Habitual in garden space and culinary life pumpkin lends itself well to cultivation and care in different conditions, including open ground.
Pumpkin: description of garden culture
Received as a result natural farming smooth, lumpy or warty pumpkin fruits are very diverse in shape, color and weight. The latter ranges from tens of grams to a hundredweight. Growing pumpkin in open ground is facilitated by the peculiarities of its root system - the depth (up to 3 m) of the main root and the wide-spreading (up to 10 sq. m) active part, located in arable soil 20-25 cm from the surface.
This gives solid drought resistance. Although varieties in the form of bushes have already become known in gardening practice, the classic pumpkin stem spreads (crawls) along the ground, stretching up to four meters or more. The huge leaf surface is made up of large pumpkin leaves with elongated petioles that do not have stipules. Each of the plants is a common home for male and female flowers.
Having the same red-orange color heterosexual flowers differ:
- order of flowering (male flowers appear first);
- place on the stem (females – higher);
- pedicels (longer for males);
- sometimes the presence of inflorescences (only in males).
In addition, unpollinated female flowers last longer. Pollination is carried out by insects (due to the natural heaviness of pollen, which the wind is not able to transfer) or manually by humans. The most favorable hours for natural pollination are the morning hours of the first days after watering or rain.
The absence of bees due to cold, heat or prolonged rainfall leads to the fall of unpollinated flowers. The ellipses of pumpkin seeds, rounded and pointed at different ends, are well known to numerous lovers of eating them. Germination lasts up to four years.
In connection with the latter circumstance, we can answer the question of whether it is possible to sow pumpkin with fresh seeds: there should be more of them than usual (germination is still a little worse), and if we are talking about only a few seeds, then it is recommended to cut them with a sharp sides, since the strong fresh shell prevents the sprout from breaking through.
Did you know?Of the eight hundred varieties of pumpkin known in the world, only 200 are suitable for food.
Features of growing pumpkins, how to choose a site for planting
In addition to the natural attention to light and temperature conditions and the soil structure of the area where the pumpkin will grow, it is also necessary to take into account the characteristics of its root system, which actively removes nutrients from the ground, and the wide foliage that can drown out neighboring plantings.
Lighting requirements
Ideally, a pumpkin needs to be illuminated, as gardeners say, by full sun, that is, it should have at least six hours of direct sunlight per day. The result of this impact will be increased productivity and improved quality of fruits.
But it will also tolerate partial shade with dignity. This is used to maximize the exploitation of the available land, compacting the crops of long-stemmed varieties of corn with pumpkin plantings. The shade from the pumpkin itself makes it very difficult for weeds to grow. In this sense, it can be used as a means to cleanse the soil.
Optimal temperature for seedlings or seeds
The general rule requires that the extreme limit of daily air temperature when planting pumpkin seedlings, it was not lower than +8°C(for seed planting – from +13°C and above) provided that it decreases at night to at least +3°C. Otherwise, it's not worth the risk.
What should the soil be like for planting?
Growing well in any soil, pumpkin prefers soil rich in humus, moist but not too soggy, with good drainage. To get this, before planting (sowing), the soil is mixed with a large amount of compost.
The soil for pumpkin can be either slightly acidic or slightly alkaline, but the optimal acidity (pH) is 6.5. You should not plant a pumpkin in an area where its relatives (cucumbers, zucchini, squash) previously grew.
After other crops, the soil for pumpkin is suitable, and planting after potatoes, cabbage, tomatoes, onions, carrots, winter grains (corn and wheat), various legumes and herbaceous perennials is very favorable.
Important!Do not be afraid of those close to the surface of the earth (0.6 - 0.7 m) groundwater– they will not affect pumpkin yield.
Planting pumpkins in the garden (planting dates, sowing technology, picking seedlings, preparing seeds, etc.)
When determining whether to plant a pumpkin with seeds or seedlings, the owner should be told what to do best by the climate of the area in which his plot is located. That is, before sowing a pumpkin directly in open ground or for seedlings, you need to devote certain time study and evaluation natural factors. The geographic latitude determines what month of the year gardeners will plant pumpkins. In particular, for the middle zone this is the end of April.
Sowing seeds in open ground
Pumpkin seeds are planted directly in open ground in gardens where the July air temperature does not drop below 18 degrees. Before this, you need to make sure, by studying the forecast of meteorologists, that there is no threat of silent disaster, as return frosts are sometimes called. After such danger has passed, sowing is carried out. If the weather turns bad, it is better to cover the crops with non-woven textiles.
Important!A day before planting, the seeds are heated and soaked in water with dissolved ash.
Once you have chosen the seedling method, you need to take care to properly germinate pumpkin seeds into seedlings. To ensure that the roots are undamaged when moving them into open ground, planting pumpkin seeds for seedlings is done immediately in peat pots or simply in paper cups.
When using seed boxes, a several centimeter layer of sawdust is poured onto their bottom, under a substrate of a mixture of peat and soil. Sowing is carried out three weeks before moving to open ground. In order for pumpkin seeds to germinate well, the germination temperature in the first three days can be increased to 25 degrees, reducing it at night to a maximum of +15.
