How can I avoid cross pollination among my gourds and pumpkins?

Posted by Kevin Quinlan ADD COMMENTS

I just talked about the potential for pumpkin and gourd vines to cross pollinate with each other. When this happens the cross-pollinated fruit will develop normally, but the seeds inside will be the hybrid. For self sufficient gardeners, being able to reuse this years seeds to produce next year’s crop is important.

This article is designed to help you overcome issues with cross pollination so you can reuse your seeds without worrying about pumpkourds growing in your back yard. If you haven’t already read my article about the differences between male and female flowers, you will want to do so now!

Okay so grab a roll of masking tape and head out to the garden. Every time you see a female flower that is going to open the following morning, carefully wrap the top of the bud together with the masking tape. Find a male flower that is also scheduled to open the next morning and tape its bud closed too.

When morning comes, carefully snap off the male flower and remove the tape and all of its petals. You should be holding the stamen which contains all of the pollen. Now carefully unwrap your female flower. Try to leave as much of the petals behind as you can. Carefully dust the pistil of the female flower with the stamen making sure to touch all areas of it thoroughly. Once it has been pollinated, use the petals to cover it back up and tape them back together.

Eventually the flower will die off and you will notice the fruit beginning to grow if pollination has successfully occurred.