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Help does anyone know what's wrong with my friends courgettes?They were fine and now they've collapsed, 2 plants the same :o]

Looks like wilting through lack of water to me. Have you been watering regularly?

Of course it could be too much water - that might have the same effect. Even thirsty plants such as courgetes must have a limit to the water they can take.

or has something eaten the roots?

  Sons tomatoes all got blite, but amongst them was a cucumber plant that also

  got the same?         ???

   By the way , is it '' blite '' or  '' blight '',       

Quote from: flossy on August 21, 2009, 18:32:01


  Sons tomatoes all got blite, but amongst them was a cucumber plant that also

  got the same?         ???

   By the way , is it '' blite '' or  '' blight '',       

Tomatoes and Courgettes are from different plant families. Courgettes cannot get tomato BLIGHT.

  Thank you so much Garden  Assisetant,  right so they cannot get BLIGHT !     ::),,

   can they be a bit upset ?    ;D

Quote from: flossy on August 21, 2009, 18:39:34
  can they be a bit upset ?    ;D

Well, they've been known to pout a bit when mildew makes them powdery. ;)

 

   sholls,      ;D    ;D    ;D

I did actually post this thread to help my friend with his sick courgettes but as ever the entertainment value is priceless ;D ;Dthankyou all and if ayone has a sensible suggestion i'm still interested ;)

  Sorry macmac, hope I didn't offend,   ::)

Quote from: flossy on August 21, 2009, 19:27:14

  Sorry macmac, hope I didn't offend,   ::)

how anyone could be offended by cheerful banter escapes me, things that make you smile are little shafts of light in a dark room.....ooh er gone all poetic ;)

*Tries to be sensible* ;)

Observation: the majority of foliage looks healthy albeit wilted. To my eye there's no real die-back or discolouration, which might suggest disease or a deficiancy, the plant has just flopped.

Lack of water has already been suggested, and that would be my guess; the leaves have drooped, but only the end of the stalks look floppy, the fruit looks firm enough. So, what is stopping water getting to the leaves? If the ground is moist (it looks dry on the surface, how is it underneath?) I'd be looking for damage at the base of the plant, either the main stalk or has been said, the roots.

Are Squash Vine Borers a pest in the UK? That's what I would look for here in NY. I've already had to ream one or two out of my zucchini and acorn squash plants.

Look at the main stem starting from the ground up and see if you can find a pinhead-size hole with a bit of sawdust-like material stuck to the stem just outside the hole. If you find one, the borer will be inside the stem near there.  It tunnels up through the center of the stem which cuts off water to the leaves from the roots.

Touchwood, we don't get boreres here yet BC... with global warming who knows... I'd be looking for botryis (grey mould) in the main stem... given how cool and wet it's been...  :-\

This is a real suggestion, because I've done it myself - could the stem have been accidentally cut through while cutting off a courgette? It's probably a bit thick to have been hoed off, but it looks to me like the plant has somehow just been cut adrift from its roots.

I think we have all done that at least once Small.....  :-[

Hi - Just to let you know I have a couple of courgettes next to each other. One has gone the same way as the picture the other healthy. Water and feed aren't an issue. I have looked at stems, leaves - can't see any damage. Tomorrow i am digging it up to see if anything on the roots....but i doubt it. Is a mystery to me.

Stem below the surface was rotted.

On trying to look this up found the following which is a bit worrying as the courgette is next to my pumpkin patch which is looking a bit ropy at the moment.

http://www.umassvegetable.org/soil_crop_pest_mgt/disease_mgt/squash_phytopthora_crown_rot.html

Also some sites indicate fusarium wilts.

and thanks to John also gummy stem rot (Black rot).

I may be wrong, but when this happened to one of my courgettes two years ago, inspection of the stem showed a rotten mess with thin white worms about 2cm long by 1mm thick.

It did not happen to any others and has not happened since and I suspect that it was localised damage, perhaps wind partly snapping the stem and then opportunistic invasion by worms and fungus.

I do hope so - all the other explanations i found looked a bit scary.