Powdery mildew is a fungal disease which flourishes on courgettes when the weather is warm and dry.
mildew-on-courgette
Infected courgette plants are covered in a greyish-white mould, mainly on the upper surface of the leaves and young shoots.
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CONTROL OF POWDERY MILDEW
* Attacks of powdery mildew occur in dry seasons and are worst in sheltered gardens.
mildewed-courgette-plant
* It is not known how the fungus survives between crop seasons, & crop rotation and many other cultural practices seem to have little effect on the incidence of powdery mildew.
* Courgettes need fertile soil. Plants grown in poor soil, without correct applications of fertiliser, will develop powdery mildew before well fed plants. Healthy, vigorous leaves and stems are less prone to infection.
* Grow Mildew tolerant varieties of courgettes, such as Dundoo, Soleil
mildew-resistant-courgette
* Chemical sprays are available to control powdery mildew in courgettes, always follow the instructions on the packet.
Farming Friends & TopVeg have collaborated to create a How To Grow Courgettes growing card. Click on the image below to enlarge the picture of the card.
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The card may be downloaded, printed off and pinned to the potting shed
wall as a useful reference on how to grow courgettes.
courgette-in-flower
If you would like a pdf of the grow card for “How to Grow Courgettes”, please complete the contact form asking for the grow card for courgettes and we will email it to you.
courgette
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Some of the courgettes have been planted out into the vegetable garden. We usually wait till the end of May before planting them out, as there is still a risk of frost. The nights are cold, but covered with a glass dome, they should be safe.
The seeds were grown in pots, and are looking healthy.
Courgettes prefer an open well drained site. Traditionally, marrows were always planted on the farm muck heap. So, we try to mimmick those conditions, by digging a large hole and filling it half full with well rotted farm yard manure. This is covered by some fibrous, strawy material, and then soil. The courgette is usually planted on a slight mound.
Slugs adore courgettes, and break off the growing tip. So we surround the plant with soot, if we can find it, because the slugs will not move through soot. This year soot is in short supply here, so we have surrounded the plant with light sand – hoping that the slugs will not like that either!
The newly planted courgette is covered with a glass jar, jam jar, or whatever is available. This will reduce transpiration, and stop the plant wilting because of the wind. The glass will also protect the plant from cold nights.
Related articles:
The squash family
Planting butternut squash seeds
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