Police in Bretten, Germany, said a man thought he found an exploded World War II bomb in his back yard, but it was really a zucchini. Photo courtesy Karlsruhe Police

Nov. 3 (UPI) -- An 81-year-old German man called police to tell them he found a World War II-era bomb in his garden, but when officers showed up, they found a large zucchini instead.

The man found the 11-pound, 15.7-inch-long vegetable Thursday in his back yard in Bretten in the southwest German state of Baden-Württemberg.


He believed it to be a bomb, but upon arrival, police said they found a dark-colored zucchini.

Officers were able to dispose of the vegetable without having to call a bomb-disposal team.

Police said they believe someone may have thrown the zucchini over the man's garden hedge.

Though World War II has been over for more than 70 years, unexploded bombs are still periodically found throughout the country. In September, Frankfurt officials evacuated some 65,000 residents when they found a 1.4-ton bomb at a construction site.