Male Zucchini flower

It is summer in the Southern Hemisphere and my Zucchini plants have done well this year in spite of the intense heat. I have finally learned not to sow too many seeds because just 2 plants will easily fed two or three people for the entire season. If you plant too many, you will have to find lots of neighbours and friend to keep giving the surplus marrows to. You also should not plant only one plant because then the marrows may not ripen. This is because all members of the pumpkin family bear separate male and female flowers. If the female flower, which bears the marrow, is not pollinated, the marrow will not grow and ripen so you need to have both male and female flowers open at the same time and sometimes this doesn't happen with single plants.

Pictured above is a male flower, which bear the pollen anthers. What many people don't know is that although you won't get marrows from these flowers, they are also edible. There are a couple of ways to cook zucchini flowers but most common is to remove the pistils and stamens of the male and female flowers, stuff them with cheese and herbs, twist the flowers closed and dip them in batter and fry them. They are eaten like this in many parts of the world