Courgette Ola Redonda - Cucurbita pepo

The Ola Redonda Organic Courgette is a highly productive round courgette, selected for organic farming. This non-running variety produces globose fruits in light green, speckled with white, ideal for stuffing or roasting whole in the oven. Early to mature, it begins producing quickly after planting and, with regular harvesting, ensures a bountiful harvest of courgettes all summer long; perfect for creating numerous recipes for stuffed and pan-fried courgettes at home!

'Ola Redonda' belongs to the species Cucurbita pepo, from the Cucurbitaceae family, the same as other courgettes, summer squashes, and some pumpkins. This species, native to Mexico and Central America, is now cultivated worldwide as an annual vegetable plant.
The courgette is a monoecious plant: each plant bears separate male and female flowers, both large, yellow, funnel-shaped, and pollinated by bees and other insects. The fruit is a berry with a more or less tough skin, consumed young, well before the seeds reach full ripeness.
The cultivar ‘Ola Redonda’ was created by the Dutch company De Bolster, specialists in varieties adapted to organic cultivation. It is an open-pollinated variety (non-F1 hybrid): the organic seeds offered are therefore reproducible, provided cross-breeding with other courgettes is avoided. The plants are bushy, slightly ramified, without tendrils, reaching 40 to 60 cm in height and spreading 60 to 80 cm in diameter at ground level. The stems are fleshy, green, more or less covered with small, stiff hairs as in all squashes, and bear large triangular leaves with five lobes, cordate at the base, which can exceed 20 to 25 cm in diameter.
The generous flowering period spans from June to September (or later in mild climates) if sowing is staggered. Male flowers, borne on a long peduncle, often appear first; female flowers can be recognised by the small swelling resembling a mini-courgette at the base of the corolla.
The fruits of Ola Redonda are almost spherical, sometimes slightly flattened, measuring 8 to 12 cm in diameter when picked young. Their skin is light green, more or less marbled with paler, almost whitish spots. The flesh, greenish-white, is fine, tender, and low in fibre. Each fruit weighs 150 to 300 g; they keep for 3 to 4 weeks in a cool, airy place, which is longer than many elongated courgettes picked at the same stage.

The Ola Redonda courgette is a welcome addition to both productive and decorative kitchen gardens. It can be planted at the edge of a bed, at the foot of colourful tomatoes such as ‘Indigo Rose’. It also pairs very well with peppers, a purple basil ‘Purple Ruffles’ and some French marigolds which attract pollinators while deterring certain garden pests. By planting a few more classic elongated courgette varieties alongside it, you can create a kitchen garden that is productive, aesthetically pleasing, and offers great culinary variety.

Organic or "AB" seeds come from plants cultivated using organic farming methods (without the use of plant protection products). They undergo no treatment after harvest. These seeds are suitable for organic market gardening.