Planting pumpkin seedlings requires a number of prerequisites. When the prepared soil has not yet warmed up, pumpkin seedlings should not be planted. You can determine the optimal (12 degrees) soil temperature by simply inserting a regular household thermometer into it for 10 minutes. If it is lower, then make a blanket of plastic (preferably black) film for the soil. If time is pressing or there is no other opportunity for planting, then you can first pour three (or more) liters of hot water into the planting holes.
Seedlings grown in peat pots, planted together with them, burying them 3 cm deeper than in the greenhouse soil. Seedlings from boxes are placed in holes filled with water so that, being located in the soil, the roots avoid unnecessary bends.
How to properly care for a pumpkin
Caring for a pumpkin begins with watering it immediately after planting. About a week after this, it is advisable to mulch the soil surface with compost containing effective microorganisms, placing crushed nettles on top of its layer. Peat, humus, pine needles and even dry soil are also suitable as mulch.
An essential point of care is maintenance loosening of the soil, which should be done at least every two weeks. This procedure is almost always combined with weeding. Immediately after planting, the loosening depth can be up to 12 cm, and by the end of the first month it should be reduced to 5-8 cm to avoid damage to the root system. In the absence of natural (insect) pollination, it is necessary to use the manual method - otherwise unset fruits will rot.
The operation, which should be carried out before noon, is quite simple: the anthers of each plucked male flower with the petals removed, you need to carefully touch the pistils of one or two female flowers. When the weather gets better, to attract insects as pollinators, you can spray the flowering pumpkin weekly with honey water (one teaspoon of sweetness per 10 liters of water).
Important!To prevent the fruits from rotting, do the pollination yourself.
How to form a plant correctly
Pumpkin seedlings quickly become spreading plants with long stems and large leaves. To ensure that a powerful plant does not violate the boundaries of its growing territory, it is necessary to form a pumpkin, which is easy to do in open ground. For this, the technology of pinching a pumpkin is used, and it must be done while the plant is young. Pinching occurs by removing the apical bud (possibly with part of the shoot).
Its goal is the accelerated development of lateral shoots carrying larger number female flowers. In addition, excess young axillary shoots that have reached 5-7 cm are removed - this procedure is called pinching. It is carried out on open ground simultaneously with the removal of excess leaves and the direction of all processed pumpkin vines in one direction. By leaving one ovary on each vine, excellent fruit sizes are obtained at the harvesting stage.
Watering and fertilizing pumpkins
The watering period for a pumpkin is the time of its flowering, emergence and development of ovaries. At the beginning of fruit set, the plant is watered moderately so that they do not grow too small. Then the volume of moisture, and warm moisture (at least +20 degrees), is increased.
Warm, significant watering promotes the formation of female flowers. Cold watering well or artesian water can destroy the planting. When the growing pumpkin has real foliage, they begin to feed it with dry nitrophoska (10 grams for each plant) and 15 grams of nitrophoska diluted with water are given to each vegetable when vines form.
- - ash at the rate of 1 cup/1 plant;
- - a solution (1:8) of mullein at the rate of 10 liters per six plants when the growing season began, and for three during fruiting;
- - humus, rotted chicken droppings or manure, humus - by eye.
How to protect pumpkin from pests and diseases
| Pests and diseases | Manifestations | Methods of protection |
| melon aphid | Leaves curling, flowers falling | Spraying with infusion of celandine (or garlic, or onion peel) or chemical solution(kemifos, actellik, fufanon). Autumn collection and elimination of plant residues, deep digging of soil |
| Slugs | Damage to young leaves ( round holes and silver stripes), later – ovaries | Loosening the soil, thinning, weeding. Traps made from cabbage leaves, watermelon rinds, and soaked rags, followed by the destruction of pests in a concentrated saline solution. Superphosphate and other chemical protective strips around plants. Spraying with creocide solution |
| Powdery mildew | Drying of diseased leaves, covered with abundant white coating, spreading to the stems and petioles | Timely weeding. Warm watering. Removing diseased leaves. Spraying with chemicals (strobe, topaz) and treating the soil with them three weeks before harvest |
| Downy mildew (false powdery mildew) | Growing and drying light yellow spots and a gray-violet coating on the leaves | Warming up the seeds before sowing. Spraying with chemicals (strobe, cartocide, copper oxychloride, cuproxate) |
| Anthracnose | Depressed spots with a pink coating dry out and form holes on the leaves. Also appear on cotyledons and petioles | Removing diseased plants. Spraying (Bordeaux mixture, copper oxychloride, abigalik) |
Pumpkin is consumed fresh, stewed, in the form of puree, porridge, and soup. It goes well with cereals and vegetables. You can make pancakes from it, stuff it, bake it in the oven, or steam it.
Three types of pumpkins are common in global agricultural production:
- large-fruited;
- hard-barked;
- nutmeg.
Numerous varieties of large-fruited pumpkin are used as livestock feed. The fruits of hard-bark pumpkin are gray-skinned, sweet, and can be stored well in apartment conditions. Their flesh is edible raw.
On summer cottages Butternut squash is often grown. The sweet and aromatic vegetable is suitable for eating raw. Of the varieties zoned for most regions for planting pumpkin, we should note Almond 35 and Volzhskaya Gray.
