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yellow sqash


Question
my squash are all blooming and i have several small ones, but they don't seem to get any bigger and have been on the plant for about 2 week.....though not real hot yet, lots of days of 70's and 80's temps.....Augusta, Ga...thanks sue

Answer
Hi sue.
Are they perhaps a variety that does not grow so big?
If they are the right color ( deep color, not turning orangish) I would go ahead and pick them.
My husband is the veggie gardener and I just grow grass and flowers etc, and he never plants squash. It has been about 30 years since I grew squash.
It could be a deficiency in the nutrients in the soil. If you have some compost, you could top dress with that for the rest of the crop, but if they are as much as 3 inches long, and you cook them, I think you will be surprised at the taste.
Also the smaller ones do not have such large seeds in them, and they taste better.
When I buy them, I pick the smallest ones, just wash them, cut off the ends and put them in a baking dish with seasoning and butter, and bake them. They hold their shape and taste delicious.
I have gotten some information on other organic things to do to help things grow. Alfalfa meal can be put on the ground or made into a tea and sprayed on as a foliage feeder. It is supposed to help with larger and mor blooms on blomming flowers and shrubs, so it should be good for vegetables too. To make the tea, put 1 cup alfalfa meal in five gallons of water, let it set overnight.  Strain it if you are going to put it in your garden sprayer.
Squash plants are subject to powdery mildew. To prevent that, use corn meal. Just put it down and scratch it into the soil with a rake, so it isn't blown away.
There are some very good organic fertilizers that will not mess up your organic program if you are unsing organics.
It probably would not make the squash that is on the vines now grow larger, but any more that grow should get bigger.
Charlotte

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