Courgette
Courgette (or Zucchini) is a delicious Mediterranean vegetable that lends itself to many recipes: in salads, au gratin, stuffed, pan-fried, in a creamy soup or in your ratatouille. Like squash, cucumbers, gherkins, melons and watermelons, this vegetable belongs to the cucurbit family. Hundreds of varieties have been created over the centuries. Length, colour or roundness differ: the Green of Milan, the Ortolana Di Faenza, the Round of Nice or the White of Egypt will blossom in your garden. Simple to grow, it essentially only requires sun and water.
The planting schedule is flexible. You are impatient: in March or April, you can start sowing under cover. At the end of April or beginning of May, it is time to sow the seeds directly in the ground or in pots. Until the beginning of summer, you can buy seedlings in pots to plant in your vegetable garden. A sunny and warm exposure favours its development. A moist, well-drained, loose soil rich in humus guarantees optimal growth.
From the seedling to the adult plant, you should keep the soil moist and water regularly. A mulch will limit watering and weeding. Do not wet the leaves to avoid powdery mildew attacks. It is recommended to remove damaged leaves. If they are running varieties, it will be necessary to prune (pinch) the stems that do not bear flowers. Two months after sowing, you will harvest your courgettes from the garden. Pick them when they are not too ripe.
Courgette
- Type : Vegetables
- Subtype : Fruiting vegetables
- Botanical family : Cucurbits
Characteristics
- Exposure : Sun
- Hardiness : Not frost resistant
- Very easy to grow, requires little maintenance (difficulty : 1/3)
Sowing & planting
- Sowing depth : 2 cm
- Plant spacing : 100 cm
- Row spacing : 100 cm
- Emergence time : 8 days
- Emergence temperature : 15 °C
- From sowing to harvesting : 70 days
- Seed storage : 6 years