A BRIMBANK gardening guru has grown a gigantic zucchini at his Deer Park property.
Domenico Cutrupi has dazzled his family, friends and neighbours with the 1.25 metre-long vegetable.
“Every day it just grows bigger and bigger,” Mr Cutrupi said.
“It’s still growing on the vine and it weighs roughly 4.5 to five kilos.”
“It’s taken about six or eight weeks for it to get to that size.
“It’s a Sicilian zucchini, but I should say it’s a Calebrese one because that’s where I’m from, in southern Italy.”
The zucchini stands taller than Mr Cutrupi’s youngest granddaughter, five-year-old Kaley-Coco.
At the age of 71, Mr Cutrupi and his wife have two children and four grand-daughters, who have been “amazed” by the mammoth zucchini.
Mr Cutrupi said he first became interested in growing vegetables as a hobby thanks to his mother and father-in-law – who both possessed green thumbs.
“I’ve been growing zucchinis for the past 50 years – since I was married,” he said.
His enormous zucchini is not the only vast vegetable Mr Cutrupi has produced across the decades.
He has also harvested 850 gram tomatoes and chillies up to half-a-metre long.
“I never buy seedlings – everything I grow is mine. That’s probably the secret,” Mr Cutrupi said.
“Every second year I put compost, chicken or cow manure – it doesn’t matter which, I’m not fussy – on the garden.”
Mr Cutrupi said he hoped to grow an even bigger zucchini next year and had some advice for his fellow Brimbank gardeners who might aspire to also produce a large version of the vegetable.
“Just persevere with what you’re doing and don’t forget to water, zucchini’s love water,” he said.
