Black Beauty courgette, weird flowers

[Silverleaf]

I got a few Black Beauty seeds free from a BBC giveaway a few years ago, but this is the first time I've grown this variety.

It seems to be ignoring the fact that squash flowers should have 5 petals.

[jayb]

The leaves look quite frilly too. Are the fruits normal?

[Silverleaf]

Black Beauty fruit on the right, looks perfectly normal to me. They have slight ridges along the length but that's not unusual. And it tastes fine...

[jayb]

Yes they look quite normal. Love the look of the paler type alongside, what variety is it?

[Silverleaf]

It's Verde di Italia, which I got from Real Seeds about 5 years ago. It's doing pretty well and it's quite early - this was the third fruit from that plant but the first from the other two.

[Galina]

Talking about wierd courgettes - what do you make of this Summer Sun? Seeds from HSL and the next fruit was normal, just the first fruit on the plant was with three lobes. What happened there?

I once had a courgette flower which had both male and female parts in it - will post when I find the picture - it was a few years ago.

Just trying to think - with decorative flowers you also get double or filled types and simple types. Just thinking of hollyhock etc Maybe a mutation or temporary mutation pertaining to one flower only, is in line with what happens elsewhere too. Must get counting here on the plot

[Silverleaf]

I guess weirdness isn't uncommon in courgettes then.

I'll have to keep an eye on the flowers and see if it's a spontaneous thing or if all the flowers are like that.

[jayb]

Did you save any to grow out this year? I just wondered they were still doing their weird thing?

[Silverleaf]

I didn't save seeds from that one, no. But I am growing the same variety this year from the original seeds.

[jayb]

Any funny flowers from them this year?

[Silverleaf]

Haven't seen anything weird yet, no.

[jayb]

Good ol' norm

[Galina]

Some courgettes have a tendency to twinning. Usually two flowers side by side and two courgettes growing fused together like a conjoint twin. What if your multi-petal was a twin that actually had a fused flower?

http://mygarden.rhs.org.uk/forums/t/30908.aspx

[jayb]

I haven't had one like that for quite a while.

[Silverleaf]

Oh yeah, I've seen "conjoined" make flowers before. I think this year's Black Beauty has one coming, I'll have to keep an eye on it and see what it does.