Courgette, Marrow, Squash, Zucchini ... Cucurbita pepo
Just by looking at a courgette I’d guess you’d know it’s a member of the marrow family. In fact, originally people simply harvested the young marrows … However, the varieties that we now grow have been specifically bred as courgettes … but if you don’t get round to harvesting them they will continue to grow until they reach marrow proportions.
We’ve now got a wide variety of courgettes to choose from ... they can be yellow or green, long and straight like a cucumber or round like a melon or even bottle shaped! This year we’re growing quite a large range in the allotment ...
Black Beauty – with a really dark green skin when fully grown.
Golden Dawn III – as the name suggest, a very bright yellow skin distinguishes this variety.
Lebanese – a bit more unusual, this courgette has a very pale green skin and is shaped more like a ‘club’ than a typical courgette.
De Nice a Rond Fruit – some variety here, with a round courgette which is ready to eat when it’s about the size of a tennis ball.
These, of course, are just the varieties we’ve chosen to grow ... you’ll find loads more available from seed suppliers such as Mr Fothergills.
Depending on where you live depends what this vegetable is called …
In the UK and New Zealand it’s called a courgette – this comes from the French word ‘courgette’ used to describe this vegetable.
In America and Australia it’s called a zucchini - from the Italian word ‘zucchino’.
Or simply use the Latin name ‘cucurbita pepo’.
A Bit Of History ...
The origins of the courgette are not clear. We know that it wasn’t widely eaten in Europe until around the twentieth century … in fact in the UK it seems we only became aware of courgettes in the middle of the twentieth century. Native to America it’s thought that the first courgette plants were brought into Europe about the time of Christopher Columbus.
Growing Courgettes Is Simple ...
We grew our courgettes earlier this year in our polytunnel. We started them off in pots and when they were large enough ... and after we’d gone passed the chance of frost ... we planted them out in the allotment.
As I’ve mentioned, courgettes are really easy to grow. Their seeds are large so they’re easy to plant without overcrowding. You can start planting from around mid March in the UK. Just make a hole in the compost with your finger or a dibber and plant about 1" deep. Cover over with compost, water and for extra protection cover the pots with fleece.
We started our plants undercover as it does give them the best start, but you don’t have to. You can plant the seeds directly into the ground where they’re going to grow. In the UK you can plant this way from about mid May onwards ... although if there’s still danger of frost cover the planted area with a cloche or fleece to provide some weather protection.
You should space courgettes about 3’ apart ... so if you’re planting the seeds directly into the ground put two seeds close together every 3’ and this lets you pick the strongest to leave in place when they’re growing.
We planted our courgettes out into the allotment around the beginning of June and were now seeing the fruits almost ready to harvest. Before planting out we improved the condition of the soil by digging in some well rooted manure and we’re keeping the plants well watered. Courgettes really benefit from lots of water ... in hot, dry weather plants can need as much as 10 litres each per week to stay healthy.
Pests to look out for which can affect your courgette plants are slugs and snails ... but we’ve been fairly lucky this year and we’ve not been badly affected. In our allotment the worst pest for the courgettes has been our four legged friend who’s taken to lying on top of the plants! Luckily we’ve only lost two plants this way ... once the courgettes started to appear on the plants she stopped ... probably no longer as comfortable a bed!
Get Your Recipes Ready ... Courgettes Grow Really Quickly!
I’ve actually found it reported that if the weather conditions are correct (it’s warm and sunny) a courgette can grow from a small flower to a full sized courgette ready to pick in hours! Although, I’ve got to admit I’ve not seen that happening at the allotment this year ... even with the glorious weather we’ve been having.
Depending on the weather, in the UK we can expect to be able to harvest courgettes from June until September. Try to pick the courgettes when they’re still quite small (the smaller the courgette the stronger the flavour) ... most varieties you should aim to pick when they’re 4-8” in length.
So, as you try to keep on top of harvesting, find time to dig into your recipe books and you’ll be surprised at how many different choices you’ll find. Courgettes can be baked, grilled, steamed, stewed, roasted, stir fried, or even eaten raw.
Fancy Eating the Flowers?
You can not only eat the courgette, you can also eat the flower. Select flowers which look firm, fresh and that are only slightly open. Although you can keep them in the fridge you’re best to eat them on the day you pick them as they don’t keep well.
Unlike the courgette itself, you MUST cook the flowers before you eat them. You’ll need to remove the pistils from the flower, cut the stem close to the flower and wash and dry it before cooking.
If you’re tempted to give them a try there’s a wide variety of options for you ... try frying them in batter, bake, sauté, use in soup or the larger flowers can be stuffed.
Fruit Or Vegetable ...
Although we all think of courgettes as being a vegetable ... in fact they’re not they’re a fruit. This is because the courgette we eat is the ripened ovary of the flower. Other fruits disguised as vegetables include the tomato (we all knew that one ...), the aubergine, peppers and being closely related to the courgette (so we should have guessed these)the cucumber, pumpkin and squash.
What’s In It For You?
Courgettes provide you with a wide range of vitamins including A and C, together with folic acid and potassium. They’ve got a high water content and are low in calories – about 18 calories per 100g.
