Problems With Zucchinis in Vegetable Gardens

Poor Germination

• Sometimes, zucchini seeds do not germinate well. Soak the seeds for 24 hours before planting. This gives the seed a head start and results in a better germination rate.

Pollination

• Sometimes, a small zucchini forming at the end of a flower, only to turn yellow and die. This happens when the flower is not pollinated. Other times, the zucchini may produce only male flowers, which often happens early in the growing season. Wait for a bit. Female flowers form and will be pollinated. If you have plenty of male and female flowers, but no fruit, it could be a lack of bees. If you use chemical pesticides in your yard, you may be killing the bees. Avoid using pesticides and encourage bees to visit your yard and garden by growing bee-friendly landscape plants.

Watering

• If the end of the fruit turns brown and shriveled, uneven watering may be the problem. If the soil dries out too much between watering, it causes blossom end rot. Adding 2 to 3 inches of mulch around your plants helps conserve moisture. Apply enough water to soak down at least 18 to 20 inches. Do not water again until the top few inches dry out.

Insects

• If your seedlings are up and growing one day but cut off at the ground the next morning, blame the cutworm. This worm lives in the soil and meanders around at night, eating its way through your garden. When it reaches an obstacle, such your zucchini plant stem, it cuts it off at the base. Place cardboard collars around plants pushed an inch into the soil controls this problem. Cardboard from toilet paper rolls work very well. The squash vine borer is another insect that attacks zucchini. If your plant wilts, and it is not because of a lack of water, check the plant's base frass, a yellow mass the borer expels as it eats its way through the plant stem. Once you see damage, the plant cannot be saved. Spray stems with Bacillus thuringiensis to kill this pest. If the leaves have irregular holes chewed in them, the striped cucumber beetle could be present. Handpick the beetles, use floating row covers as a barrier in cooler climates or spray with rotenone.