I planted 2 Burpee hybrid zucchini seeds last night, in Jiffy pots.
Should zucchini be direct-seeded, or will this be OK?
What's the fastest anybody's seeds ever came up?
I can't wait ! Except for the round zucchini one year, can you believe I've never grown zucchini?

last year being my first year gardening, i started everything indoors about a month before putting them in ground. Cucs, zucs, toms & peppers.

Cucs and Zucs grow like a friggen weed! I do beleive u could start them direct seed outdoors. But i like the transplanting of them. . . . helps get them started faster when its still a lil chilly outside and you get earlier yeilds i would imagine too!

I'm sure u can do either way as i said they grow like weeds! Just be sure (and i know u know this. . ) Keep the bugs off it! Last year i saw 1-2 cuc beatles on my zuchini plants & sure as @#$@# 4 days later my zuch plants were dead

GL to u and let us know how its going!

I always start my zucchini outdoors.. I am zone 5 ...
they take off like jets , till the bugs attack.

What do the bugs look like?

Same here, the bugs got mine last year. I plan to use lots of Sevin this year.

They, and most curcurbits, grow so fast that direct seeding is usually fine for them. Just slice up the jiffy pots with a blade before planting without disturbing the roots.

I live in zone 9 (I think) Sacramento. Last year I just threw some seeds in my garden and also started some inside, they BOTH grew SO fast!!
I would suggest just putting them in dirt and letting them have thier way with your yard...lol

I thought the crows might dig them up, that's why I'm using Jiffy pots.
Thanks, John, I'll slice the netting before planting.

I agree they grow so fast, I do usually start mine indoors, but I wait until about 10 days before I want to plant them outdoors since they do grow fast. I hear you Pat...bugs took mine over last year also, and I even used sevin, but it seemed to make them multiple faster

I start mine in a greenhouse outdoors,
so, mine have to wait until it's reasonably
nice outside and over night temps that don't freeze...
But they pup up quickly and go outside soon..

And if I get a cold spell after I've planted,
I cover with see thru juice jugs with just the very flat bottom part cut off... and I take the top of the container off during the day, so it doesn't burn up the plant and re~cover in the night hours to keep some heat in..
*you could also use those wall~o~waters, or Sterlite containers upside down on top of them,
or even see thru plastic draped over sticks/cages to hold it up over the plants to protect them...

And mine didn't even get a chance to get bugs.. :p
Those darn woodchuck varmit's ate my flowers off and then went after the plants...

One is up this morning-guess I'll plant it and take my chances.
With zucchini do you wait for the true leaves? It's outgrowing its Jiffy pot.

I do, but that's for my area/growing zone..

Try an experiment Deborah, *that's how I learn
what's what for my area*, and let that one get it's true leaves and then plant and see which one does better and which one was easier!!!

I planted the zucchini in a huge, huge pot. Only one seed came up from the two I started in Jiffy pots.
It's getting true leaves now.
I thought my new rabbit would eat it if I planted it in the ground.

I had my zucchini plants straight out in the garden before, and I've never had the rabbit's *or woodchucks'* eat the plant it's self...

The flowers on the other hand are tender to eat and they like those but I am not 100% sure about the new leaves, but never had it happen to mine...

My zucchini is growing quickly now.
It's really hot here now, but usually this is only a March hot spell and will be replaced with rain, wind and chilly weather.
But now with global warming, it's hard to predict what we'll have.
At any rate, the heat is really making the zucchini zoom.

Here is some information I found on the squash bugs . I know its a tedious process to keep them off the plants this way , but I get up early anyway , long before anyone in the house. At night I put a board or piece of roofing shingle in the garden near the plants . I go out first thing in the morning with a bucket of water and turn the board or shingle over and drop the bugs into the water and drown them .
Here are a few other ideas I found on them .
Affected Plants:
Vine crops.

Damage:
Sucks sap and injects a toxin that causes wilting and death.

Predator Insects:
Tachinid flies.

Natural Insecticides:
Sabadilla, rotenone and pyrethrum.

Other Methods of Control:

Hand pick bugs.
Keep the garden free of debris and hiding places.
Use trellises to raise the plant off the ground.
Plant marigolds, radishes, tansy, or nasturtiums nearby.
Dust with wood ashes or lime.
Use row cover.
I prefer a non pesticide , organic if you will , approach to all my gardening .