no male flowers on my squash!

[hedgewizard]

This seems an odd one to me, and the net seems silent on it. My two kabocha-type squash plants are producing flowers all right, but all female. This is annoying me since I want to save the seed, so I'm having to nip the females out for now which is a horrible horrible waste. Any suggestions?

[glenniedragon]

Know anyone else growing them?
I noticed with my pumpkins at the beginning I had a good half dozen female flowers to a single male, now the ratio has switched-what is nature up to?

kind thoughts
Deb

[hedgewizard]

I'd settle for even a singe male - something to get my paintbrush into!

[Luath]

My courgettes are prodcuing all female flowers at the moment, but lots of fruits too, so I'm not worried. I never save the seeds as I always grow more than one variety and they wouldn't come true. I have a huge amoung of Turk's Turbans coming along this year

[hedgewizard]

Um... but these are heirloom ones and I'm out of seeds. Want to grow them in quantity next year if they're nice!

There are some male flowers now but they're refusing to open. I guess I just have to be patient... except I've seen a link elsewhere to "blue bananas" squash and it's so tempting...

[Bee]

Sorry for being a bit dense.... but how do you tell a male flower from a female flower ? This might be why my pumpkin plants have lots of flowers but not a pumpkin in sight!

[glenniedragon]

girl flowers have a, well, dumpy bottom, looks like a 'pumpkin in waiting'- male flowers attach straight to the stalk with no swelling.

kind thoughts
Deb

[hedgewizard]

Female flowers usually have short stalks and are close to the ground as well, whereas male flowers have longer stalks and are more... well... upright.

[albert onglebod]

im having the exact same problem with a melon plant.Ive got the dumpy ended flowers but nothing else.

[ina]

This is a wild guess - but might there be varieties with bi-sexual flowers, i.e. self-fertilising?

[hedgewizard]

Nope, plain male and female. Update - first male flower this morning! Now all I have to do is bag a female or two with mesh, and wait for them to open...

[Shirley]

hoorah!!! Ummm I've got blue banana squash but not very big at the moment and no sign of any flowers at all.... sigh!!!!!!

[albert onglebod]

my melon is definitely not self fertilising as the flowers just die. I've even used the paint brush technique thinking I wasn't very good at telling the difference.

[hedgewizard]

Those'll all be male flowers then. Wait for the females, they're usually later!

[Millymollymandy]

My melons (Charentais) have just started flowering and they are all male at the moment - but I can see the female buds there. They are tiny!! I thought they would be like courgette flowers or squash.