This year's cooler-than-usual summer in the Northwest may affect home gardeners' squash crops, according to the Oregon State University Extension Service, which warns that pollinating insects may be in short supply. That can cause tapered ends in squash or, worse, lead to aborted fruit.
Squash has male and female flowers on the same plant, and when both types of flowers are open at the same time but no fruit forms, that's probably a sign of poor pollination. Gardeners can make up for it, though, by using a watercolor paintbrush to transfer pollen from male to female flowers. (Which seems to us quite an artistic use for a paintbrush.)
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. We've got to warn you, though, he uses the dreaded "P" word, as in "Be patient."
-- Homes & Gardens staff
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