Pumpkins grow in any climate, which makes them impressive unpretentious plants, growing in any gardens. But it is not easy to get large and high-quality fruits by planting pumpkins in open ground. In our climate, pumpkins, like any southern plants, lack sunlight and the length of the growing season.
Pumpkin in short time grows a gigantic vegetative mass, so the soil must contain many nutrients. Pumpkins cannot be planted in the shade. For rapid growth she needs a lot of light.
Do not plant a pumpkin next to it - an aggressive bush will leave the pumpkin without sunlight and it will not set fruit.
Pumpkin can be planted from seeds in the garden. The best predecessors for pumpkin are nightshade and cabbage vegetables. Planting pumpkins in the ground near the south side of buildings will protect against the cold nor'easter.
Large pumpkin leaves are easily damaged by wind. When leaves turn over, plants slow down their growth and development. To avoid this, summer residents plant tall crops, such as beans, around the perimeter of the pumpkin patch. Bell pepper or standard tomatoes. If the size of the plot allows, grain crops can be sown between the pumpkin rows.
The soil will have to be prepared in the fall - make holes and cover with fallen leaves. In spring, the soil under the leaves warms up quickly. All that remains is to fill the hole with a bucket of fertile soil and plant 3 seeds. After the cotyledon leaves open, you need to leave one seedling (the strongest in appearance) and remove the rest. A month after sowing, each plant should have at least three leaves.
Treating the seeds with aloe juice before sowing helps speed up the development of the pumpkin. You need to squeeze out a few drops of juice, dilute with water 1:5 and soak the seeds in the solution for one hour.
Culture loves warmth. At a temperature of 0 degrees it dies, even if it is a short-term morning frost. Among melon pumpkin the most moisture-loving. It tolerates close proximity to soil water well. In dry years, such areas can yield excellent harvests.
Tilling the land in autumn and spring for pumpkin is similar to cultivating beds before planting other vegetables of the family. Anyone who has ever grown cucumbers, zucchini, watermelons or melons will be able to prepare the soil for pumpkins. Like cucumbers, pumpkins can be grown not only on the ground, but also on a pile of old humus.
In the south of Russia, seeds are sown in April, in the middle zone - at the end of May. In Siberia, pumpkin is sown at the end of May, but it is taken into account that, if necessary, the seedlings will have to be protected from frost, which is possible in the region until mid-June.
Pumpkins are harvested when the fruits acquire a characteristic color and pattern. Unripe nutmeg pumpkin can be ripened at home.
From oilseed varieties, the seeds are removed immediately, poured into a glass container and poured cold water for a day. If the fruits are overripe, the seeds should not be soaked to prevent germination. After soaking, the seeds are washed, separated from the pulp and dried in the oven until the thin transparent film covering the surface of the seed falls off.
Caring for a vertical pumpkin
There is an opinion that creeping plants spread to the south, but this is not so. The pumpkin grows in all four directions, taking over the surrounding areas. In favorable conditions, persistent plants can climb up a vertical surface and weave through an arbor, shed or bush.
This can be used by summer residents who do not have enough space for pumpkins on their plot. They need to plant not ordinary varieties, but climbing varieties, fortunately the seeds have become available for sale. To make the lashes climb up better, you can stretch the twines for them, like for cucumbers. For a “vertical garden”, varieties with large fruits are suitable - Spaghetti, Zhemchuzhina, Russian pumpkin.
The new wax pumpkin is well suited for vertical culture. It has elongated fruits with a dark green, dense rind that feels like wax. Initially, pumpkins were grown in China and southeastern countries, but now they are gaining popularity here too. The first variety of wax gourd that became famous in our country is called Chardzhou.
The fruits of the wax gourd are ready for harvesting 125-130 days after sowing, so in the northern regions they have to be grown through seedlings. The plants form powerful long stems, elongated fruits, up to 50 centimeters in length, each fruit weighs from six kilograms.
Wax pumpkin cannot compare with nutmeg in taste, but it is a champion in storage. The fruits, without drying out or rotting, can lie in the cellar for up to 3 years.
Another pumpkin that is still rare in our country is the figleaf pumpkin. In its homeland in Peru it is a perennial crop, but in our country it is grown as an annual crop. The pumpkin got its name from unusual shape leaves. It has oval-shaped green fruits with a white pattern on the bark. The pulp is white or yellowish, sweet and tasty. Externally, the plant and fruits look like watermelons.
The length of the shoots of the figoleaf pumpkin reaches 10 meters, and it is suitable for vertical gardening. Although the plant originates from the tropics, it grows in any region of the country where there is a pumpkin cultivation culture.
Growing pumpkin
Pumpkin loves feeding with ash. This natural fertilizer supplies the plant with potassium, which a properly grown pumpkin will contain in abundance (about chemical composition pumpkin and its value for those who want to lose weight, see below).
According to the pumpkin growing technology, you need to stop watering a month before harvest, then the fruits will become hard and will be well stored. If autumn is rainy, it is better to cover the plants with film or place an awning over them. The fruits ripen three and a half months after planting the seedlings in the ground. If they have not had time to acquire the golden or gray color characteristic of the variety, they will acquire it later, after lying in the room for several weeks.
