Planted pumpkins and kabocha but one looks like zucchini

I planted a whole lot of pumpkin and kabocha seeds this year but one plant has "fruit" that looks like zucchini! I've never grown zucchini here so it couldn't be a volunteer. Could it be that a bee pollinated one of the pumpkin flowers with zucchini pollen and that's what happened?

Reply to
Dan Musicant
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Wouldn't it be more likely that this happened *last year*, i.e., that a bee pollinated a pumpkin or kabocha plant last year with zucchini pollen - and the seed you planted this year is a hybrid (mix)?

I'm NOT sure of this, maybe someone else is?

The question: can fruit *this year* become different because of pollination from a different variety?

Or can it only affect *next year's* fruit?

Pat

Reply to
Pat Meadows

Once a neighbor grew a "squash" that was a true hybrid of the zucchini he grew last year and the pumpkin we grew last year. The resulting plant and its fruit looked a little like each of those of its parent plants.

If the plant doesn't look like a cross between the two kinds of vine but

*exactly* like one or the other, I'd think the seed company made a mistake in identifying and packing its seed. I've heard of this happening before with tomato varieties.

-- dkra

Reply to
dkra

:x-no-archive: yes : :In article , Pat Meadows : wrote: : : : :> Wouldn't it be more likely that this happened *last year*, :> i.e., that a bee pollinated a pumpkin or kabocha plant last :> year with zucchini pollen - and the seed you planted this :> year is a hybrid (mix)? : : : :Once a neighbor grew a "squash" that was a true hybrid of the zucchini he :grew last year and the pumpkin we grew last year. The resulting plant and :its fruit looked a little like each of those of its parent plants. : :If the plant doesn't look like a cross between the two kinds of vine but :*exactly* like one or the other, I'd think the seed company made a mistake :in identifying and packing its seed. I've heard of this happening before :with tomato varieties. : :-- dkra

I've never purchased pumpkin seeds or kabocha seeds. The ones I grow every year originally came up as volunteers, no doubt the result of someone throwing the remains of their dinner preparations into the compostables. This was when I had housemates. However, it's been 3 years since I had housemates and I haven't bought zucchini seeds for many years and never planted any here.

I think it is indeed likely that this happened last year and what looked like a pumpkin contained seeds that would grow something that looked very like a zucchini. Unfortunately, the plant isn't doing very well. I should have thinned my plantings but decided to let the seedlings fight it out. It's an interesting experiment but next year I'm going to thin my seedlings.

Reply to
Dan Musicant

Hi All, reply at the end.

as far as I know it can only affect next years seed. if you eat fruit from an F1 hybrid the fruit is normal, it is only when you plant saved seed the next year that you get problems. hope this helps you.

Richard M. Watkin.

Reply to
rmw

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