I tested a new zucchini variety that claims to be parthenocarpic, producing fruit without pollination. If this is true, a parthenocarpic zucchini plant can be grown under insect netting without hand pollination, and we can finally grow zucchini free from squash vine borers and squash bugs! Imagine squash plants, vine borer and squash bug free, with no sprays and no hand pollinating! I put this zucchini squash to the test. This zucchini experiment promised life changing results. Did it work? Come find out!
Seeds featured in this video can be purchased here:
Sure Thing Zucchini: https://fxo.co/IkGJ
Merlin Cucumber: https://fxo.co/IkGK
Party Time Cucumber: https://fxo.co/IkGL
Diamant Cucumber: https://www.gopjn.com/t/8-12781-345111-269073?url=https%3A%2F%2Fterritorialseed.com%2Fproducts%2Fcucumber-diamant%3F_pos%3D1%26_sid%3Dc40855fc8%26_ss%3Dr
The links to seeds above are affiliate links. If you choose to use them, I would receive a small commission at no cost to you.
I use the following products* for growing zucchini in my vegetable garden:
Insect Netting: https://amzn.to/3AOnK5h
Shade Cloth (Many Sizes): https://amzn.to/4gbDUpo
Frost Protection Row Covers: https://amzn.to/4g2z51T
Row Cover Kit w/Hoops: https://amzn.to/4eaWjkF
Grow Bags (Many Sizes): https://amzn.to/3x4bJXO
Jobe’s Organic Fruit & Nut (4lbs): https://amzn.to/4cWfOgy
Jobe’s Organic Vegetable Fertilizer (4lbs): https://amzn.to/45YHmh2
Espoma PlantTone All Purpose Fertilizer (36lb): https://amzn.to/4dgECQ9
Espoma Bone Meal (10lb): https://amzn.to/3X9s88a
True Organic Blood Meal (3lb): https://amzn.to/3yNzMLB
Crab & Lobster Shell Meal (4lb): https://amzn.to/3T61EkZ
Alaska Fish Fertilizer (Gallon): https://amzn.to/3XP5EHU
Jack’s All Purpose 20-20-20 (1.5lb): https://amzn.to/3MQ4I2A
Jack’s Blossom Booster 10-30-20 (1.5lb): https://amzn.to/3KyPTzg
Grow More All Purpose 20-20-20 (25lb): https://amzn.to/4dj0Gtg
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
0:00 Challenges Growing Squash Plants
2:31 Parthenocarpic Cucurbits
3:47 Cucumbers VS Zucchini
4:49 Experimental Zucchini Variety
6:18 Zucchini Experiment Results
9:30 Now What Do I Do?
13:05 Adventures With Dale
If you have any questions about how to grow zucchini plants, want to know about the things I grow in my raised bed vegetable garden and edible landscaping food forest, are looking for more gardening tips and tricks and garden hacks, have questions about vegetable gardening and organic gardening in general, or want to share some DIY and “how to” garden tips and gardening hacks of your own, please ask in the Comments below!
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ABOUT MY GARDEN
Location: Southeastern NC, Brunswick County (Wilmington area)
34.1°N Latitude
Zone 8B
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#gardening #garden #vegetablegardening #zucchini #squash
45 Comments
If you enjoyed this video, please "Like" it and share it to help increase its reach! Thanks for watching 🙂TIMESTAMPS for convenience:
0:00 Challenges Growing Squash Plants
2:31 Parthenocarpic Cucurbits
3:47 Cucumbers VS Zucchini
4:49 Experimental Zucchini Variety
6:18 Zucchini Experiment Results
9:30 Now What Do I Do?
13:05 Adventures With Dale
Awesome video. Have you ever heard of forgotten greens or stinking greens?
Once again I had to pull a dying zucc. Turns out it had 4 caterpillars in it. Early on I was injecting it with BT but stopped after a month or so. I just planted 4 for a fall harvest and being in S Miss., there should be plenty of time before the first frost or freeze hits.
So is the conclusion that temperature and humidity determine the 'sex' for that variety of zucchinis?