Among the melon crops there are real champions, the yield of which exceeds the wildest expectations, often puzzling the gardener with the question of what to do with the ripened wealth. Growing pumpkins will help you verify this. Along with the high fertility of its bushes, gardeners are attracted by the ease of caring for them. But numerous crop varieties will be able to show everything they are capable of only if the rules of agricultural technology are observed.
Site requirements
Pumpkin is not capricious, but it loves warmth and light and does not tolerate waterlogging. Therefore, it is better to place the beds with it in a dry and well-warmed area by the sun, where the ground does not cool down much even at night. The ideal option for pumpkins is to plant them on a compost heap. Here its bushes will be warm and “nice”, especially if you put superphosphate and wood ash (in small quantities) in each hole. For early and abundant fruiting, the plant needs short daylight hours - less than 12 hours.
Suitable areas for pumpkins are those where beds with the following crops grew or were located last season:
- onions;
- cabbage;
- carrots;
- beets;
- soy;
- beans;
- beans;
- peas;
- peanuts;
- lentils
On the soil freed up after harvesting cucumbers, zucchini, squash, sunflowers and melons, the bushes will be less comfortable. It will be possible to plant a pumpkin in the same place only after 5 years.
The quality of the soil determines the size and taste of the future harvest. Pumpkin is capable of growing and bearing fruit even in poor soil, but it will not turn out sweet and large in such conditions. To produce vegetables of impressive size, her bushes will need a lot nutrients. It is correct to plant plants in loose soil with a neutral reaction, well seasoned with fertilizers.
Preparation of the pumpkin plot begins in the fall. Before digging infertile soil, add compost or manure (3-5 kg per 1 m²). If the soil at the dacha is heavy, add ash (200-300 g). You can replace it with lime without changing the dosage of the substance. Acidic soil is also treated. A mandatory procedure is filling the soil with phosphorus-potassium compounds. The deeper you dig the soil, the better the pumpkin will develop in it.
In spring the area is harrowed. They do this early, when the snow has just melted off. It is important to follow the recommended timing, otherwise the soil may dry out. Subsequently, the soil is lightly loosened, removing weed roots from it. Before placing seeds or pumpkin seedlings in it, it is dug up again, going deeper by 12-18 cm.
If the site was not fertilized in the fall, nutrient compositions - humus (compost), superphosphate, wood ash - are added during planting, adding them to each hole and thoroughly mixing with the soil.
Pre-sowing treatment
To ensure that pumpkin seeds sprout quickly and quickly, they are treated before planting. This is especially important if they were collected a long time ago. Such seeds should be properly checked for germination. To do this, you will need a solution of table salt (at a concentration of 25-30%). Having poured the seed into it, observe it. Quality seeds are heavy and will sink. Empty and unripe - will remain on the surface.
There are several effective ways to pre-sow pumpkin seeds. The simplest is to soak them and leave them to germinate in a damp environment: sawdust, a piece of cloth or moss, gauze. It will take them a little time to peck - only 3 days. You can warm up or bubble pumpkin seeds. To reduce the risk of plant damage by pests and diseases, planting material is pickled for 30 minutes in a strong solution of potassium permanganate.
Another option is to put pumpkin seeds in nutrient solution made from ash or liquid fertilizer from the humate series. You can use a growth stimulant drug. Then they need to be germinated. Having wrapped pumpkin seeds in a damp cloth, they are allowed to lie for 1-2 days in a room where the air is heated to 22-23˚C. The cocoon is not allowed to dry out by regularly sprinkling it with water.
Obtaining seedlings
There are 2 methods of growing pumpkins:
- through seedlings;
- sowing seeds directly into the beds.
Which one to choose depends on the type of crop and the climate of the area. Pumpkins are planted using the seedless method mainly in the south. In the middle zone and in regions where summers are even shorter and colder (in Leningrad region, in the Urals, in Siberia), when sown in open ground, its fruits often do not have time to ripen.
The gymnospermous variety of pumpkin requires a special approach. If the spring is cold and rainy, its seeds in the beds will rot without sprouting. Butternut pumpkin, which is loved by summer residents for its sweet taste and impressive size of the fruit, is also grown through seedlings. Particularly popular among them are the Pearl Muscat and Muscat de Provence varieties.
In separate containers: plastic cups, peat pots. They should be wide - 10-15 cm in diameter. A fertile mixture of three components is poured onto the bottom of the container:
- humus;
- turf land;
- peat
Take them in a ratio of 2:1:1. The container is only half filled. A hatched pumpkin seed is placed on top, sprinkled with the same substrate, but with spilled mullein solution (5%) and supplemented with wood ash (10-15 g). Having moistened the soil mixture well, cover the container with film. This pumpkin planting is carried out in April-May. The exact timing is determined by the planned date of placing the plants in the beds: seeds are sown in containers 20-25 days before it.
Caring for seedlings and planting in the ground
Pumpkin seeds need two conditions to germinate:
- plenty of light (excluding direct rays of the sun);
- warmth (the air temperature in the room with seedlings should be within 25-27˚C).
