| Can I cut the male flowers on my pumpkin plant to get the female ones that are farther down the vine to blossom faster? |
| Squash and pumpkin flowers a short-lived, lasting only a few days. The male flowers provide pollen for the female flowers. If you remove the male blossoms, the female flowers will not produce fruit because they won't have a means of pollination. While it's true that the first few flowers on the vine are male and are generally considered expendable, removing them probably won't make the female blossoms open any sooner, and you may be removing the flower's only source of pollen. Warm weather will do more to encourage blooms and fruit set than removing flowers, so try to be a little more patient with your pumpkin plants. |
