Here is a better picture of another plant without buds

It looks like Okra to me.

Linda

It is Okra. You can see the fruits in the first picture.

Okra for sure... and the pods in the first photo are ready to harvest.

Ok, thanks everyone! Glad you told me, I was going to just wait and see what it turned into...would have all gone to waste.

Looks like you got a bit of powdery mildew starting on the leaf just to the right of the pods.

I don't grow okra so I don't even know if it's susceptible to PM... anybody?

Okra leaves look a lot like cucurbit leaves, huh?

Kevin

Yes, of course that is okra. I grow it every year but until this year, I hadn't noticed that the pods appeared on very short plants like yours (and mine too). They generally grow as a central leader and get six or more feet tall so that squash wouldn't normally even cross ones mind. And yes, those pods were ready to pick and in a day would probably be too big for many things. Four inches is normally just right. I am in a humid climate and I don't recall my okra being bothered by mildew like my squash sometimes has been.

I've seen PM on squash late in the season, but never on my okra. Those white spots on the leaves are most likely bug bites... spotted cucumber beetles or flea beetles often do that to mine (and to nearly everything else as well).

The white spots are actually egg shells. I took the pic before I brushed it off of the leaves.