How to Grow Zucchini from Seed
Let’s grow some zucchini from seed this summer!
Zucchini is a summer staple in most vegetable gardens. If you’re new to growing vegetables from seed, you should absolutely start with zucchini!
Zucchini seeds are a great crop for kitchen gardeners – – the seeds are large which makes them easy to handle and they grow fast. You won’t have to wait long to see your little plant come to life!
Why Grow Zucchini from Seed
Why not just buy plants, you ask? For starters, zucchini is a quick to grow plant from seed. You can go from seed to fruit in just 50 days for some varieties. With a turnaround like that, it’s more cost effective to buy a $4 seed packet and grow 25 plants versus buying one $3 plant.
Another reason to grow Zucchini from seed is these bad boys can easily be planted straight into your garden beds. Take 1 or 2 seeds, push them down 1″ deep into good soil, and in a week you’ll have a little zucchini growing! You can plant another seed every 2-4 weeks through July in most areas and have a fresh zucchini plant (or two) each month.
If you want to plant a zucchini transplant (a small plant) in your garden, you have that option, too! You can start seeds 3-4 weeks before you plant outside. Zucchinis don’t like to have their roots disturbed, so you don’t want to grow it much more than 4 weeks in a pot. That’s what we are doing today!
Basic Supplies to Grow Zucchini from Seed
You need very little to grow zucchini from seed. The only thing you actually need is a zucchini seed. And there are tons to choose from! This year I am growing Kefren Zucchini from Johnny’s Seeds. There are loads of options out there. Have fun and experiment with a few!
If you want to start your seeds indoors, you’ll need a basic grow light like this, potting mix or compost, and containers. If you are new to growing seeds indoors, my post on a cheap indoor seed starting set up may be helpful.
Looking to save money? Use bigger yogurt containers (like the 32 oz guys) with holes cut in the bottom for drainage, or you could reuse plastic nursery pots from plants previously purchased.
I like to use 2.5″ pots like this and 3.5″ pots like this for bigger seeds and bigger plants. Use what you have on hand or what’s easiest for you.
All plants need to be grown in a pot with drainage…excess moisture can kill a plant! You’ll want to have something to catch the extra water that runs out. I use these trays for seed starting and soil blocking as well. You could also use an old baking sheet or a disposable aluminum pan/plastic lid.
Onto the fun stuff – – growing!
Let’s Grow Zucchini from Seed
Pre-moisten your potting mix/compost just a bit.
Fill your container of choice about 1″ from the top of the cup and firm the soil in. It shouldn’t be light and fluffy. You want to pat it firmly into the cup.
Place 1 or 2 seeds in the cup. Cover the seeds with 1/2″ to 1″ of soil and firm the soil in again.
Alternatively, you could fill the cup almost all way and then push the seed in to a depth of about 1″. Do whichever feels easier to you. I usually end up planting seeds both ways.
Don’t forget to label your new plants! You can write on painter’s tape, masking tape, or use plant labels and a plant marker.
Keep your newly potted zucchini seeds covered with plastic until they germinate. You may need to mist the tops of the plant each day to keep moisture and heat in. Zucchini like it hot and germinate best in warm soil.
Once the plant germinates, take the plastic off and keep it under grow lights for 14-16 hours per day. Water it each day by pouring water in the basin the plant pot is sitting in (called bottom watering).
If you more than 1 seedling emerges, simply snip off the extra plant. Zucchini plants get way too big to have more than one growing together. You’ll get used to sacrificing plants! Each one is a bit easier!
After hardening off your plant (see below) you can plant your new zucchini plant when all danger of frost has passed (you can use this calculator if you’re not sure). Be sure to check your 10 day forecast just to verify there isn’t a sneaky frost coming up!
How to Harden Off Zucchini Plants
Prior to planting your zucchini in your kitchen garden, you’ll need to harden off the plant for about 1 week.
This is the worst part of gardening! Ugh. It’s really the worst. We have to acclimate our plants to the harsh world of the outdoors. Sunlight, wind, rain.
On day 1, preferably a warm (60 or above) and cloudy day, take your seedlings outside for 1 hour and then bring them back in under the lights.
Day 2, take your seedlings outside for 2 hours and then bring them back in under the lights.
On day 3, take your seedlings outside for 3 hours and then bring them back in under the lights.
You will continue to gradually expose your baby zucchini plants to more and more outside time, by roughly 1 hour increments, over the course of a week. You can go crazy and keep this up for 2 weeks, but I’ve never gone more than 7 days.
Hardening plants off is a dreadful part of gardening, but it is necessary. I’ve burned snapdragons and foxglove by jumping the gun and getting the plants in full sun before they had been properly acclimated. The plants survive but they take a while to recover.
So, take your time and harden them off slowly, making sure they get a bit of all weather (not frost) before they hit the great outdoors for good.
Succession Planting Zucchini
Zucchini really are an easy plant to grow. Once you have your zucchini seedling planted in your garden, you can direct seed a succession of zucchini!
What this means is you’ll simply plant a new seed (or 2) 1″ below the soil, in a new spot in the garden. You’ll water it daily until the seed germinates. This plant will start to produce zucchini about 2 weeks after the first. And when this plant is a few weeks old (3 or 4 weeks) you can plant another succession of zucchini!
Zucchini can be prone to disease, so having successive plantings can be very helpful in keeping a healthy plant to produce fruits all summer and into the fall.
Grow Zucchini from Seed in Your Kitchen Garden
I hope this was helpful! Zucchini are so easy to grow from seed…it just makes sense to grab a packet of seeds instead of buying the plant.
Let me know if you plan to grow zucchini from seed this year. What varieties are you trying? Let me know in the comments below.
Thanks for stopping by!
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