When shoots appear, it is reduced to 15-20˚C in daytime and up to 12-13˚C at night. Otherwise, the pumpkin seedlings will stretch out. But you can fight this too. When they are 7-10 days old, the section of the stem located under the cotyledons is twisted into a ring, and moist soil is poured on top. If everything is done correctly, the seedling will be underground up to the cotyledon leaves.
Pumpkin seedlings require moderate watering. The soil in containers must not be allowed to become waterlogged. Feed young pumpkins twice before planting them in the beds. The nutritional composition is prepared on the basis of mullein, ammonium sulfate and phosphorus-potassium preparations.
By the time they are placed in open ground, the seedlings should produce at least 3 true leaves. Before planting the pumpkin in the beds, it is hardened off for 5-10 days. After placing the containers with plants on the balcony or veranda, open the window. At first, ventilation is short-lived (1-1.5 hours), but this time is increased every day. At the end of hardening, the window is kept open constantly.
Seedlings are planted in the same way as pumpkin seeds, but the depth of the hole is increased. The root system of the plants should completely enter it and be 8-10 cm below the ground level. Pour 1.5-2 liters of hot water into the hole, wait until it is absorbed, and then transfer the seedling without disturbing the soil coma. The voids are filled with soil and compacted well. The surface of the bed is mulched. You can even use dry soil for this. Its task is to prevent the formation of soil crust and retain moisture.
Sowing in the beds
Planting pumpkins in open ground will become possible when the ground warms up to 12-13˚C to a depth of 7-8 cm. This usually happens in mid-May. Having made a wide (70 cm) bed for the pumpkin, mark holes on it. Correctly, if they are located at a distance of 1 m from each other. Their diameter is made equal to 30 cm, and the row spacing is 2 m.
It will be more convenient to care for the plantings if you arrange the holes in a checkerboard pattern.
Having generously moistened each hole with hot (about 50˚C) water and waited for it to be completely absorbed, lay out 2-3 pumpkin seeds, leaving more free space between them. The planting depth is determined by the structure of the soil. On medium loams, pumpkin seeds are covered with fertile substrate to a depth of 5-6 cm. If the soil is light, the thickness of its layer is increased to 8-10 cm.
After mulching the holes with humus or peat, they are covered with film. To fix it, earth is poured along the edges. This will make pumpkin shoots appear faster. They will have to wait about a week. When the sprouts emerge from the soil, the cover is removed.
At the stage of 2 true leaves, the seedlings are thinned, leaving a maximum of 2 of them if the pumpkin is nutmeg or hard-barked. Having chosen large-fruited crop varieties (Zorka, Ulybka, Konfetka) for cultivation on the plot, you will have to limit yourself to one plant per hole. It is not recommended to pull out excess seedlings - there is a high risk of injury root system remaining in the garden. It is better to cut them flush with the soil. If the threat of frost persists, the seedlings are placed under the film, stretching it over a wire frame or arches.
Alternative cultivation
If the size of the plot does not allow you to allocate a plantation for spreading pumpkin vines, this is not a reason to refuse to grow the crop. You can plant seedlings in a barrel. Old containers without a bottom are ideal for these purposes. In new barrels, you will need to make holes on the sides and bottom to avoid moisture stagnation. Hanging pumpkin vines under the weight of the harvest can be injured by sharp edges and even break. A regular rubber hose will protect them from this. It is cut in half and placed on the edge of the barrel.
The outside walls of the container are painted dark color. This way they will heat up more and will not rust. Having placed the barrel on sunny place, it is filled with biomass, creating a kind of warm bed. Thin branches, paper, weeds with powerful roots, thick grass stems - any organic matter that rots slowly - are placed at the bottom. Place on top what will quickly turn into compost: leaves, grass, tops vegetable crops. This is how a barrel for planting pumpkins is prepared in the fall.
If this is done in the spring, half-rotted organic matter from the compost heap, humus, sod or fresh grass are placed in it. All this is carefully compacted. When there is no more space left in the barrel, its contents are watered generously, first with water, and then with a solution of a special preparation that contains effective microorganisms. Over the course of a month, they will break down organic residues into nutrients, making it easier for the pumpkin to absorb them. This explains the timing of the procedure - the end of April and the first days of May. As long as the bacteria work, the pumpkin seedlings will grow to the desired size.
Instead of a barrel you can use car tires, placing them on top of each other.
Basics of agricultural technology
Pumpkin seedlings placed in beds require frequent watering. They carry it out every day until they finally take root in the new place. After this, watering is reduced to a minimum. In rainy summers you can do without it completely.
When the ovaries begin to resemble a fist in size, the pumpkin bushes will again need a lot of moisture. During this period, water the plantings once a week, spending 1 bucket of water per bush. Abundant moisture is especially important for pumpkin on hot days. Before harvesting, stop watering the plantings. If you neglect this recommendation, the fruits will be stored worse. Their taste will also suffer: they will become less sweet.
Pumpkin responds well to loosening the soil. It is advisable to carry them out after each moistening, while simultaneously removing weeds. They begin to loosen the soil from the moment the seedlings appear, going 6-8 cm deep into it under the bushes. The soil between the rows is cultivated more intensively - 12-18 cm. It is better to do this before it is moistened, then the water will flow to the roots of the plants faster. When loosening, it is recommended to hill up the pumpkin bushes a little. This technique will make them more stable.