I drew bees into my food garden with lots of flowering plants all around.
My cucumbers and squash really produced beautifully this season.
It seems the powdery mildew is by bigger problem.
Diatomaceous earth has been my go to for crawling insects. I dust regularly (with a pastry sieve) around the parameters of each garden bed, and if I see crawling insects on the plants, I dust them too.
Here's some more data for you. I live in the Spartanburg sc area. I grew those zukes last year with amazing success. Unfortunately the cukes all died. This year it was a total opposite outcome. All the zukes died and cukes grew and formed but very poorly. Hopefully this helps us all. Love the videos. Keep them coming!
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. While it’s disappointing that you aren’t getting fruit on the zucchini plants, you can always cook up all those male flowers. Mmmmm…. squash flower tempura… 😋
Thanks for the warning. Fails can get expensive.
My zucchini has been confused this summer. I've had lots of male flowers, then when they're gone I had all female, repeat…. Saddest part is I haven't seen a single vine borer, cucumber beetle, nor squash bug unlike most years. Sigh… 😆
I had the problem with my squash that they just didn't produce female flowers. I ended up with 1 yellow squash off of 4 plants. What would cause just male blooms? I do have plenty of bees, so I don't really need a variety that doesn't need pollination.
What a bummer, but good to know!
I’m so sorry your experiment didn’t work. I don’t think it is your zone. I really believe there isn’t a reliable parthenocarpic zucchini variety available. But keep trying please! I don’t even try to grow zucchini in southern MD (7B) just because it isn’t worth it to draw squash bugs into my garden. My cucs grow under row cover and do great. Love your videos!
Are they Non-GMO?? Because, though your way would be easier, I can grow any of these, Non-GMO types, of the foods you named, with no insect problems by using neem leaf powder, ground cinnamon, and ground clove, and by adding cedar shavings, between rows and beds.
Thanks for sharing your experiment with this new zucchini seed. 🙏
Thank you for sharing short Dale moments , as well. 👍
I live in Central Texas. It is very hot (VERY hot), little rain, and lots of bugs. I have been growing the TATUME (tat-TOO-me) zucchini for the past few years. It is a vining variety so I will let it spread on the ground. I have also let it climb a trellis. It is a big producer- the fruit is a globe style zucchini. This variety is resistant to SV borer because the ground stems root which sustains the growing end of the stem. There are years when I get a huge harvest even when I see clear evidence of borer damage. (The vines over the trellis do not fare as well because they don't root.) My main complaint is that it tends to get powdery mildew pretty easily. If you can stay on top of the mildew, I think you would be pleased with this variety.
The best ones I’ve ever tried were Trombocino. I wouldn’t say resistance to all those pests, but very resilient. They fight through everything. Hardy plants. Put out tons of food and you can pick em green and treat them like zucchini or lettuce them cure on the vine to the color of butter nut squash and treat them like winter squash and the taste is the same. Texture is great and seeds are all down in the fat part. I grow them every year now and they beat the pants off of everything in the garden hands down. Heirloom Italian variety.
Thanks You Millennial Gardener!! I live just up the coast in Carteret County!! So a lot of what you share really pertains to my area!! You are a Wealth of Knowledge!! I had a tough time with the bugs this year but I planted a fall crop of Early Prolific Yellow Squash and Black Beauty Zucchini. The Bug problem has not been as bad and my plants are setting fruit. My family loves pickling Cucumbers so I Planted a second round of Boston Picklers and a variety called Homemade. They are now setting fruit. Again not as much bug activity!!! Thanks Again!!
Have Sweet Success (Parthenocarpic) growing to see how it does. No fruit yet, but planted late in season. Would like to find a productive, parthenocarpic yellow squash.
I love your 'experimental' approach!
