Growing zucchini Almost every vegetable lover works at his or her summer cottage. Experienced summer residents have no problems growing this crop. However, beginners often have problems and do not know why the ovaries of zucchini fall off.
To prevent the zucchini from wilting and its ovaries falling off, you should familiarize yourself in advance with the peculiarities of growing this plant.
It all starts with following planting rules
Many gardeners are wondering what needs to be done to prevent zucchini from turning yellow.The first thing you should do is to familiarize yourself with the basic rules for planting and growing this vegetable crop.
It is recommended to plant seed in open ground in the first half of May, so that the soil is already well warmed up. For planting, select an area with soil that contains a high level of humus and slight acidity. Before planting, the area is dug up and fertilizers are added to the soil.
Sawdust, humus, turf soil and peat are added to the soil mixture. You can also add a little ash or chalk to reduce the acidity. After preparation, holes about 5–6 cm deep are made in the area, into which squash seeds are placed. When all the seed has been planted, the soil is watered.
To prevent the zucchini from turning yellow and their ovaries falling off, the planted plants will have to be properly cared for. Care consists of timely moistening, loosening and fertilizing the soil.
Reasons for the fall of zucchini ovaries
You can often hear from gardeners that the ovaries of zucchini wither and dry out, which is why the plant’s yield deteriorates. Many people believe that this problem occurs due to disease or exposure to harmful insects. However, this is not always the real reason for the yellowing of the leaves.
It's no secret that the growing season is different for all plants. For squash bushes this period is several months. During this time, the first leaves on the zucchini bushes begin to age, causing them to turn yellow and fall off.
Problems with the health of squash bushes often appear if a set of agrotechnical measures to care for the plant was not followed during flowering. This leads to problems with pollination, lack or excess of nutrients, and powdery mildew infection.
Excess moisture and nutrients
Falling of zucchini ovaries and rotting of bushes often begins due to waterlogged soil. The reasons for excess moisture in the soil include too frequent watering or regular rains. To maintain a normal level of soil moisture, you should familiarize yourself with the features of watering this vegetable crop:
- It is recommended to water no more than once a month, since squash bushes do not like moisture;
- When watering, each plant consumes about 15 liters of warm water;
- water should not be poured from above, but under the root, so as not to touch the stem or leaves;
- You should not water the bushes with strong water pressure, as this will wash away the root system and the plant will wither;
- there is no need to periodically spray leaves or fruits with water, since the crop does not need it.
To reduce soil moisture during heavy rains, it is recommended:
- regularly loosen the soil on the site so that air can penetrate into it better;
- do not remove weeds so that they absorb excess moisture.
Many people are surprised why squash bushes wither in soil with a large amount of nutritional components. This happens due to the fact that in such soil the plants continuously increase their green mass and, after strong growth, gradually wither. Therefore, it is undesirable to frequently fertilize with organic or mineral fertilizers.
However, plants do not always wither from an excess of fertilizers. Sometimes zucchini drys out due to a lack of nutritional components, namely boron. In this case, it is recommended to fertilize with a boron solution prepared from 10 liters of water and a gram of the substance.
The problem lies in the flower
After the first ovaries appear, it is recommended to get rid of all the flowers on the bushes.If this is not done, all the zucchini ovaries will immediately fall off and the plant will not bear fruit. This happens due to the fact that moisture accumulates in each flower, due to which the process of rotting begins.
After all the male and female flowers have been picked, the place where the flower grew is treated with ash. This is done to disinfect and prevent future fruits from rotting.
Also, problems with squash bushes arise due to unpollinated female plants. In this case, you will have to do the pollination of the bushes yourself. To do this, a male flower with ripe pollen is picked from any bush. To check its maturity, you should make sure that it is fluffy. When a plant is pollinated, the female ovary is carefully applied to the male flower.
To avoid problems with pollination in the future, all flowering plants are treated with a solution to attract bumblebees or bees.
Powdery mildew infection
A common reason why zucchini ovaries fall off in open ground is powdery mildew. This fungal disease develops at high levels of humidity and therefore most often zucchini becomes infected with it during periods of frequent rainfall.
Powdery mildew affects the leaves and stems of bushes, causing white spots to appear on their surface. First, a white coating appears on the lower leaves and over time spreads to the upper ones. The main reasons for the appearance and development of the disease include:
- a large amount of nitrogen in the soil;
- high level of humidity;
- the bushes are too close to each other;
- improper watering of bushes.
To get rid of the disease, you should use a soap-soda solution, which will restore the squash bushes.To prepare a medicinal mixture, you can dissolve a teaspoon of soda with 5 grams of soap and two liters of heated water. The prepared solution is used for spraying plants.
What to do?
To preserve zucchini, you need to figure out what to do when the ovaries turn yellow. To preserve plants and get a good harvest, we recommend:
- Before planting the planting material, feed the soil with inorganic or organic fertilizers. Wood ash, peat and turf soil are suitable for this.
- Gradually, after planting the zucchini, fertilize it 2 times with a complex of fertilizers. The first time fertilizers are added to the soil after the formation of the first leaves. The next feeding is carried out after the appearance of flower buds.
- Regularly moisten the soil so that the soil does not dry out too much.
- In dry weather, mulch the soil in the root zone of squash bushes.
Having figured out what to do when growing zucchini, their ovaries will not disappear or dry out.
Conclusion
Gardeners who grow vegetables often plant zucchini in their gardens. To avoid problems with yellowed leaves when growing this vegetable crop, it is recommended that you familiarize yourself with the reasons for the plant drying out and how to eliminate this problem.
