Pollinating Pumpkin Flowers
Some time back, I put up a post on this blog to show how one can pollinate cucumber flowers. Pumpkin flowers can also be pollinated using the same method as shown below. The big bright yellow flowers of the pumpkin are often produced in abundance, especially the male flowers, when compared to the number of female flowers.
Rather than wasting them by leaving them on the vine, the male flowers can actually be picked, coated in batter and then fried to make tempura (click on this link to know more). The flowers of the zucchini are better known to be eaten this way.
To pick up the male flowers either to eat or for as a source of pollen, one has to first learn how to recognise them. As mentioned earlier, male cucurbit flowers have no baby fruits behind their petals. One simply sees a flower attached right away onto a green flower stalk. One pumpkin vine can have several male flowers opened at once. A few can be picked to pollinate the female flowers flowers and the rest can go into the cooking pot.
The female flower of the pumpkin is not picked and made into tempura. The reason is simple – once the female flower is pollinated, it becomes the pumpkin fruit. You won’t want to eat the flowers, right? Anyway, the female pumpkin flower can be identified via the small baby fruit that is located just behind the petals.
See the picture below for the bud of a female pumpkin flower
To pollinate pumpkin flowers, one can go pick a freshly opened male flower. The next step to take is to strip of all its petals to reveal the pollen laden anthers.
With the stripped male flower on hand, now it is time to go hunt for an opened female flower. Once a female flower is found, brush the pollen laden anthers against the stigma of the female flower. In the process, one will notice some of the pollen being coated onto the stigma.
After a day, the female pumpkin flower will fade away but at that stage, its hard to tell whether it will turn into a fruit.
If pollination is successful, the baby fruit behind will slowly swell up, embarking a journey to become a pumpkin fruit in a month of so, depending on the variety.
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Wilson Wong
Very cool.all the best..I love gardening..but i live in middle east ..so the tempearture here is a big hurdle..I planted tomaotes,pumkins.cucmbers,okras,Eggplants ,roses,peppers,potatoes..I take care as much as i can but no results..flowers just drop and similar problems..now i am finding happiness in others farms:)
nice photos
If the fruit turns yellow is it dying?
thank the pumpkin gods for this site
Hi Nimmy,
So sorry you are having problems with your veg & fruit. Have you tried shading some of your farm rearing produce? Using a fan to cool the temperature down, or other means of cooling, as sometimes just hot air can be blown out & would only serve to make the problem worse. I should imagine that your tomatoes would be excellent with all that heat & sun in your area ( Tomatoes grown in the UK are like ‘ bags of water ‘ we just don’t have the climate here) What about olives? Peach trees and orange trees? Or even grapes?
Grapes especially can be used for wine and oil.
Pumpkin has all male flowers. Why is this and is there a remedy?
Paul, I am new to growing pumpkins, but I too had all male flowers until this week. On the vine’s new growth is one female flower bud.
Awesome step by step instructions. The pictures are extremely helpful too since I am a new gardener. I am so happy I found your blog!
I see femail flower buds, but they will not open. They do not even start to show the yellow as I see in the males that end up opening. I have a shady backyard (not enough sun?) but the females are under leaves anyway… Any ideas?
I have grown a lot of cucumbers and beans in my kitchen garden of my villa. If you water properly anything can be grown in this desert. I had spread 10 sacks of manure (goat dung) and the soil become very fertile. As too many honey bees are visiting our garden there is no need pollination..everything going on naturally.
But, the snake guard has a lot of flowers but not ‘fruitful’..May I try the technique of pollination..
Best regards
I have grown a lot of cucumbers and beans in my kitchen garden of my villa. If you water properly anything can be grown in this desert. I had spread 10 sacks of manure (goat dung) and the soil become very fertile. As too many honey bees are visiting our garden there is no need pollination..everything going on naturally.
But, the snake guard has a lot of flowers but not ‘fruitful’..May I try the technique of pollination.
Best regards