Just harvested another nice zuc, but then saw this!! Please tell me what the gummy stuff is. I am going to take that zuc off but not before showing you all this.
Could be mealy bugs ! Soak the plant good with soapy water! Use a hand sprayer with water and a good squirt of dish soap ! Let sit about an hour or two then use the water hose to wash off with a good stream of water !
Sounds like you are going to investigate what's under the gummy stuff & where it is coming from; the stalk or the zucchini. I wonder if it is a bug burrowing into the stalk.
Some insect is boring or chewing on the zucchini and the stem. it could be cucumber beetles or squash bugs, pick it off and toss it. you might want to spray an insecticide of some kind even a good dousing with soapy water would be helpful. Someone on another site was just lamenting about pickleworms.... probably your pest. A moth that comes in the evening and lays its eggs. zucchini, squash and cukes...cover them at night time to keep the moth off the plants.
Don`t think its squash bugs ! If it was the leaves where it bores in will wilt within a day ! They don`t usually hit the fruit,, just the stem at the soil line ! Never heard of "pickleworms" ! What are they ?
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/cucumber/treating-pickleworms.htm Mart, Squash bugs and squash vine borers do different damage. I have seen the nymphs damage the fruit by eating on the skin of the immature ones and they ruin it. it looks all scabby and gross.
The vine borers are the ones I was talking about ! The other bugs,, the ones that get on the leaves,, are easier to control with the spray I use ! I have never lost a zucchini fruit to them ! But you know I spray as a preventative and don`t wait til after the bugs hit ! I have few bug problems at all !
I have noticed this on our courgettes. I never found holes or other suspicious things on the fruit or leaf stems. I noticed it where there was friction between the fruit and a leaf stem, so I thought it was sap. Next time I have that. I shall look even closer. We ate the fruits in the past and noticed nothing internally. I shall be quite interested to hear if you learn anything. If there is some creature doing this, I need to know. Good thread.
Good Morning!!! Well that inspection was gross yesterday. Yep, I would venture to say it is "pickleworm". I went in to cut the zuc off and held the top of it thinking that it would a normal zuc...NNNNOOOOO!!!! It was squishy and dare i say, HOLLOW!!!! My goodness, the grossness started right then!!! Upon further inspection with one eye closed as I was cutting the fruit off, there were so many "perfect" holes in that zuc, that I wanted to close both eyes. My original thought was to slice it open for show and tell. HECK NO!!! After seeing that many holes, I knew that what was inside was going to be horrible. I did however, see that a portion of the vine does have a hole that they started. So I threw the fruit in the drainage ditch and went to work spraying neem all over every squash plant that I have. It's been raining every day, so it's useless to put Sevin dust on them at this point. Will spray again this evening, until i can get something to cover them with. The leaves are huge and beautiful with no signs of damage. I would hate to have to pull that one up...it's just beginning to make a statement in the garden when you turn in the drive. Just in case though, I have 2 younger plants ready to take its place. Preventive maintenance is definitely going to be a category for my journal!! Thanks @carolyn for the link..I knew exactly what to look for!!!
Hummer in the future throw the waste into a bucket with soapy water or into a trash bag and tie it shut. you could accidentally perpetuate the cycle by allowing them to get into the ground and pupate.
