I'm a veggie who just sprouted and don't know what I am?!

vfem

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That's pretty much it... its the volunteer I showed pictures of about a month ago. Now its gotten much bigger and is flowering. I really would like to know what it is that just came up on its own!?

14084_unknown_veggie.jpg


I was thinking a cucumber, but doesn't look like the one I grew last year?! I don't want it to cross pollinate with my crookneck squash in the same bed. Would it?
 

beavis

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I'm thinking cucumber, but I would give it a few more days to see what shape the veggie looks like attached behind the flowers.
 

vfem

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These are much smaller flowers then the cukes' flowers I planted last year. but I think these sprouted out of the mix of compost I used from out back... and I bought cukes last summer from the farm stands as well as growing my own, and I got a TON from the neighbors as well.

I also got some compost from the neighbors...

AND I never grew cukes in the garden bed, ever!

So its one of those mystery things. :/
 

journey11

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Probably travelled in on your compost. They have a tough seed shell and survive it easily. I've had this happen several times with winter squash that I have tossed into the compost because they went bad. You're so close to it revealing it's fruit now, I'd wait a bit and see what your mystery prize is! :lol:

ETA: if it's a cuke, it won't cross pollinate with your summer squash.
 

hoodat

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vfem said:
That's pretty much it... its the volunteer I showed pictures of about a month ago. Now its gotten much bigger and is flowering. I really would like to know what it is that just came up on its own!?

http://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/14084_unknown_veggie.jpg

I was thinking a cucumber, but doesn't look like the one I grew last year?! I don't want it to cross pollinate with my crookneck squash in the same bed. Would it?
I'd say it is a member of the gourd family (cukes are gourds) The flowers are too small for squash. No, gourds and squash won't cross and even if they did that does no affect the fruit, only the seeds that come from it.
I'd sure grow it on out of curiosity. Those mystery plants can sometimes produce amazing results.
 

Greenthumb18

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I say its a melon of some kind, dosen't look like a cucumber to me.
 

beavis

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Can we do polls on this forum?

If you can, it would be fun to start one vfem, with like 4-5 guesses what it might be.

Don't dig it up, I'm curious now what it is.......
 

vfem

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Oh I'm curious... that is why it is still there. Flowers on there now makes it near impossible to pull up without figuring it out. :D

Its just a battle for space with 2 tomatoes in that bed, 1 crookneck squash and 3 pepper plants. Its a 3' x 5' raised bed! I put some posts and string to make a make shift trellis to tie it to as you can see to keep control of the bed and give everyone space to breath. ;)

Everyone should venture a guess... I just don't know how to start a poll here?
 
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