A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion The Food Garden Forum Pumpkins

Does anyone have any idea why my female pumpkin blossoms will not open? I have had large beautiful male flowers for a month now. They are getting smaller and less of them every day and still no females, so no pollination, and no pumpkins.


thank you
missd

No idea. Just commenting to keep your post from becoming buried. Curious what folks have to say.

Good grief. You aren't the only one to have problems with pumpkins, I'll join Marica in trying to keep this topic alive, I haven't grown pumkins, but they should be basically no different than squash,...I did not tealize that you could tell the sex of blossoms until there was an obvious fruit beginning to form at the base of the flower... but then, I've not studied the topic nor grown many cukes/squash/melons etc.

Someone should write a book. In fact, I've considered doing this. "The Biology of Vegetable Gardening 101"!! You can tell the sexes as soon as the flower forms. But that doesn't answer the question of why no female flowers.

Let the investigations begin!

(Flowering can be dependent on day-length. But I don't see how that would explain the problem in this case.)

Nah, me either, Marica. There just isn't anything I can think of to explain this problem. What conditions could possibly favor male flowers over female?
One thing...It just occurred to me...I'm sure I'm out in left field, but did you buy seed or are you growing from saved seed?

I don't have alot of luck with pumkins, we planted some this year and they were huge and they got sprayed with posion by the tractor drivers that spraied the cotton field, killed all but one

My oh My...you all are up on this thing early. But I do appreciate the interest and the help.

I started with a packet of American seed Jack-o-Lantern seeds. I planted them in 3 hills in full sun. They were thinned to 3 per hill when they had 5-6 leaves per plant. They grew fast and by mid-April I had 4-5 large male flowers every morning, but no females. Now I am down to maybe 1 a day and it is usually really small. Still no females and a lot of the leaves have died off.

Here's what I have done so far, based on what I learned on-line. I covered the parent vines with new potting soil and mulch. Watered deeply and sprayed them with Miracle Grow. I also learned that if the temperature gets into the 90's the females experience plant-stress and will not bloom at all. Well, as everyone probably knows, we have had 100-105 degress days for 30 days in a row. We are on stage2 water restrictions. My garden was watered every night, or morning, with a hand held hose. We can only run the sprinkler one day a week. I am sure the temps had something to do with this.

Missd - if you're still out there...

I had the exact same problem with my pumpkins last year. It was my first year attempting them. I planted them late, but I got plenty of male flowers, and I'd read that the females start appearing about a week later. They never did.

The directions on my seed packet said to thin the vines down to just one per mound. I did not have the heart to pull healthy plants and left several per mound, as you did. That, and the heat, is something we had in common. Maybe the roots were crowded and competing for water and nutrients?

Also, I thought I was planting in full sun when I put in the seeds, but I realized later that the area got dappled shade for a good part of the day. I'm sure that had something to do with my problem as well.

I am going to try again this year, and will follow the directions to a "T."

My daughter wants her own pumpkins and I will not give up until we've grown at least one!!

Post an update and if you're trying again this year!