Plantings are fed frequently - every 1-1.5 weeks. The nutritional composition is prepared from mullein (1 l) and nitrophoska (2 tbsp. l). They are mixed in 10 liters of water. 1.5 buckets of solution are poured under an adult bush. The first feeding begins when a week has passed since the seedlings were placed in the beds. If the pumpkin seeds were planted directly into the ground, you need to count 3 weeks from the date of the procedure. During this period, it is better to water the plants with manure or chicken droppings diluted 4 times with water. Another fertilizer option is wood ash (1 cup of substance per 10 liters of water).
Before the first feeding, shallow (6-8 cm) grooves are made around the pumpkin seedlings, 10-12 cm away from the plants. The nutritional composition is poured into them. Subsequently, the depth of the furrows is increased by 4 cm, digging them at a distance of 40 cm from the bushes. After applying fertilizer, the grooves are covered with earth.
Bush formation
The most important thing in caring for a pumpkin is to form the bush correctly. When the length of its main stem is 1.3-1.5 m, it will need to be pinched. Of the numerous side shoots, only 2 are left, removing the excess ones. They should reach 60-70 cm in length. In order for the pumpkin to ripen large, the ovaries are normalized: one for each shoot.
The fruits will fill faster if you press the vines to the ground. This is done using a small wooden spear or wire. Soil is poured on top of the shoot. Optimal thickness its layer is 6-7 cm. Additional roots form underground on the shoots. To prevent ripening pumpkins from getting dirty in the ground and being affected by rot, glass or a piece of plywood is placed under the fruit.
If the pumpkin is decorative, its shoots will need support. Growing quickly, they can easily camouflage old buildings, poles, sheds, fences on the site, entwining a gazebo or trellis, creating a secluded green corner. But the lashes of such plants are heavy, so you need to choose a reliable support for them. Organic formulations are more suitable for feeding them. Otherwise decorative variety crops are grown in the same way as ordinary ones.
Pumpkin, planting and caring for which will require minimal skills from the summer resident, is a very rewarding plant. With proper agricultural technology, it can feed more than one family with its tasty and healthy fruits. Despite the heat-loving culture, it is grown almost everywhere. Even in conditions unsuitable for pumpkin in Siberia and the Leningrad region, its bushes will be able to bear fruit. You just need to arrange warm beds and prepare high-quality seedlings.
Pumpkin is considered one of the most popular garden crops. It is unpretentious and has a wide growing area. Pumpkin is extremely popular in cooking, as well as folk medicine and even cosmetology. Our article will tell you how to grow this plant when planting seeds in open ground.
How and when to plant
Growing pumpkins most often occurs using this method. Seeds (also properly processed) are added to the previously prepared soil. After this, it is necessary to provide the plant with proper care, as well as harvest on time. All this is discussed in detail below.
Preparing the soil before planting
Planting seeds
Before planting in open ground, it is advisable to properly prepare the planting material. Various methods are used for this; as a rule, each gardener prefers his own. Some people freeze the seeds for this, while others pierce them to speed up growth. Our article offers a more gentle method that is effective and time-tested.
How to prepare seeds before planting:
It is very important to make sure that the seeds are not old. To do this, the manufacturer must indicate the shelf life and suitability. When preparing yourself planting material, it also makes sense to determine the possible period of use. It should be remembered that maximum germination will be achieved by seeds no older than two to three years.
Correct fit
Many gardeners successfully grow pumpkins without following the described algorithm, but still best result the correct method will give you. It uses the method of landing on different depths and plucking out unnecessary sprouts. The main secrets of this method are described in more detail below.
Important points when planting pumpkins:
The video shows how to plant a pumpkin in open ground with seeds:
Pumpkin is often planted to shade beds from the sun's rays. This will help preserve the plantings, but it should be borne in mind that this plant requires a lot of nutrients for its growth and such proximity can harm cucumbers and other crops. A method that is also often used is to use pumpkin shoots to darken the compost pit in the area. It's simple and effective method, which has an indisputable advantage - the ability to provide the plant with all the necessary substances without additional fertilizing.
As a rule, on compost pit can be assembled maximum yield without any extra effort.
How to care
Further care of the pumpkin usually does not present any particular difficulties. The plant must be watered regularly, weeds must be pulled out and the soil near the roots must be loosened. Like any other culture, it has its own secrets, which will be discussed further.
Secrets of a good harvest:
- If you focus on folk signs, pumpkin planting must be done during the flowering period of viburnum and peonies. The average daytime temperature should reach 20 degrees Celsius.
- It is advisable to choose a planting site on the south side, protected from drafts and swampy soil.. If this cannot be avoided, it makes sense to build high beds.
- The best predecessors for pumpkin are potatoes, peppers, onions, and beets. If other crops of the pumpkin family grew in this area, there is a high risk of infection with characteristic diseases. This situation can be partially corrected by planting green manure plants after harvesting.
