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How to grow Courgettes in the UK

One plant gives loads - you'll be handing them out to the neighbours.

• DifficultyEasy peasy
• WhereBeds or Pots
• Grows to60cm
• Spacing90cm
• Time to first pickabout 10 weeks

When to sow, plant and harvest courgettes

Dates are for central England. Sow about two weeks later in the north and Scotland, and up to two weeks earlier in the south and south west. Get the dates for your postcode.

Starting it indoors

1. Fill a small pot or tray with seed compost
2. Push the seeds in (2cm deep) - a couple per pot
3. Water gently, then put them on a bright windowsill
4. Keep the compost damp but not soggy - check it every day
5. When they have 2 proper leaves, give each seedling its own pot

Sowing it outdoors

1. Pull out any weeds and rake the top of your bed until it's crumbly, like cake crumbs
2. Make a little line in the soil (2cm deep) with your finger or a stick
3. Drop the seeds in, about 90cm apart each way
4. Gently cover them with soil and pat it down
5. Water with a watering can that has a sprinkler head
6. Push in a label so you remember what's there

Planting it out

1. Toughen them up ('hardening off'): put them outside in the day for a week, bring them in at night
2. Dig a hole a bit bigger than the pot
3. Tip the plant out gently, holding the leaves, not the stem
4. Pop it in the hole, firm the soil around it, and water well
5. Space the plants about 90cm apart each way

Top tips for growing courgettes

• Sow the flat seeds on their side so water doesn't rot them.
• One or two plants is plenty for a family.

Looking after courgettes

• Week 2: Water at the bottom of the plant, not over the leaves, every few days when it's dry

Soil and feeding

Rich, moist soil packed with goodness. These are hungry plants. Dig a hole (or make a mound) and fill it with manure or compost before planting, then feed every week or two once the fruit starts.

Pests and problems

• Slugs & snails: munch seedlings overnight, worst in wet weather

• Go on a slug hunt at dusk with a torch and move them far away
• Sink a jam jar into the soil with a little beer in it - slugs fall in
• Cut the bottom off a plastic bottle and pop it over each young plant, like a mini greenhouse

Harvesting and eating courgettes

Cut them when they're about as long as a pencil. Leave them and they become giant marrows!

How to eat them: Grate into muffins or pancakes, or slice and fry with garlic.

Storing courgettes

Keeps about 1 week.

• Keep in the fridge

Grate and freeze in bags for cakes, soups and pasta sauce. (Frozen slices go soft - fine for cooking.)

Good varieties of courgettes

• Defender: Heavy crops and resists mosaic virus.
• Black Beauty: The classic dark green courgette.
• Atena: Bright yellow courgettes.
• Tromboncino: Climbs up a frame - long, curly fruit.

Companion planting

Grows well with

• Sweetcorn: 'three sisters': big leaves shade out weeds under the corn
• Nasturtiums: nasturtiums bring in bees to pollinate courgette flowers
• Borage: bees for pollinating the flowers
• Phacelia: brings bees to pollinate
• Sunflowers: bring in bees to pollinate

Saving your own courgettes seed

From a ripe fruit in autumn.

1. Bees mix pollen between courgettes, squash and pumpkins, so saved seeds can grow odd-looking fruit - that's half the fun!
2. Scoop the seeds from a fully ripe fruit (courgettes: leave one to grow into a huge marrow first)
3. Wash them, then dry on a plate for 2 weeks
4. Or roast them with a little salt - a tasty snack
5. Seeds from 'F1' varieties (it says on the packet) don't grow the same - save from ordinary ones.

Things to build for courgettes

• Bottle cloches:
• Cold frame:

Where to buy courgettes seeds

Thompson & Morgan · Suttons · Amazon

These are affiliate links: we may earn a small commission if you buy, at no extra cost to you. Read more.

Courgettes questions

When should I sow courgettes in the UK?

In the UK, sow courgettes indoors from early April to mid May or outdoors from late May to mid June. These dates suit central England; sow about two weeks later in the north and Scotland and up to two weeks earlier in the mild south and south west.

When do I plant out courgettes?

Plant courgettes out from late May to late June, once the last frost has passed.

When can I pick courgettes?

Courgettes is ready from early July to early October. Cut them when they're about as long as a pencil. Leave them and they become giant marrows!

How long do courgettes take to grow?

Roughly 10 weeks from sowing or planting until the first harvest.

Are courgettes easy to grow?

Courgettes are rated 'easy peasy' for beginners, and can be grown in the ground or a raised bed or in pots and containers.