Thanks for the link to the cucurbit disease page, anney! I searched through it and the closest match seems to be molybdenum deficiency! The reason why I don't think there is any kind of mildew problem is because there is no substance per se on any part of the plant and because the colours don't match with any mildew. Also, the symptoms systematically start with the edges of the leaves. Mildew doesn't really work like that. To me, this looks like some kind of virus or something feeding on the plant. I have no idea why this plant would have a deficiency while the other clearly doesn't. They are in the same soil and they get the same care. Same thing with bugs eating them: they are so close that if a parasite were feeding on it, the other plant would have the same problem as well. I did find a small cluster of tiny black eggs on a squash flower this morning, but they look like those of the tiny black fruitfly-like insects that live in tomato plants most of the time (there are toms nearby). By the way, it isn't a square foot garden, just a raised bed that had to be reorganized slightly once I discovered that one of my tomatoes is going to turn into a Christmas tree. Some plants were shaded by it so I moved them. But the squash were never bothered by this (I would not dare transplanting those) and they still live in their original conditions. One thing I noticed, though, is that there are yellow ladybugs visiting this plant. I only ever find one and only once in a while, but whenever I find one, it is on one of the squashes--I crush them. Please, don't tell me I have been crushing a beneficial! Now, I have a big question. If I were to cut off two stems with leaves, would that hurt my plant in its current state? We don't have what people call extension services here, but I do have a botanical garden 15 minutes from here by bus that offers the same services. I could have a professional take a look at plant samples. So, if I were to take samples, would the benefits (getting a diagnosis and hopefully treatment) outweigh the risks (making my plant even more sick and possibly spreading whatever afflicts it to other plants)? Thanks so much for your help!

You're right, I should have dug up a dead plant. So I just went outside to do that, and the two that were "dead" yesterday look MUCH better. Not great, but not nearly as bad as they were. Perhaps it was lack of water, and these few plants were affected when the others weren't? We got about 1/2" of rain Saturday. Anyway, here is the "better": I will check on them this afternoon and see if they are melting in the sun, but it's nice and cool and moist under 6" of mulch. I dug up one that died about a week ago of the same thing. Him I did try to revive with water, with no luck. I pulled him up and didn't get any roots at all, but he was very dead. The stem was hollow and there were plenty of ants around, but given how long he's been dead, I don't think the ants were the culprit. I dug around in the soil and saw no sign of pill bugs or any bugs other than the ants. I am loathe to pull up a plant that isn't dead because I have so few left. Cats, it seems, like to eat artichoke seedlings. If I start them from seed again, I'll keep them inside until they are 6-8" tall and not tasty anymore.

Pulling plants as they get infected doesn't diminish disease levels during the season... pulling as much of the root out of the ground after the plant dies may help a little, but there are infected roots that you won't be able to get to. The spores are released into the soil as the infected roots decay. So if they're obviously dying or dead, pull them, but it won't do much to help the others right now. I replied to your other post with some possible strategies to deal with Fusarium wilt, though it's a tough nut to crack. Best of luck. --Alison

Hi sharonie There is a lot of good info out there on pith necrosis including pictures. After reviewing it all I am convinced that this is what my plants have...It's easy to over fertilizer ( I know lol) You mentioned about using Foliage Pro (Liquid?). How often did you feed them? Many here (Digidirt) recommend that a liquid fertilizer be used for container gardening and that you half the recommended amount when applying it and do it 2 times a week. Getting back to pith necrosis I've read that sunny weather restores the plant. I lost my Paul Robeson completely and am nursing my 3 others, Homer Fike's, Pearls of Wisdom and Livingston's Paragon. The weather here is not cooperating. Cloudy days, cool nights are not conducive to restoring my plants. I have though stopped fertilizing these 3 in ground plants and am concentrating on my containers and hoping that I don't over-fertilizer these.