Courgette Seeds - Sunstripe F1

Courgette Sunstripe is a prolific cropper of fun, bright yellow courgettes, adorned with long, white well-defined stripes which run from stem to tip. This plant looks amazing, tastes great and is a real head-turner. The compact bushy plant is spine free and the flowers a delicacy, rarely found in shops. A stand out in your plot and when swapping or gifting your very own homegrown veg!

• Pack size: 6 seeds
• Time to germination: 10 -21 days
• When to sow inside: April - May
• When to sow outside: Late May - June
• Spacing: 90 cm +
• Soil preference: Fertile, well-drained
• Light preference: Full sun
• When to harvest: July - October

How to grow Sunstripe Courgettes from seed

Two or three courgette plants will easily feed a family of four so it is most convenient to sow into individual pots with some organic general purpose compost.

When sowing your Sunstripe Courgette seeds (on their sides) at a depth of 1-2cms, consider the temperature they will be exposed to. 20 degrees is ideal, but they will germinate anywhere between 13 and 25 degrees. Once germinated, courgette seeds can tolerate somewhat lower temperatures.

After germination, place on a sunny windowsill, or as we recommend, under LED lights to grow on and develop. All plants are sensitive to root disturbance and we recommend planting seeds in 8.5cm biodegradable coco pots. Plant out, pot and all, once all risk of frost has passed and the plant is outgrowing its pot.

Once established, they are an incredibly easy plant to maintain. Leave them to sprawl and keep well watered, especially during fruiting. To minimise weeding and water loss, fill the empty spaces around your growing courgettes with salad crops, harvesting as and when the courgettes need the room.

Mulch with grass clippings and when watering, try to avoid the stem and foliage.

Pick fruits early and regularly and courgettes will continue to fruit up to and into October. Leave a few fruits to swell to marrow size and once they've fulfilled their goal of producing viable seed, courgettes halt production and retire early.

What to feed your courgette plants

Courgette plants are voracious feeders and require a nitrogen-rich and free-draining, moist soil, loaded with plenty of organic matter (which also helps retain moisture). A good mix of rotten farmyard manure and fish, blood and bone meal, with some volcanic rock dust and kelp powder gives them a rich, balanced and diverse diet for strong organic growth released over the whole season. Add these ingredients in abundance, or alternatively plant on your compost heap. They will reward you for it as well as develop a great immunity to pests and disease. By thoroughly preparing the soil with these long-lasting organic fertilisers, you can avoid the expensive and constant application of conventional fertilizers stripping your soil of structure and life.

Keeping pests away

Courgette seedlings are a delicacy for garden pests. To avoid disappointment, we start seedlings off indoors and under lights to ensure a compact healthy seedling which is large enough to survive an encounter with a slug or pigeon.

Once they have outgrown an 8cm pot, they are generally large and vigorous enough to shrug off a modest attack, whilst fully grown specimens won’t even notice. Should you not have access to grow lights, we still recommend waiting. Your plants won't be battered by the early spring storms and will soon catch up!

Powdery mildew is a fungal disease usually appearing as white spots which gradually spread to appear as if the whole leaf has been dusted with flour. Whilst it can slow down the growth of your plants, and in severe cases reduce yields, a strong healthy plant, even completely white, will not show the effects of the disease and will produce normally. Allow adequate spacing and airflow between plants and avoid splashing water on the leaves to reduce the chances of this fungus to take hold.

By giving your courgette the strongest start to life and proper nutrition, you can minimise the potential damage caused by pests and diseases and get a great crop.

Grow Sow Greener is a regenerative gardening company advocating back to the roots tried and tested methods. We don’t recommend the use of or sell any extremely profitable pesticides, herbicides or inorganic fertilizers. They are detrimental to the health of your entire garden ecosystem from microbe to mammal.

To deter pests, encourage birds, hedgehogs and toads to take up residence, as all of these are voracious predators of snails and slugs. Provide a water source - even a car tyre sized pond will work, and provide shelter and winter food for birds. When ordering Sunstripe Courgette Seeds from Grow Sow Greenerwe reccomend sowing sunflower seeds which are beautiful plants in their own right. Throw a handful into a sunny corner to attract beneficial insects during the summer months, whilst their seed heads provide a great source of food for your overwintering feathered friends.