Help needed for gourdplants. For some (unknown) reason the flower breaks off after it blooms.?

Question

I have planted several gourdplants (birdhouse variety) in the backyard and I read somewhere that "leaving them alone" is the best for them.

However, I do check on them and I've noticed that somehow, after the flowers bloom, that part breaks off just under the flowerhead after the flower dies. As far as I know I won't be getting any gourds like that?

I make all sorts of things with the gourds after I dry them and thought it would be neat to grow them myself instead of buying them. Can anyone tell me what I am doing wrong and what I should do?

Answer 1

if the male flowers are falling off it's no big deal.  if it's the female flowers do what the previous posters said and hand pollinate them.

squash plants usually get a first flush of male flowers (that will drop off) before the females start blooming.

Answer 2

Flowers usually drop if they arent pollinated, try hand pollinating with a q-tip. Just touch the q-tip to a flower (inside) then go back between all the flowers you acn reach.

This is how we pollinate greenhouse tomatoes.

Answer 3

Don't forget that gourd vines have two sorts of flowers - male and female. If the male flowers are dropping off that is not a problem.

Gourds will often start flowering before the plant is ready to bear fruit and fruit formation will abort. Once the plant has enough leaf, gourds will start to form.

Finally, if you still have a problem you may need to hand pollinate. Check to see if you have bees around the flowers. If not, use a fine paintbrush to transfer pollen from male flowers to female flowers in the early part of the day when the flowers are open.

Answer 4

You need to help them - sometimes the right pollinators are not around or something more appealing distracts them, especially in a garden with ornamental flowers as well or if you use insecticides in the garden.  So just get a soft bristle brush, like a small painting brush, and head out there every afternoon or so and dabble the brush around in one flower, then the next, all the way around the plant.  Note that the ones on longer stalks are males and the ones attached closer to the stems are the females - so be sure to dabble in some males and then dabble in all the females.  When the vine is carrying enough gourds, it will stop flowering and concentrate on the gourd production.  Meanwhile, since the plant makes more male flowers than it needs, feel free to remove some of them while they are still fresh, take out the middle piece inside the flower, stuff them with riccotta cheese, twist the ends of the petals together, roll the filled flower in beaten egg and then in bread crumbs, and toss that in boiling oil or pan fry it for a few minutes.  You can also put all kinds of squash bloosoms onto salads - just remove that center bit and the hard green cap on the end and put the petally bits in your salad.

PS - I say "buzz buzz buzz" to myself as I fertize the flowers, but that is entirely optional. ;)

Answer 5

Well, we grow lots of different types of gourds at a school where I volunteer as a master gardener. You are right about leaving them alone and although we loose tons of blooms, we get several from each vine. They can't hold much more that that so maybe you have your limit. If not, maybe you don't have the bees to pollinate and you will have to get your cotton swap after the male and female flowers.