From: http://www.ag.arizona.edu/gardening/news/azdailystar/garden_failure.html
"It is common for summer squash plants not to produce, or to produce poorly. This is because of insufficient pollination of the female flowers. Both male and female flowers are produced on the same squash plant. Sometimes many more male flowers are produced and few if any female flowers appear. At other times many more female flowers are present, but male flowers are scarce. Pollination from male to female flower fails to happen, and no squash are formed. Hand pollination can be carried out.
Male flowers from one plant can be used to pollinate female flowers from another, or of the same plant. Female flowers can be identified by the miniature squash (unfertilized embryo) attached under the flower. Male flowers have no such attached miniature squash. To hand pollinate, a male flower is removed and the pollen producing anthers in the center of the flower are rubbed onto the stigma of the female flower to achieve fertilization."
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