Cucurbits

Generous feeding and proper timing produce thriving plants, whilst neglecting either results in sulking vines that disappoint, whether you’re after giants or cooking varieties.

A few key early decisions determine whether your plants produce abundantly all summer or fail completely, yet most gardeners don’t realise where they’re going wrong until it’s too late.

Creating the right warmth and protection matters more than climate luck, allowing you to harvest sweet, fragrant melons that surpass anything supermarkets offer, even in average British summers.

Unlike quick-growing salads, these sprawling plants demand several months and the right setup from the start, but homegrown squash that stores through winter rewards the patience.

Marrows get dismissed as watery and bland, but harvest them at 20-25cm and they’re delicate and delicious. You’ll learn exactly when to let courgettes keep growing and when to pick them.

A single healthy plant can give you twenty courgettes across summer, but they’re demanding when it comes to water, food and space. You’ll learn what went wrong if you’ve struggled before.

Shop-bought cucumbers are bred for shelf life, not flavour, but once you understand the difference between greenhouse and ridge varieties, you can grow crisp, tasty cucumbers at home.