Questions tagged [cucurbits]

Plant family Cucurbitaceae - contains squashes, melons, and gourds.

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4 votes
1 answer
123 views

What type of squash/gourd is this?

I planted what was supposed to be a gourd and it has given a few of these fruits from small flowers (similar to cucumber) that have reached around 20cm long and about 2kg. Any idea what they are?
1 vote
1 answer
132 views

Butternut squash lost growing tip, is it worth keeping it?

One of my butternut squash plants lost its growing tip. Probably cut while mowing the grass, since they are planted on the borders of the garden and not in the raised beds because of the space they ...
9 votes
2 answers
29k views

What is the difference between a melon and a squash?

When looking at either the fruit, or the plant of either, is there a specific characteristic, or set thereof, of either group that distinguishes one from the other? I am curious as to the ...
4 votes
2 answers
5k views

Will weed barrier work as a shade cloth?

My cukes can get stressed during July and August, the hottest months of the year in Michigan. Will black weed barrier work as shade cloth or will too much heat build up behind it and further stress ...
1 vote
1 answer
164 views

What is happening to my squash/cucurbita?

I have planted in a pot the seeds of a squash/cucurbita (this type) and it was growing very quick and nicely. In the last couple of days I noticed that the leaves looks half dead/sick, and I don't ...
2 votes
0 answers
223 views

Growing bitter melon or karela?

I live near Vancouver, Canada, USDA zone 8a. Our summers are fairly mild, only becoming consistently hot from mid-July to end of August and maybe the beginning of September. I want to grow karela (the ...
1 vote
1 answer
48 views

Is Xanthomonas a host-specific disease?

I grew some volunteer cantaloupes in pots this summer, but they got hit hard by what I believe is Xanthomonas, a bacteria which causes angular leaf spot. I tossed the diseased plants, but I'd like to ...
16 votes
3 answers
20k views

How to stop my courgettes (zucchini) rotting?

I've tried growing courgettes (zucchini) for the first time this year and the plants have been delightfully easy to grow. (For reference, I'm in NE England, UK, btw.) However, many of the fruits ...
1 vote
1 answer
426 views

What is the value of powdered onion as a fertilizer or soil amendment?

Hypothetically speaking, if I have a whole bunch of onions that I powdered, what value might that powder have as a fertilizer or soil amendment for plants like tomatoes, peppers and cucurbits (just ...
7 votes
1 answer
735 views

What are the practical differences between cucurbits grown from seed and cuttings?

What are the practical differences between cucumbers grown from seed and cucumbers of the same maturity level and equivalent root maturity from cuttings? Is there a significant difference between ...
3 votes
1 answer
272 views

Does Thai muskmelon (AKA Thai best or Tang Thai) do well in a dry climate?

I read about a kind of melon called Thai best. I think it's popular in Thailand. Anyway, that's where it comes from. According to websites online, fruits mature extremely quickly (60 to 65 days after ...
8 votes
2 answers
3k views

What's the best way to kill cucumber beetles after I've started harvesting?

My yellow squash and zucchini are infested with both striped and spotted cucumber beetles. I don't think I can use Sevin Dust anymore because I've already started harvesting them. I tried food grade ...
12 votes
1 answer
1k views

Will an unevenly coloured (green) pumpkin ripen to a nice even orange?

My experience of cucurbits is mostly courgettes and cucumbers which a) don't matter too much about an even colour and b) don't sit so heavily on the ground. But with a pumpkin it's all about how it ...