- During the first time after planting, it is advisable to protect the seedlings from birds and frosts.. To do this, you can cover the seedling area with half plastic bottle. After the sprouts are strong enough, the shelter can be removed.
- Organizing “warm” beds when growing pumpkins is extremely justified. To do this, you need to install a fairly thick layer of compost or humus at the bottom of the hole. Sprinkle the hole with soil on top, and plant the seeds on the layer of soil. During the natural process of decomposition, this compost produces a lot of heat, which will stimulate the growth of the pumpkin.
- Harvesting is carried out when the fruits are technically ripe. The pumpkin must be cut along with the stalk, leaving 5 - 6 centimeters - this way the harvest will last longer.
In the video - growing pumpkins in open ground:
Pumpkin has a pleasant taste and contains many useful substances. The plant is not whimsical, but is extremely sensitive to fertilizing and loosening. To find out the main secrets of growing this crop, our article will give necessary information about this question.
As a rule, pumpkins, like cucumbers, are immediately planted in the ground. However, if you want to get more early harvest and/or decided to play it safe, because If you live in a fairly cool region with short summers, you can initially sow seeds for seedlings.
Read further in the article about when and how to properly plant pumpkin seedlings and grow them at home.
When choosing pumpkin seeds, do not pay attention to the picture on the package. The orange and smooth-looking fruit is not, in fact, the best and necessarily sweetest.
Advice! You should not choose the largest varieties.
This is explained by the fact that it is difficult to use the whole fruit at once, and after you cut it, a problem will arise. In addition, small-sized pumpkin varieties store better and, as a rule, have a sweeter taste.
In general, pumpkins exist in the following types and varieties:
The most delicious are the muscat varieties, but they are the most heat-loving and late-ripening.
Hard-bark varieties also have excellent taste. They have the earliest ripening period.
Large-fruited varieties are also very sweet and cold-resistant.
Pumpkin planting dates: when to plant seeds for seedlings and in open ground
Pumpkin seedlings should be planted 20-30 days before the expected date of planting in open ground.
The optimal age of pumpkin seedlings for planting in the ground is 20-25 days from the moment of germination (5-10 days is a reserve for seed germination).
Respectively, optimal timing sowing pumpkin seedlings is mid-to-late April or even early May, depending on the region of residence and its climatic zone.
Naturally, in Middle lane(Moscow region) this can be done earlier than in the Urals or Siberia, as well as in the North-West (Leningrad region).
In the south of Russia they usually plant them directly into the ground, but if you decide to grow seedlings first, you can sow them already at the end of March.
According to the lunar calendar in 2019
If you are used to planting in accordance with the phases of the moon, then, according to the lunar calendar, in 2019 favorable days for sowing pumpkin seedlings are:
- in March - 15-19, 23-25, 27-30;
- in April - 6-9, 11-13, 20, 21, 24-26, 29-30;
- in May - 3, 4, 8-10, 17-18, 21-23, 26-28, 31;
- in June - 5, 6, 13-15, 18-20.
Unfavorable days (new moon and full moon periods) on which you should definitely not plant pumpkin (and any other crops) for seedlings in 2019 are:
- in March - 6, 7, 21;
- in April - 5, 19;
- in May - 5, 19;
- in June - 3, 4, 17.
According to lunar calendar, from the magazine “1000 tips for a summer resident.”
Preparing pumpkin seeds for planting
“You can’t expect a good breed from a bad seed.”
Before planting, pumpkin seeds should be carefully selected (calibrated), throwing out all damaged and bent specimens, leaving only the most large and plump.
Next, the seeds should be checked for their suitability for sowing (viability): pour into a container with water for 3-4 hours. Seeds that will sink can be planted, but those that remain floating on the surface should be thrown away (they are light and empty).
Video: checking pumpkin seeds for suitability for planting
You can directly prepare and process pumpkin seeds different ways:
- Soak in a damp cloth in regular hot water (50-55 degrees) for 1-2 hours.
Or even better, in one of the growth stimulants such as Epin or Zircon. You can also grow in them.
- Disinfect by holding for about 20-30 minutes in a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate (1%, i.e. 1 mg per 1 liter of water), or even better in a solution. At the end of the time, rinse under clean water and dry until the required flowability appears.
Advice! In addition to soaking, you can also carry out a hardening procedure. To do this, you need to wrap the seeds in damp gauze and put them in the refrigerator for 10-12 hours. Then take it out and put it in a warm place for 10-12 hours. Repeat this for 3-4 times (3-4 days), in other words, expose the seeds to temperature changes (stress), and then germinate.
- Just germinate! To do this, first disinfect, then wrap in a damp cloth (or put between cotton pads, napkins), put in plastic bag(create a greenhouse effect) and remove for germination in a warm place where the temperature is +24..28 degrees. As a rule, the seedlings will hatch in 2-4 days.
Another way to germinate pumpkin seeds is to germination in sawdust. To do this, you need to pour sawdust into a jar, pour boiling water over it and cover with a lid. Then wait a little (so that the temperature drops to room temperature) and add the seeds to the jar with sawdust. After this, place this jar in a plastic bag and put it in a warm and dark place until germination.
