Squash are vegetables from the gourd family that are also sometimes referred to as fruits because of the seeds growing inside them. The plants are grown in tons of gardens because of how easy they are to maintain. However, another reason for their popularity is how delicious the vegetables are as well as how many health benefits they have. Squash is rich in vitamins which makes it a healthy alternative for tons of other vegetables.
Additionally, it can be used in numerous recipes as a base ingredient because of how tasty it is. While that might be the case, people growing these inside their gardens often report that their squash is not getting big. This can be quite annoying as the main reason for growing the vegetables is so that they can be harvested. Hence, we will be using this article to provide you with a list of reasons why you can get this problem along with ways to get rid of it.
Reasons For Squash Not Getting Big
- Amount Of Sunlight Being Received
Squash plants use water, sunlight, and the soil around them as their main sources of nutrients. Though, the first and most important factor to look out for is always the heat and light around the plant. Talking about this, people should ensure that they keep their squash in an area where it can get an adequate amount of sunlight every day.
This should be around 6 to 8 hours which helps in keeping the flowers on your plant healthy. If you notice that the plant was in a spot where it is not reaching the amount of light required, then moving it is the best solution that you can go with. People can also try placing one of their squashes inside a pot and then place it in a spot that gets direct light for long durations.
Now keep the vegetable in check for about a week and if you notice that it starts growing then you should move all of your other plants as well. This is a great way of confirming what your problem was so that you don’t take unnecessary steps.
- Squash Not Getting Enough Nutrients
Other than sunlight, the second most important factor to keep in check is the condition of the soil around your squash. This should be full of nutrients so that the plant can consume them to stay healthy. People should add fertilizers every few weeks as this helps in keeping the effects constant. In most cases, the effects of your fertilizers can wear off after 3 weeks as most of the nutrients are consumed by the vegetables they had been used on.
Aside from this, people should also look out for the type of fertilizers that they are purchasing. The quality of these products plays a huge role in how they will perform. Hence, looking for a fertilizer that contains tons of nutrients will ensure that your squash vegetables can grow out to a big size. People can also ask the store clerk to help them out and they should be able to help you in selecting a viable product. You can also look for recommendations online to ensure there are no problems later on.
- Soil Too Dry or Wet
Finally, the last factor that can be kept in check is the amount of water being used. In most cases, people must keep the soil around their squash moist. This can be done by adding about 1 to 2 inches of water every week. This is more than enough to keep the plants healthy but if you live in a warmer area then the soil might get dry too quickly.
In this case, adding additional water can be required. However, people have to keep a balance between the amount of water being added as well as the sunlight their vegetables are getting. This is because sometimes the sunlight might dry out the soil while in some cases it won’t. Aside from this, too much water can also cause problems for the plant as it starts suffocating its roots.
The problem can be easily avoided if you have a proper drainage system in your garden. Although, if you don’t then small tunnels can be created inside the soil to allow excess water to escape.