Butternut squash help !

[beaufontboy]

Hi Folks, hope your all well, can anyone tell me whether my fruit on the squash plant need pollination to stop them dropping off ! So far ive got two small ones and they have both fallen off, also seem to have loads of male flowers and very few female, is there anything i can do to promote more females, lastly does it need cutting back in any way to help it ? Sorry about all the questions, !!!! Ta Stuart

[PAULW]

Leave them alone, my squash have only just started to move the spring has been that cold, the flowers will not set until the conditions are right,
the only reason to cut back a plant is if you have a number of fruit on a plant and dont want any more

[beaufontboy]

Thanks Paul, will do ...

[Saffer]

Just leave them & make sure they don't dry out! Mine are doing fine but we live in the west of France & have had loads of dry, hot weather!


[/IMG]

There are loads of baby butternuts under those leaves, hope yours are as sucessful! Good luck

Saffer

[Two_Sheds]

Gardeners often become concerned when many flowers appear early but fruits fail to set. The reason for this is that all of the early flowers are males.
Female flowers develop somewhat later and can be identified by the miniature fruit at the flower base. Picture here: Male and female flowers of squash, Cucurbita
Squash plants have separate male and female flowers on the same plant. The male flowers do not produce fruit but they do supply the sticky pollen that fertilizes female flowers. Pollen must be transferred to the female flowers by bees for fruit to develop.