America (Amd not talking about honeybees which were Brought here in the 1600s and are a managed agricultural resource), We should all be doing as much as possible to learn about the native bees in our area. I also appreciate the fact that you talked about making sure that there are other plants around for them to forage on to help bring them into the garden areas. Some of the tiniest bees want forage more than 100 feet away from their nest in the ground while others like bumblebees will fly a couple of miles. Adding native wildflowers can go along way towards feeding the native bees it will then pollinate your food crops.
Thankyou for your interesting comments about native bees! We have a few up here in Quebec. I noticed we also have a lot of black wasps, which live in the ground and are good pollinators. They are also mean. But not as allergenic as the yellowjackets.😅
This is the first time i have ever heard of pruning squash and zucchini! Will try this , thank you!
Awesome! You'll be glad you did 👍
Whoa...didn’t realize I need to prune...AND I’m moving my zucchini plant near my flowering bush that has a lot of 🐝!!! Thank you!
Thats a good idea! Thanks for watching! :)
Great idea!!
Winston Salem here, wish I would have found you and your videos early in the year. I ve been doing so many things wrong. Keep these videos coming, I ll be ready for next year!
Thanks for the information ,I'm going to Prune my squash plants this summer. I am staking my squash plants this summer. I'm using hog panels bent into a U shaped tunnel with squash planted on both sides of the tunnel. Then as they grow I will encourage them to grow up the sides of the tunnel. Along with pruning this should keep my plants off the ground and productive.
Thanks again
I've got a lot of marigolds scattered throughout the garden. Pollinators use them and unwanted bugs are staying away. Deadhead your marigolds and save the seeds for the following year. I had so many last year that I'm giving used jars full of seeds to the neighbors. Plant no later than July 15th and pick the seeds past the first freeze. My zukes and acorn squash need some more pruning! Great video.
Thanks for the tip on the Marigolds. I deadhead but never tried to save the seeds. I will do this and see what happens! Thank you!
@@robine.4248 Four years ago I got a small packet of marigold seeds. Saving the seeds and replanting them, I increased my seed load by a factor of thousands. The past two years, I have had to deal with nearly a five gallon bucket full. I've been giving people who want some 16 once roasted peanut containers crammed full. I gave my granddaughter two canisters yesterday for her outdoor space with the idea of giving some of the excess to her coworkers and patients at the hospital she works at as well as her neighbors. Marigolds, containing natural pyrethra, are great for insect control by decreasing crop damage in the garden. I just learned too, that in Mexico people will make a fresh planting of marigolds no later than August 20th each year to assure young vibrant plants for their observance of the November 1st, Day of the Dead. Good luck with yours!
Mike, thank you for your ideas!
Something ate all my marigolds , any ideas on what it might be ?
@@jennymallin9404 Are you seeing other plants in the area also suffering? You'll have to use your powers of observation to try and ascertain what might be getting to them. Marigolds are pretty hardy once established. Question: were they getting adequate water? Look for thirsty insects that might not be affected by the pyrethrums the marigolds naturally produce or have not yet produced in the younger stage of life. My vegetable garden is thick with young marigolds, the fourth year since planting the first few, so much that they are getting to a state of becoming perennial. Don't forget that you can replant and replant until mid August. Also, Jennie, any good garden center will have someone who can help you diagnosis many of the problems in plants, be it insect, viruses, Ph imbalances, over and under watering, pesticide and herbicide misuse nearby your plantings as well as fertilization issues. Soil testing is a very good place to start. Your State Extension Services are backed by agricultural departments at your universities and are the very best for your particular area. Good luck. I would replant the marigolds, maybe try a different spot.
Thank for being just plain clear down to earth! No pun intended!! But seriously I had the pollination problem and didn’t know what to do, now I do! Thanks a bunch!🙂
😄 thank you for watching! Glad i was able to get my points across effectively!
You can also hand pollinate in the morning with a paintbrush. 🖌 🌼 male pollen to female stigma
@@lizherbst7393 have you actually tried this and do you believe it works? Because it’s been my experience that using a brush or qtip simply doesn’t work. The most helpful way that I have found is to actually cut off the male and carefully remove all the petals and then hold the male flower by the very bottom and insert it down into the female flower as far down in as possible and then I let it sit in there for a minute or so and then I’ll trying turning it a half turn one way and a half turn the other way, and I usually hold the base on the female blossom so that I don’t accidentally break it off. So I hope this method helps someone if they have tried the paintbrush or qtip methods and not had success perhaps this way will work. I know for a fact that it does because I’ve grown cucumbers and it has worked really well for them. The reason I know my method works and that they aren’t subsequently pollinated by an insect is because my plants are growing indoors in my apartment and there are no flying insects and no crawling ones either.
