This driving me crazy. I'm in SoCal.

I have zucchini and yellow summer squash growing next to one another. I water thoroughly every 3 days. Both plants look great. But the zucchini is thriving and the yellow summer squash is starting to show signs of blossom rot.

I'm adding lime to address a perceived calcium deficiency but why wouldn't these plants respond similarly? What to do?

54fighting said:I'm adding lime to address a perceived calcium deficiency but why wouldn't these plants respond similarly? What to do?

Put the brakes on that thought! As you are in Southern California, your soil is most likely already alkaline. Adding lime will not help that and will make it worse. There are other problems that look like a calcium deficiency, even in plants next to eachother.

Are all the squash fruits affected by BER or just some? Post photos please. And read this:

https://pender.ces.ncsu.edu/20...

Thanks.

I read that article before I posted. I'll post photos tomorrow. So far the first two fruits seem to be showing signs.

These are 2 year old raised beds so they have been heavily amended; not your typical SoCal soil. I turned in a cover crop well before planting.

I don't understand why the rot would affect the yellow and not the zucchini.

3 points...

1. The yellow squash is more sensitive than the green. Each variety will have its own tolerances.

2. Excess nitrogen in the soil will affect plants' ability to access available calcium and potassium. Adding more calcium won't fix that.

3. Your tap water contains more than enough calcium.

Here are some pics,

I guess it could be a nitrogen issue. My amendments were an organic raised bed mix (which always seems a bit high in composted forest products), chicken manure and earthworm casings. Aside from a cover crop, I bury vegetable scraps at about 18".

Like others I'm sure, I used to grow summer squash in the northeast without having to give it a second thought.

That's not BER, that's lack of pollination.

Really (surprise, not doubt).

Does zucchini self pollinate? It is right next to the summer squash. Should I hand pollinate, and is that just moving pollen from one blossom to the next?

P.S. I just went out to hand pollinate and interrupted a bee doing the work for me - I did it any way just to double up. We'll see what happens.

No zucchini doesn't self pollinate but the zucchini and the yellow squash might cross pollinate (no, that's not a problem unless you save seeds).

If the yellow squash is in the shade at the wrong time of day, the pollinators may pass it by. Luckily, pollination is easy. It takes a pollinator more than one trip to a flower to pollinate it. With that in mind clip a male flower and gently swirl/brush it into all the female flowers. Clip another and do it again. Keep going until you are out of male flowers for the day. Poor pollination results in misshapen squash fruits.

Thanks. I had no idea.

Come back with an update in a day or so.

I think it is going to take.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge. My garden will be a happier and more productive place on account.

DaisyI said:. Poor pollination results in misshapen squash fruits.

I'd love to hear a little more detail of this- I had no idea the amount of pollination could affect fruits.

In my case, I think it was the lack of pollination. Now that I understand the issue, I think I can explain what I saw with the yellow squash last year and even the zucchini on occasion. I have plenty of bees in my yard but I think there are too many other attractive options. I'm going to be hand pollinating both going forward.

I'm sure Daisyl can speak more eruditely on the subject.

Daisyl is right on. The first squash flowers often are not pollinated Because 1. Pollinating insects have not found them. 2. Plants are leading with female flowers . Honeybees tend to lock in on one type of plant at a time and will work that plant until finished. So if there is a more abundant nectar source they will avoid squash. Native squash bees, Bumbles and carpenter bees are the more dependable pollinators of garden squash.

I pollinate mine everyday, my squash plants are hiding up under the giant tomato plants.

I saw some California poppies a while back at HD. The bees were literally going insane inside the flowers. I bought some and put them in a pot near some lavender hedges that the bees had been working in earnest. The bees ignored the poppies and kept working the lavender.

I plant borage and lavender, bees love them.

54fighting said:I saw some California poppies a while back at HD. The bees were literally going insane inside the flowers. I bought some and put them in a pot near some lavender hedges that the bees had been working in earnest. The bees ignored the poppies and kept working the lavender.

My beekeeping mentor always says, "A bee's gonna do what a bee's gonna do". Honey bees have their own set of rules they go by...the bumbles, solitary, and others pretty much have their's, too.

The yellows have a hard time competing for attention with the purples and blues. I like watching the bees do their thing. I'm happy to lend an assist on the squash. This guy is just interested in the crickets.

I suspect that guy would take just about anything he can choke down....they tend to sling there head a lot with bees, though!