A SUCCESSFUL courgette plant can take up a fair amount of space on the vegetable patch by midsummer, so if you’re short of room you could try growing them vertically instead of horizontally.

This approach involves a bit more intervention than growing them on the flat does, and some cultivars of courgette respond better to the treatment than others — one called Black Forest, for instance, is particularly recommended as a climber. 

But if you don’t mind the extra labour, it can be a useful way of getting more food per square foot of ground as well as minimising the risk of a rampant courg smothering neighbouring crops.

At this time of year, there are two ways to start courgettes off. To avoid any danger from late frosts, as well as slugs and snails, you can sow one seed in a 3.5 inch (9cm) pot in peat-free multipurpose or seed compost. 

Keep it under cover, either on a bright windowsill or in a greenhouse or cold frame, until the young plant’s roots have filled the pot and you're as confident as you can be that the frost season has ended.

Before planting it out in the garden, and if possible a couple of weeks before, dig a two-foot (61cm) square hole and fill it with well-rotted manure or compost, and then backfill with the soil. 

Courgettes need rich, moist, sunny ground to thrive.

From late May, depending on how early your local summers start, you should be safe enough sowing seeds directly into the ground — having prepared a patch as above.

Put in the support for your climbing courgette after the soil preparation and before the planting or sowing, so as not to disturb the young plant or seed. 

I’ve tried various arrangements when it comes to erecting a climbing frame for courgettes, and have concluded that the simplest seems to be the best.

In its fruitful maturity the plant is going to be quite heavy, so you need to get hold of a solid wooden or metal stake, preferably at least six feet (180 cm) tall. 

Bang it into the soil so that the bottom 18 inches (45cm) is below ground. Sow or plant your courgette right next to the stake.

A courgette plant produces its leaves from one thick stem. As soon as that stem is large enough that you can handle it without breaking it, start tying it to the stake. 

Don’t use thin, rough string or twine, but something softer and thicker, such as old bootlaces, so as not to cut into the plant. If you’ve ever tied-in tomato plants, you’ll know how to tie-in courgette plants.

Keep tying the stem to the stake, about every four inches (10cm), throughout the growing season, or until you run out of stake. Or, indeed, bootlaces.

As well as saving space at ground level, this method also helps avoid mildew, a frequent problem with courgettes and cucumbers, by improving air circulation around the leaves.