Lol! So that’s how I know my method actually does work. 🙏🏻🥰🇨🇦
@@leannekenyoung I use the paint brush method on my squash as a backup. I have found that I need to get going before the bees arrive. If I wait, the pollen is all taken. Since I don't cut the flower off, there is still plenty of pollen available for bees when they start their shift. My female flowers are only now starting to appear after several days of large numbers of male flowers. This morning I found 3 females and only one male so I was able to ensure a good set by hand pollination.
@@leannekenyoung I think what you have suggested will ensure that we get what we planted bc its possible the pollen shared on the bees body may be from another squash! the seeds I pulled out of an acorn squash turned out to give me zucchini or half yellow half green squashes mostly although I did manage to get a few acorns. But it was such a consternation how such a thing could happen... I actually thought it could have happened bc it might have been a hybrid. They were very good but this advice will be another good experiment to see what develops this season, thank you so much!
This was great, thank you! Please make more - you make everything so clear! Would love to hear your tips on carrots, radishes, tomatoes, everything else pretty much! :)
Excellent, new to gardening and my zucchini plant is doing well but thi an answered ALL my questions. Thanks so much!
This was just what I was needing! Thanks for the video!
OMG! This video was extremely helpful for me! A first time trying my hand at gardening person.
Currently have squash and zucchini growing past the normal N Florida growing season.
Glad to hear there are things to do to keep my plants healthy!
Very helpful video-- thanks. I decided to prune my zucchini yesterday because some of the leaves were shading over the neighboring tomato plants and I was worried that I may have damaged the plant because of the huge gaping holes it leaves after pruning the large stocks. I'm relieved to see that this is not a problem
My zucchini plant has white patches on the leaves. I thought it was some kind of mildew, but this video taught me that this is absolutely normal on zucchini leaves!! Thank you for pointing this out, and also for the tips on pruning!
I have learned so much from your videos. I have never liked working out in my yard, that has now changed because of your videos. I have landscaped my front yard and measured out the length and width and planted some arborvitaes, loropetalums, florida sunshine and everything came out looking amazing. I purchased two of your raised beds and have been following your tips on pruning and flowers to plant for pollination. My vegetable garden is doing amazing. I have been showing pictures of my landscaping and raised beds to coworkers and they have ordered raised beds as well. Thank you for the tips, love your videos!
Didn't know much about pruning squash & zucchini. glad I ran across this video. Thumbs up & subscribed. Thanks.
Never knew this and we have zucchini & squash just coming in. Sent video to hubby. This will be a big help.
first year growing zuccini and didn't know you could prune them.... heading out to do that now! Great video
Interesting, I didn't know that pruning squash would help it to continue to grow and put out new foliage and flowers, thanks.
It wont
Thanks for the video! I will be pruning my squash plants now. I was previously told that pruning would set them up for diseases and that it was to be avoided. So now I can prune and have more squash and healthier plants. Many thanks! :)
Never knew I needed to prune these vegetables. OMW to the garden! Thanks for sharing
Really appreciate your channel, & your knowledge you are sharing!! I’ve always been a believer in pruning and I have never found you can over prove unless you get right down to that base of the plant but nobody would do that I hope. I want to give my father a beautiful sunset maple tree and hold at 700 miles to give it to him in the first thing he did was pull out His pocket knife and strip all the leaves off of it except the ones at the top… I was gasping for air as I watched him and he shared with me that if you do this before you plant, you will have the nicest shaped tree win it grows up and he was TOTALLY RIGHT...It is a stunning well shaped tree in my parents yard.
I do pruning with my flowers as well as my zucchini but I’ve never thought about cross pollination and I’m going to pay closer attention to that so thank you for this video. I’m becoming very concerned for the Bee pollination in our USA, So everyone does need to do their part in terms of planning something to help your gardens… My Parents always had rose of Marigolds and rose of Zinnias carefully placed at the front of gardens ..& then A large variety different flowers every so many rows and I always thought it was for making it pretty out there but it was later it was my grandfather who explained how important it was because we also had orchards and we needed as many bees as we could get. I wish I could talk to all of them… My parents and grandparents because gardening is a bigger part of my life now than it was in my 20s , And I didn’t pay as much attention and tap into their vast knowledge. It’s videos like this did help us be better gardeners and most of us don’t have the acres and acres of land that our parents had. Good luck to you and I look forward to more videos.. I eat zucchini 12 months a year FYI
Really appreciate you sharing ❤ Glad you're liking the videos, I will keep them coming!