Video: germination of pumpkin, watermelon and melon seeds
In order to awaken old pumpkin seeds, you can use the temperature buildup method. To do this, the seeds should be tied in gauze and alternately lowered into hot water(40-50 degrees), then in the cold (straight from the tap, although it is better to use melted water if there is still snow outside your window). This needs to be done 4-5 times, keeping in water for 5-6 seconds. After the procedure, dry and immediately sow for seedlings or open ground.
Many summer residents successfully plant pumpkins and dry seeds, but in this case, the planting time should be shifted by 5-7 days, in other words, it is necessary to plant earlier.
Important! If you purchased coated (treated) seeds, then in no way pre-sowing preparation they do not need, they should be sown dry.
How to plant pumpkin seedlings
So, you have decided on the timing, prepared and processed the seeds. Well, it's time to plant pumpkin seedlings! However, first you need to select suitable planting containers, soil to fill them and actually plant them to the required depth.
Planting containers and soil
The container for planting and growing pumpkin seedlings must be individual: pumpkin plants do not tolerate picking, so special peat cups, ordinary disposable plastic (0.5 liter volume), plastic pots or any other containers convenient for you, from which you will grow, are perfect containers. It’s easy to get seedlings when planting them in the garden. Moreover, their diameter should be at least 8-10 cm.
Alternative opinion! Many gardeners are great at growing pumpkin seedlings in small, 0.2 liter cups. Naturally, it is recommended to plant earlier, when the seedlings have just formed their first leaf and the second true leaf begins to appear.
Pumpkin loves nutritious soil. Soil mixture you can cook it yourself or buy it ready soil for pumpkin crops (cucumbers, melons, watermelons).
If you decide to make it yourself, you can mix peat, humus and sand in a 2:1:1 ratio, or take equal parts of peat, humus and rotted sawdust.
Direct planting of seedlings
Step by step instructions sowing pumpkin seeds for seedlings:
Video: planting pumpkin seedlings with germinated seeds
Video: sowing dry seeds for seedlings
How to care for pumpkin seedlings at home
When the first shoots appear (after 3-7 days), the shelter must be promptly removed.
Before that, you should open the containers at least once a day for ventilation for 10-15 minutes and at the same time check them for the presence of seedlings.
After germination, it would be good to place the container with plantings in a cooler place (where the temperature is 2-5 degrees lower, i.e. about +15-18 during the day and +13-15 at night), and then (after 5-7 days) return to previous temperature conditions (+20-25 during the day, not lower than +15 at night).
This procedure (lowering the temperature) will help young seedlings not to stretch out.
Lighting
Pumpkin seedlings need good lighting for normal growth, so the containers should be placed on a brightly lit windowsill, ideally in the south (southeast or southwest).
Full 12 hour daylight- yours reliable protection from pulling seedlings.
Advice! If suddenly the seedlings begin to stretch out, be sure to add some soil to the cups.
Watering and fertilizing
Pumpkin loves moisture, so it needs regular watering. However, it should be done in moderation without overwatering the plant. At the same time, excessive drying of the soil should also not be allowed.
The water should be warm (at least room temperature), settled or filtered.
After 1-1.5 weeks of seedlings appearing, the pumpkin seedlings can be fed for better growth (however, if you initially used fertile soil, then no feeding is needed). Alternatively, you can use nitrogen fertilizer(for example, mullein or similar), or even better, a complete complex such as nitroammophoska or some special one for pumpkins (the same Agricola).
Video: growth of pumpkin seedlings in a week
When and how to plant pumpkin seedlings in open ground
The signal for planting pumpkin seedlings in open ground is the appearance of sufficiently developed 2-3 true leaves and the seedlings reaching a height of 15-20 centimeters.
As for the timing of planting, by this time the earth should warm up sufficiently (up to +8-12 degrees), and the weather should be consistently warm (above +10 degrees).
Like all cucurbits, pumpkin does not tolerate frosts, but it can withstand short periods of frost (unlike other melons).
Depending on the climatic conditions As a rule, the favorable period begins in the second half of April in Southern regions, in mid-May - in the middle zone (Moscow region), at the end of May - in the Urals and Siberia.
Advice! It would be very prudent if 5-7 days before planting the seedlings in the garden, you harden your plants, namely, you begin to take them out onto the balcony (or loggia) or into the greenhouse, gradually increasing the residence time from 1-2 hours to the whole day.
It is optimal to plant a pumpkin in the garden in the evening or during the day, in cloudy weather, when the sun has gone or hidden behind the clouds.
Pumpkin seedlings are planted according to a certain pattern; as a rule, it is indicated on the seed package (most often at a distance of 80 to 150 cm from each other).
The place for growing pumpkins should be the sunniest.
Transplantation into the ground should be done carefully, slowly removing the seedlings together with the lump, and in no case damaging the root system of the plant. It is better to make the hole large enough: pour a mixture of humus and ash onto the bottom, pour warm water, plant the seedling, and then cover it with garden soil. As soon as the planting is completed, the plantings can be mulched with humus.
Video: planting pumpkin seedlings in open ground
Thus, even a novice gardener can grow pumpkin seedlings at home. The main thing is to choose first good variety, decide on the timing, prepare the seeds and plant them correctly.
In contact with
