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Annual Biennial

Cucurbita pepo 'Striato d'Italia'

courgette 'Striato d'Italia'

A bushy annual to around 1m tall with large, deeply lobed, silvery dark green leaves and edible yellow flowers in summer. An abundance of attractive, medium-sized, striped dark and pale green firm courgettes with a nutty taste follow the flowers. Best eaten when the fruit reaches around 25cm in length

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Ultimate height

0.5–1 metres

Time to ultimate height

1 year

Ultimate spread

1–1.5 metres

Chalk

Clay

Loam

Sand

Moisture

Moist but well–drained

pH

Acid, Alkaline, Neutral

	Stem	Flower	Foliage	Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Full sun

Aspect

South–facing or West–facing

Exposure

Sheltered

Hardiness
Hardiness ratings
All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets
H1a: under glass all year (>15C)
H1b: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
H1c: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20)

Botanical details

Family: Cucurbitaceae
Native to GB / Ireland: No
Foliage: Deciduous
Habit: Bushy, Trailing
Potentially harmful: Humans/Pets: If crop is bitter, don't eat or feed to pets. Wear gloves and other protective equipment when handling
Genus: A small genus of climbing or trailing, annual herbaceous fruits. Several edible species are cultivated for food and other uses. Native to Central and South America. Solitary, star-shaped flowers are usually golden-yellow. Leaves are palmately lobed, covered with tiny, prickly hairs
Name status: Accepted

How to grow

Cultivation

Start seeds off indoors from mid-April, or outdoors after all risk of frost has passed. Grow in soil enriched with compost or well-rotted manure, or in a peat-free growing bag, or large tub of peat-free multipurpose compost. Keep well-watered and feed every 10-14 days with a high potash liquid fertiliser once the first fruits start to swell. See courgette cultivation

Propagation

Propagate by seed. See sowing vegetable seeds or sowing seeds indoors for further advice

Suggested planting locations and garden types

Patio and container plants
Wildlife gardens

Pruning

No pruning required

Pests

May be susceptible to slugs and snails

Diseases

May be susceptible to grey moulds on the fruit and powdery mildews on the foliage

Get involved

The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place.

Cucurbita pepo 'Striato d'Italia'

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