About
This compact variety yields an abundance of glossy, dark green fruits. Its long, spine-free stems facilitate easy harvesting, making it an excellent choice for gardening with children. It demonstrates strong resistance to diseases, especially powdery mildew, ensuring an extended harvest season.
About the genus
This genus consists of small, annual herbaceous plants that either climb or trail. Several species within this group are cultivated for their edible fruits and other applications. They originate from Central and South America. The flowers are typically solitary and star-shaped, exhibiting a golden-yellow hue. The leaves are characterized by their palmately lobed structure and are adorned with fine, prickly hairs.
Growing conditions
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Soil type
- Loam, Sand, Clay, Chalk
- Soil pH
- Acid, Neutral
- Soil moisture
- Moist but well-drained
- Aspect
- East-facing, South-facing, West-facing
- Exposure
- Sheltered
- UK hardiness
- H2
Plant details
- Plant type
- Annual Biennial
- Habit
- Bushy
- Foliage
- Deciduous
- Height
- 0.5-1 metres
- Spread
- 1-1.5 metres
- Time to full height
- 1 year
- Suggested uses
- Patio and container plants, Wildlife gardens
- Toxicity
- Humans/Pets: If crop is bitter, don't eat or feed to pets. Wear gloves and other protective equipment when handling
Care notes
- Cultivation
- Grow in a sunny spot in rich, well-drained soil. Enrich soil with well rotted horse manure or compost during the previous autumn or that spring. Courgettes prefer acidic to neutral soil so adjust pH if neccessary. Courgettes are thirsty and hungry plants so need regular watering and a feed every 10–14 days with a high potassium liquid fertiliser, such as tomato feed, once the first fruits start to swell. See courgette cultivation for futher information
- Pruning
- No pruning required. Regular harvesting extends cropping.
- Propagation
- Propagate by seed. See sowing vegetable seeds or sowing seeds indoors for further advice
- Pest resistance
- May be susceptible to slugs and snails.
- Disease resistance
- Shows resistance to some Powdery mildews and viruses but may be susceptible to aphids, other Powdery mildews, downy mildews and grey moulds.