"ZeroZero" wrote


Last year I grew a pumpkin plant (St Albans UK) and it seemed to thrive.
I saw lots of small golf ball size pumpkins but when I later looked they
all disappeared. There were some insects on the plant (not g/w/b/ fly)
but they seemed too tiny to do this sort of damage.

Does anyone know why?

Remedy?

Sounds like lack of pollination to me. The female flowers have small
pumpkins behind the flowers which swell to full size if the flower in
pollinated. If it isn't pollinated it drops off and rots. Try pollinating
the flowers yourself, find a male flower (without the small pumpkin) pull
off the petals and rub the central bit against the tip of the bit in the
middle of the female flower.
If you want large pumpkins restrict it to one pumpkin a plant.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
W.of London. UK