What it is
Zucchini (Cucurbita pepo) is in the Cucurbitaceae (Gourd) family. The crop that famously overwhelms you. One or two plants feed a household all summer.
How to grow it
It wants full sun, water it even, deep, and give it rich, well-drained soil. Target a soil pH around 6.0–7.0. Space plants about 24–36 in apart. Expect roughly 45–60. Warm-season annual.
How it's used
Zucchini is used: sautéed, grilled, baked, spiralized.
🔎 How to identify it
- Big bristly leaves with silvery markings
- Large orange-yellow blossoms (edible)
- Fruit forms at the base of female flowers
Edibility
How to grow & propagate zucchini
Everything I've worked out about starting this one, keeping it alive through a Texas year, and turning one plant into many — free.
How to propagate zucchini
The squash and melon family wants warm soil and hates cold, wet feet, so wait until the ground is reliably warm and sow the big seeds an inch deep right in the garden. They sprawl, so give them room or a trellis. They're insect-pollinated and cross wildly within a species — keep that in mind if you ever want to save seed that comes true.
Growing zucchini in Texas
Give it full sun and rich, well-drained soil. Match the spot to the plant and most of the battle is already won.
Time your planting to our long warm season and watch the frost dates at both ends; the live weather tool on this site is built for exactly that.
Keep moisture even, especially while it's young — deep, less-frequent soaks build better roots than a daily sprinkle.
Harvesting
Figure on roughly 45–60 before you're harvesting. Harvest at peak and keep harvesting — most vegetables produce harder the more you pick, and one left to over-mature tells the plant its job is done. The part you're after: fruit and flowers.
Making more for free
Every seed we sell is open-pollinated, which means you can save your own from the best plants and it'll grow true next year. Let a few of your strongest plants finish and go to seed, dry it fully, and store it cool and dark. That's the whole point of heirlooms — buy once, grow forever.
Part of the free Texas Roots plant database, compiled by Jordan Polasek from his greenhouse in El Campo, Texas. Free to read and share. If it helped, the best thanks is to grow something.