Courgettes starting to flower

My courgette plants, all still indoors crammed on the window sills are showing signs of starting to flower. With this horrible damp, cold windy weather I don't think they will fair too well going outside yet. Is it going to be a problem potting them up once they've already started to flower?

 

It shouldn't be, you're probably only get male flowers this early. they really need their roots in the soil to get away though.

Are you starting to harden them off yet?

 

I haven't yet - I'm a bit nervous of damaging them, last year I lost a couple of courgette plants when the wind got them while they were still young and snapped the stem. I lost the couple to mildew (I think - the leaves went dry and yellow and powdery) so wasn't sure about this year's crop getting too damp in unseasonable conditions. A few leaves have already got patches on, I think where they're outgrowing their indoor positions and touching the window glass and getting condensation on them.

Guess I need to bite the bullet and start getting them hardened off and outside, was just so disappointed in my first year last year that didn't get any courgettes after everyone said they were so easy to grow!

 

I struggled for most of the Cucurbits last year, first the drought & then the relentless winds, so it wasn't just you MrJ.

If you can put them out somewhere sheltered from the wind at first, open cold frame or even a box, it will help.

 

Glad to hear it wasn't getting everything wrong then!

I've got some tall fruit crates I can stand them in that'll hopefully keep the wind off. I'll start standing the plants outside during the day from tomorrow.

Thanks for the advice as always Zig!

 

No worries MrJ,

Use your judgement though, if its really horrible keep em in

 

Mine are still indoors. They have flowers too. I really need to get some things out of the way but it's been so miserable and cold out there.

PS Zig, my plants will have to live in large pots. Do you think I'll still get some courgettes? (Doesn't have to be many - my son thinks they were invented purely to torture his tastebuds.)

 

You should do Clare, give em a feed as soon as you get the Girly flowers & try pickling some, makes em into a different animal.

 

Don't like Cucumbers but I think they are meant to be bitter if they get polinated.

Not so with Corgettes, they need polinating. If they flower before the bees are around then we strip the petals from a male flower & give the girly flowers a good rodgering with them.

 

Blimey! I haven't even sown my courgettes yet - the seeds arrived in the post today. I guess they'll catch up.

 

Well I aint got a clue, but a friend gave me two plants about two inches high six weeks ago, they were on the windowsill for 4, then I put them in a very large sunken pot in the GH, On Monday/Tuesday, I just stuck them in the middle of my empty veg patch
Some people adivse me to just let them ramble, Others say train them up poles, well
I have gone for the RAMBLE method, as at the moment I am becoming very disallusioned, with it all, so depressing constant cold, rain, hailstones, for the past five months, and I do not eat rabbit food anyway so no pun intended STUFF THEM

Jack McH

 

Life's too short to stuff a courgette.