Allotments 4 All

Hello all ,Not posted on here for a bit  But am still watching you all !

Being a gardener now going on 35 yrs   i have never seen this happen to me before anyway

On my plot i always grow  Courgettes letting some turn into marrows   but the last few years i have started growing pumpkins for the grandkids

So last years pumpkins went ok good size not going for monsters or anything !
So saved the seed from the pumpkins for this year

Ok grew as normal in green house  to start with then plant out Pumpkins has slightly different leaves to marrow so  knew  were not mixed up labeled anyway   .

So corrs are doing well yellow and Green But Pumpkins are looking more like marrows  Um i thought leave see how they go there getting big but they look just like  fat marrows !!
Is it poss the cross pollinated ???
               best not save the seed  ?

Did you save seed, or did you isolate/handpollinate the male and female flower and then save the seeds from a fruit with controlled pollination?

Round Halloween pumpkins are in the same family as marrows and as many other squashes, so crossing is the most likely reason.   

Oops sounds like the bees did a good job of cross pollinating!

Many varieties of pumpkins and courgette are members of the same group, Cucurbita pepo and will readily cross pollinate with the help of bees/insects. There are also a few of the winter squash in the same group along with gourds. It's only when saved seeds are grown out the following year that you find out if they have been cross pollinated, crossed pepo plants don't often produce good fruit.

If you want to save seeds to grow next year, you'll need to isolate both female and male flowers, it's easy enough to tie the flowers closed with a bit of wool, you need to do it just before the flowers open. Then usually the next day, when the flowers would have opened, pick the male flower and take of the petals leaving you with the pollen coated anther, dab these onto the stigma inside the female flower. Watch out for any incoming bees as they quickly visit the flower and ruin your hard work! Seal the female flower once again and mark the stem of the pollinated flower, again wool, string or thin cord works well. If pollination is successful the fruit will start to swell and it can be left to grow and ripen.

I Guessed thats what happened will use as marrows    but no pumpkins this year will get new seed next yr  and try again lol THANKS

If you are wanting to save seeds from your pumpkins next year, you might want to avoid the modern F1 varieties which won't give identical plants and fruit from saved seed.