Yellow Zucchini Cucurbita pepo

Overview:

Yellow zucchini are a popular choice of many gardens in our area. Information regarding yellow zucchini harvesting, water requirements, seed harvesting, and other facts are stated below.

• Seed Harvesting Code: Yellow (medium difficulty)

• Growing Code: White (easy difficulty)

Planting Instructions: 

• Should be planted when danger of the last frost has past

• Air and soil temperatures should hover around 60 degrees F

• Resist the urge to plant too many zucchini seeds; one plant will produce 6 to 10 pounds (3-4.5 kg.) of fruit over the growing season

• Seeds should be planted 1in deep with 3-4 to a hill

• Seed spacing should be about 4 feet apart with 4-6 ft between rows

• Remove all young weed seedlings by hand or with a hoe and use a mulch around plants to keep weed seeds from germinating.

• Yellow Zucchini requires full sun, so at least 6 hours of direct sunlight a day. Though, 8-10 Hours of direct sunlight is preferred for good growth

• Water deeply and regularly at the base of each plant, especially during hot, dry weather and once the first fruits start to form. This is generally 1 inch per week.

• Yellow Zucchini can also be grown in a large container at least 3 inches in diameter and 12 inches deep.

  • There should be at least one drainage hole at the bottom of the container.

  • Using a 3 to 5 gallon container can be a great space efficient option.

  • zucchini roots are known to grow between 12" and 24" deep.

General Growth Information: 

• 5 to 10 days until germination

• 50-65 days to maturity

• Warm Season Annual, must be replanted every year

• Harvest immature fruits, about 6- to 8-inches long and 1½ to 2 inches in diameter for elongated types; 3 to 4 inches in diameter for pattypan types; and 4 to 7 inches long for yellow crooked necks.

• Keeping fruits picked will encourage production.

Harvesting Seeds:

1. Check plants daily once they begin to bear fruit.

2. Pick the ripe yellow zucchini.

3. Allow a period of post-harvest ripening by moving the picked zucchini to a shady location or indoors for at least 20 days.

4. Split the zucchini in half by shallowly cutting through the rind from top to bottom on both sides and separating the two halves.

5. Then, scoop out the seeds and separate them from the pulp as much as you can.

6. Put into a mesh strainer and run the seeds under water to remove excess pulp. They can be left to soak in water for a few hours to help remove difficult pulps.

7. If the rind is too hard to be marked by the thumbnail, it is over-mature. Remove old fruit to allow new fruit to develop.

8.  Immediately after cleaning, rinsed seeds should be spread out to dry.

9. Will keep for 5 to 14 days in cool (32°- 50°F), moist (90% Relative Humidity) conditions.

Uses: 

• Yellow zucchini are edible vegetables that are known for their bright colors.

  • While zucchini used to be a wild plant, it is now domesticated.

Health Benefits:

• High in a variety of nutrients including: 

  • Vitamins A, B6, and C, magnesium, fiber, phosphorus, and potassium

• Rich in manganese. 

  • Manganese helps bone strength and aids the body in processing fats and carbohydrates.

Miscellaneous Facts:

• Yellow zucchini is a fruit since it flowers and contains seeds.

• Zucchini is in the same family as melons, pumpkins, cucumbers, and gourds.

• It is one of a large number of vegetables and fruits native to North and South America and introduced into the “Old World’s” cuisine after Columbus’ voyage in 1492 

• It appears that the zucchini, as we know it, was developed in Italy around the later half of the 1800s and thought to be reintroduced to the United States by Italian immigrants in the 1920s 

• Botanically zucchini is a fruit (fruit develops from the flower of a plant and a vegetable is any other part of the plant that is edible such as stems, roots and leaves) 

References

Miller, Lois. “Zucchini, Summer zucchini.” Almanac.com. The Almanac, March 24, 2023. https://www.almanac.com/plant/zucchini#:~:text=Zucchini%20thrive%20in%20moist%20soil,so%20long%20soakings%20are%20best. 

“Growing Summer zucchini (Zucchini) in a Home Garden.” Growing Summer zucchini (Zucchini) in a Home Garden | University of Maryland Extension. University of Maryland , April 5, 2023. https://extension.umd.edu/resource/growing-summer-zucchini-zucchini-home-garden. 

Grant, Amy. “Golden Zucchini Information - Learn about Growing Golden Zucchini Plants.” Gardening Know How. Gardening Know How, January 26, 2023. https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/zucchini/growing-golden-zucchini-plants.htm.

Lippincott, Kerry. “Zucchini: Its History and Uses.” Zucchini: Its History and Uses. Historic Geneva, September 11, 2020. https://historicgeneva.org/food-and-cooking/zucchini/#:~:text=Zucchini%20has%20its%20origin%20in,Nicaragua%20and%20northern%20Costa%20Rica).