Vicki I think you mean ROWS OF MARIGOLDS & ZINNIAS, yes? that these brightly colored flowers attracted the bees etc. to stop by & have a little visit. on the vegetables...
My first instinct was to prune my squash back but I was nervous 😂 thank you so much for this video. So informative!
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE INFO ON HOW POLLINATION WORKS. I’M A NEW GARDENER AND THERE’S SO MUCH TO LEARN! I NOW KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MY HUMUNGOUS OVER CROWDED ZUCCHINI PLANT!
You're quite welcome! Thank you for watching! Sounds like your already doing well with it!
Love,love,love this tip, had no idea this would increase production. Thank you! You have a new fan!!!
Thanks for letting me know I was doing something right when pruning my plants. Did not know airflow was that important!
I've been afraid to prune my zucchini. Thanks for the encouragement!
Wow... You have answered a lot of questions! I had no idea it was good to prune your squash and zucchini plants. Thank you.
Thank you for watching!
Its snot.
Thank you for this valuable information. I had given up on growing zucchini because the fruit would always rot and and the plant would get powdery mildew. I decided to give it one more try this year. I’m excited to try all your suggestions, which make total sense.
Yes, I have never pruned my squash & zucchini plants. I will this year. I have had the powdery mildew so this is great to get a jump on getting air circulation in there. Thanks!
I had the same thing last year, so agree 100% that this information is great to have!
I didn't think I would be learning the Birds and Bees from you. Thanks. I'll be pollinating tomorrow morning.
This is a wonderful video, I often wondered if this was possible or would harm my plants if I cut. Thank you for taking the time to how us home gardeners this tip...
I'm just now seeing this, a yr late, but I'm eternally grateful. I am a hit or miss zucchini grower ! You provided some great advice and in a very pleasant way. Thank you.🌱
Oh, that explains it. I need to prune my squash. So many rotted before getting pollinated. Thank you.
You'll be amazed!
If the fruits are rotting while small you likely need more calcium in your soil.
Maybe self pollinate, I tried this because mine would just start turning yellow, worked wonders!
New Gardner here! This is my second year. I’m excited to try the pruning of my squash and zucchini plants! I want more veggies this year. Thanks for the info.
I never heard of pruning Zucchini. I will try that this year. Thanks for the tip!
I don't know why I haven't considered pruning zucchini and squash before. I was a horticulture major in college some forty years ago. So it's not like I'm a rookie on the subject but your spot on with this. Not only will this do all the things you mentioned, including making it easier for the pollinators to find the blossoms ( let's not forget the humming birds) it will make it easier for the Gardner to find the fruit when still a more preferable size. You know those wonderful little fruit, not the huge ones that are ready to take over the world. And as long as we are talking about pruning and blossoms how about collecting some blossoms also. Stuffed blossoms are a wonderful part of Italian cuisine. Go ahead and plant more then one zucchini plant if you want. Just remember to be removing some of the blossoms for the table and keep the number of fruits manageable. Have a great day. 👍 🌤🍻🌱
Oh my goodness yes! All of that! And I breaded and fried up the blossoms last year! What a delicacy!
Do you use male or female flowers in cuisine?
Or both?
@Jael Louis Good question. I believe each blossom has both male and female parts. So any blossom will do. Tip, harvest blossoms that are more difficult to find first. That way the fruit you allow to grow are easier to find before they get to large. Also add blossoms to salads and use as garnish.
Well, you live and learn...I never thought to cut the leaves off to let the air circulate and help the bees do their jobs better! Dohhhh. Thanks.
Thank you. I am going to prune my raised bed. Always wondered why I would get a huge yield early and then nothing!
Awesome! Glad you were able to get something useful from the vid! Thank you for watching!
First time growing squash and zucchini. This helps so much! Didn’t know what to do with the flowers, etc. tried looking it up with not much success and you absolutely nailed it for me. Thank you 😊
I'm new at growing squash and zucchini plants did not know you had to do so much with pruning but will know from now on thank you
Thank you for this! I always plant my zucchini closer together and prune them (same with tomatoes, cucumbers or squash). Though I always get loads of harvest, I've been told by this or that gardener that I'm doing it all wrong. You confirmed that I'm doing it right, so does my own experience.
It's my first time growing squash. This is very helpful!
Awesome! Thank you for watching!
I actually knew all about this from my last years of experience. I’ve also trained my summer squash even to grow up, on trellis, until I broke one. Though, I really appreciate this video because I’m going to share it. Hopefully, it’ll help out new gardeners with the simple method of cutting out older growth to aerate. If they’re paying attention 😂
Sending greetings from Madoc Ontario….thanks for the tips on pruning. Blessings