A Female flower looks like it has a mini squash on it a male flower does not
it is just a flower.

The first flush of flowers are 99% male, the late fruits will be a mix.

If the females are falling off it is a pollination issue

If the males are falling off - that is is normal - you may want to pick a
few and eat them in a salad or fry them up.

Tomatolord

"MJC" wrote in message
...
So I can get fruit without it being pollinated? Still confused !


"Dwayne" wrote in message
...
That is the plants way of aborting when it hasn't had enough pollinators
to
make its seeds fertile. I just let them go and after another couple of
weeks, they started staying on until ready to pick. Next year you might
plant them near a flower bed that could draw more pollinators to your
garden.

Most garden plants love soil that is slightly acidic(pH of 5.5 to 6.5).
If
you get your soils pH up too high, all you will grow is weeds.

Dwayne

"MJC" wrote in message
...
My yellow squash and zucchini grow fruits (?) to about 1 or 2 inches
long
and then just die and turn black. What am I doing wrong?
They are getting plenty of water (irrigation system) and we have
fertilized
them. We know the soil is slightly acidic so we have added some lime as
well. They are in a new raised bed garden and I have even kept it weed
free.
I am so frustrated, any ideas?

Thanks in Advance,
MJ