That's the usual pattern. Loads of males first, and then females follow, once pollinators are attracted. Sounds like you used to be just lucky.

Thank you,,I know the pattern of males first, then females,,but my plants are beyond that stage and still producing few if any females. I believe I have a deeper problem..

I've seen squash that almost never get around to producing females. I have a Seminole this year that grew to 20 feet, and it produced about two dozen male flowers and precisely TWO female flowers. Your deeper problem is pretty much bad luck. We all have it, now and then. I don't think there is any correlation of m/f ratios with nutrition/stress/water/anything.

Sorry to disagree but anything that causes the plant stress can retard the development of blooms and IMO, especially female blooms. Too much or too little water, too much or too little nutrients (esp. phosphorous), pests, disease, unusual weather, etc.

But like Dan said, unless you can readily ID the cause of the stress and eliminate it, it boils down to luck.

Dave

My observation is that in very warm or hot weather like the dog days of summer you get mostly male flowers. When my plants experience more cool weather I notice more female flowers. I started my spaghetti squash very early this year and was surprised that I have more female than male flowers at first. But I agree that its sometimes just the particular plant.

@Dave or anyone LOL - would you recommend a fertilizer with high phosphorus levels then if you're experiencing that? I bought a miracle grow ultra bloom - I think it's 10-30-10 to use on the flowers.. the local gardener says it's fine to use on vegetables.... but I'm a little reluctant too because that's something I consume.

Miracle Gro is simply a synthetically derived form of elemental nutrients. It isn't the 'best' synthetic (although there are better than Miracle Gro - RE: more complete - 'best' is a subjective term and each user will have their favorites,) but it is very easy to use, and when following the directions, perfectly safe for edible plants and the humans eating those plants.

The only real difference between the chemical salts in MG, and natural sources of nutrients, is in the way they are derived and processed. I don't use 'cides of any sort, but if I have MG, I use it in full confidence of its safety.

That said, I will not buy it. What many of us who prefer natural, 'organic' methods will decry, is the abuse of synthetic fertilizers and the manufacturing processes that produce them. I personally have no desire to financially support the companies which produce these products.

If over-used, or are applied incorrectly (especially on lawns,) they can 'run-off' with water before the plants have the opportunity to use them. Once in rivers and streams, they can cause an over-abundance of plant and algae growth. This, in turn, causes imbalances with fish and other aquatic wild life. In some cases, toxic algae can form and breed out of control, killing massive numbers of fish and shellfish. In short, they need to be used correctly.

The other issue many of us do not like is the manufacturing process that is used in their production. Aside from any waste it generates, it requires fossil fuels and resources. There are so many natural sources of fertilizers, that for the home gardener, synthetics are just not necessary.

That said, they have their place. I use them moderately, and in some instances, their safety, cost, immediate availability to growing plants, and ease of use is tough to match.

I probably sound like a commercial lol, but if you have some on hand, and follow the directions, you can be assured that the product itself will not hurt you or your family. Just be sure to not consume the product directly, and wash all your produce on which you may have spilled some.

All my winter squashes throw out loads of female blossoms first. My Waltham Butternuts have yet to produce a male blossom, and yet have set a buttload of fruits. How? I have no idea. There are no gardeners around with any Moschatas. And I never, ever get a Pepo to set a single fruit unless I have a male blossom in my garden, even though the lady next door has pumpkins blossoming.

"@Dave or anyone LOL - would you recommend a fertilizer with high phosphorus levels then if you're experiencing that? I bought a miracle grow ultra bloom - I think it's 10-30-10 to use on the flowers.. the local gardener says it's fine to use on vegetables.... but I'm a little reluctant too because that's something I consume."

There are no correlations between nutrient levels in any particular fertilizer and safety of the food consumption if that is what you mean. But no, I would not recommend a high phosphorous fertilizer unless you know for a fact that your soil is low in phosphorous (which is quite rare). The problem when plants show symptoms of low phos are issues of uptake of the nutrient by the plant, not the lack of it. So the goal is to determine what is causing the stress, causing the inability of the plant to access and use the soil phos and fix that problem. Just dumping more of it on the plant soles nothing and often only makes the problem worse.

Is MG "fine to use on vegetables"? Many do it primarily because it is easy and because they don't understand how fertilizers work much less the side-effects of using them can be, especially when abused. Do I use MG? No.

I don't care for their mis-leading marketing tactics, their manufacturing processes, or the fact that it wastes money and nutrients. If I need N, I feed N, if I need K, I feed K, if I need micros, I feed micros. Why should I apply all of them if my plants only need one specific thing?

More importantly ground water and run-off contamination by the rampant applications of phos is a serious problem in this country (as the folks in Florida are now learning with their massive algae bloom). I don't want it in my wells, my creeks, my ground water, or the lake I live on. But that is a personal decision and we each have to make our own choices.

Dave