I've always read that male blossoms appear before female blossoms. Have patience…
Love the video & Dale's new sqeaky bus!!🎉
Ive grown sure thing for 3 seasons now – the plants were very week made mostly male flowers and had squash bugs real bad until the vine borers finally killed them – sure thing zucchini defiantly arent a sure thing
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I got the same verity, I only buy what others recommend; I’m thinking you watched the same video I did where another recommended the verity. My Sure Thing zucchini’s grew up super tall up to the canopy of my aquaponics shade cloth. It had tendrils, and it would grow up its stake faster than I have ever seen. I had females on my plants, but they would always abort, that wasn’t as advertised? I didn’t get one zucchini out of the bunch and I had to cut it down because they were climbing through the roof. A squash with tendrils?
My guess for the abundance of male flowers is both a light issue and a watering issue. I don't think sure thing was bred with the possibility of 17 inches of rain in a week in mind. All this talk about parthenocarpic greenhouse varieties is making me fantasize about getting a greenhouse though.
I normally don't get squash due to the vine borers so I planted about 35 squash plants determined to get at least one squash. Well the SVB pressure was late and very light this year and I was covered over in squash. Only lost a coupe to SVB in GA. Nothing else did well though, leaf footed bugs stung everything else. I wish we could know what we will be up against each year so we would know what to plant.
Tried Sure Thing last year. Disappointed.
I SURELY like you're honesty
Temperatures in the 90s during the day or 70s at night can cause flowers and small fruit to abort. In warm temperatures, plants produce more male flowers than female flowers, which can lead to fewer fruits. Bees are also not as active when it is over 90.
Had my hopes up because I just can't get summer squash and zucchini to work for me due to the SVB!
I planted my usual zucchini that has always had prolific yield. This year I had 2 small zucchini for the entire season. Male flowers everywhere. My yellow squash right next to it did great. I had heard many people complain of the same problem.
Thanks!
Dale is so cute 😂
I love this and will definitely try these varieties. Do you have any advice for getting only male flowers?
It has been a crazy year for me. All male flowers on my squash and cucumbers.
Gonna give up on Zuc's and such. Squash Bugs were out of this world this year! I only have 2 pumpkins and 2 Watermellons! Done. I'll shop for what I need at the moment.
I have had scalloped squash do the same thing – never produced a single female.
Is this variety GMO?
Much respect for putting up your failures as well as your successes. It's tremendously helpful and something many gardening channels fail to realize.
I absolutely love all your info you share…as an avid gardener for 35 yrs…I have learned so much from you!
My concerns with these parthenocarpic seeds are they are genetically modified…I truly do not know much about them…
But…for genuine good varieties of squash and cucumbers that are resilient to vine bore and bugs, cucumber beetles and mildew that self propagate even after attack for a longer harves…and i succession plant into late summer as well…are …cucumbers- calypso and burpees burpless bush-for green house diva cucumbers… and for summer squash – cocozelle and golden zuchini…and my crookneck is still producing I'm zone 7 southern indiana…also for winter squas varieties that just keep on producing even under attack – honeynut, waltham butternut, and dual summer / winter squash tromboncino and tatume…all should grow in your zone as well!!! Good luck, just sharing 😁God bless
When you find all males that means they're having a "frat party", pinch a bunch off and see if the females arrive. It worked on my butternut squash so try that before you pull them. We live in Florida and did get butternut squash last year although I switched to asian varieties of "butternut squash", tromboncino and Tahitian melon. Hopefully you can extend this experiment and do a video !!!! Good luck!!!!!
Lose the shirt. Are you gY?
I get beat up every year from the vine borer. One of your videos showed you recommending Captain Jacks Spinosad. Was surprised to learn that it was FDA approved organic. Used it on my hibiscus plant and my zucchini plants. Both of those plants flourished this year like never before. Want to thank you for this recommendation as it provided around 150 zucchini from 6 plants. Love your videos. Keep up the great work. I tell every person I know who grows veggies to watch you.
Cornell University printed a list of parthenocarpic squash, both summer yellow and zucchini. Golden Glory was highest on the list, with 100% of covered flowers producing fruit. Dunja and Noche were zucchini’s that got 83% and 73% respectively. Sure Thing was not even on the list.
Party Time and Merlin are sold out, any other seed company that you know would carry them?