As per title. They are producing fruit just fine but they grow to 20cm and stop growing - we want enourmous marrow not delicate little nubbins
It could be a pollination problem, zucchini will stop growing early and fall off if the flower is not pollinated. Do your “nubbins” have seeds?
I’m no zucchini expert, but did you fertilize/enrich the soil before this planting season? If there are fewer flowers than you expect, this would also indicate the plant is low on nutrition.
Yes - most likely pollination failure. You can hand-pollinate by picking off a male flower (one of the flowers without a little fruit behind it, pulling off the petals to expose the pollen-bearing stamens, then thrust this gently into the female flowers and rub it against the stigma inside.
Also, make sure the plants get plenty of water. Cucurbits are thirsty plants.
Is it strange that I’m aroused right now?
Do they make little teeny tiny zucchini cigarettes?
Sounds like what you really want is more girth.
you do know that most people complain of the reverse problem - zucchini that quickly grow to enormous sizes, at which they taste like mush and can only be gotten rid of by sneaking them into the break room to leave for unwary cow-orkers?
20 cm (is that like, 8 inches in real measurement?) is plenty long for zucchini, or vegetable marrows, or whatever you foreign types call them.
damn dingos.
They are in a no dig garden with lots of cow poo.
Hand pollinating has been going on. There are haps of flowers and lots of fruit is being formed but they are stunted.
They are very well watered.
Took me a while…:D:D:D
We call them zucchinis here in the middle of bumfuck nowhere.
I am going with the small is quite adequate for a zucchini - however the other party wanted enormous marrows.
It is easy to over-water them. Deep watering once a week works for me.
Different varieties produce different sizes. Is 20cm unusual for that specific variety?
Hmmm…
Could be a bunch of other things then, including:
**Inadequate feeding **- they prefer a well-drained, well-manured soil, - if you didn’t get enough compost into the soil before planting, you can feed with tomato fertiliser once they start flowering.
Poor conditions - planting in partial shade or an exposed, windy location can stunt their development.
Bad start - if you plant out too early and the young plants get a bit too cold, they often seem to struggle for the whole growing season.
Root disturbance - cucurbits are particularly sensitive to this - if the wind causes them to rock in place, or if you damage the roots when planting out, they just never quite recover.