Zucchini in the open field: growing and care

Zucchini in the open field: photo

Zucchini is a culture that is not very whimsical to care for, cultivation will not require special efforts. But still, to get a good harvest, you need to know some points about planting, caring for zucchini in the open field and harvesting. We will talk about this in our material.

Zucchini in the open field: how to make planting pits correctly

Zucchini in the open field: photo

Planting zucchini in the open field: video about growing

Planting pits for zucchini, and for other crops related to pumpkin, are not difficult to make. First you need to prepare your holes. To do this, you need to collect an annual weed and put it in the form of a small hill. The next layer is fertile land. It should be about fifteen centimeters. Add one tablespoon of urea and the same amount of superphosphate there. It will be more effective if these fertilizers are in the form of a solution. Then pour out the solution of water and slurry, or you can use a solution with fermented grass. Cover the workpieces with foil.

After ten to twelve days, the mound should settle and warm up properly. After that, you need to make a hole in it and plant your squash seedlings. To prevent the heat from escaping, cover the top with a film. For the seedling, make holes of the required size. The zucchini grows rather quickly, and the leaves will cover these mounds.

It will not be superfluous if you include zucchini in the sowing cycle of your garden. It's good if potatoes and tomatoes grew on the site before the zucchini. Green crops are acceptable. After the zucchini themselves, you can safely plant almost all vegetable crops. The exception is pumpkin seeds.

Choosing a site for planting zucchini

The soil for planting zucchini in the open field needs fertile, well-permeable air and moisture. A couple of weeks before planting seedlings, you need to dig up the area with a shovel bayonet. And before that, it will not be superfluous to add one meter in half - one bucket of humus. Rotted compost will do as well. Rotted sawdust (one - one and a half buckets), one tablespoon each with urea and potassium sulfate, two tablespoons with superphosphate, as well as a couple of glasses with wood ash should be added there.

If you want to save on your fertilizing, apply them pointwise, directly into the planting pits themselves. The wells must be placed at 80cm intervals. Mix them well with the ground. After that, pour water over the area (it should be hot) and quickly cover the holes with a film until the zucchini is planted.

If the weather is good in the spring, then zucchini are planted under the film on the site in the second half of May. If there is a risk that frosts will return, then double the layer of film and water the seedlings with warm water.

This planting time allows you to harvest young zucchini early. The film is removed only after the spring frost has completely passed. Usually this time falls on the beginning of June.

As for planting zucchini in the open field with the help of seeds, then you definitely need to wait until the cold spring temperatures will no longer return. The earth should warm up to a depth of at least eight to ten centimeters to 12-13 degrees Celsius. Sprinkle your beds well with hot water before sowing the zucchini seeds.Planting in this way is best done two or three times so that there is practically no risk of freezing. Observe an interval of three to four days between crops.

And if you want young zucchini to delight you and your family as long as possible, then combine sowing seeds in an open area with planting seedlings.

How to plant zucchini in the open field?

Zucchini are planted in open ground, usually at the age of 20 - 25 days. Make sure your plants have two to three developed leaves. They should have a dark green color and not a long, squat stem. The root system should be white and not damaged. Such seedlings should take root well in an open area. If the seedlings of zucchini are older than the specified period, then it will be much more difficult for it to take root.

Choose not sunny weather for planting your seedlings, or do it in the evening, when the sun's rays are no longer so bright. If the sun is too merciless, then shade your plants to avoid wilting. Dry wind is also a big enemy for zucchini seedlings, so make sure that the seedlings are shaded and protected during this time.

What if the seedlings become too elongated? Everything is very simple, slightly tilting the stem of the plant, remove it deep into the cotyledonous leaves. After the seedlings are planted, you need to thoroughly water the soil with heated water. Make sure that the ground under the zucchini does not dry out.

When three or four real leaves appear, it will not be superfluous if you add peat or just soil under the zucchini. This should be done every three weeks. Do not scoop up the surface soil, as this will expose and damage the root system of the plants.

Zucchini is a fairly fast growing culture, especially if the weather conditions favor it. After one week, as a rule, the zucchini begins to bloom. It's great if the female and male flowers went into color at the same time. If suddenly after three to four days the ovary does not increase in volume, then the pollination process did not take place. You can do it yourself. This is especially true in case of bad weather conditions.

As a rule, zucchini does not need additional shaping. But if you see that during the appearance of flowers, the volume of greenery is too large and this interferes with the development of fruits, then it is better to remove two or three leaves in the center. This is also needed in order to improve pollination. Remove old leaves and rotting fruits from time to time.

Zucchini in the open field: watering and feeding

Zucchini in the open field is a fairly moisture-loving crop. If there is not enough moisture, little rain, then regular watering is required. The water should be well warmed up by the sun. Better to water the zucchini in the open field not too often, but quite abundantly. Try to keep the flowers and ovaries away from water. This is necessary to bypass the decay process. The best way to water zucchini is with grooves. After you have watered your plants, you need to lay down the humus or peat mulch. And when two or three hours have passed, slightly loosen the ground. This is necessary so that a sufficient amount of oxygen flows to the root system.

When ovaries appear, experienced gardeners recommend placing plywood or other similar material in order to exclude their contact with the ground and avoid rotting.

If the weather is inclement, and your zucchini is blooming (or you grow them indoors), you need to do self-pollination. To attract the right insects, spray the plantings with a solution of water and honey.

During the summer period, fertilizer must be applied twice. This is if the soil has been properly fertilized before. In the case of poor, infertile soils, this procedure should be done more often.

The first dressing is applied before the zucchini in the open field begins to bloom.It is necessary to dissolve in ten liters of water one tablespoon with ammonium nitrate and superphosphate + one teaspoon with potassium sulfate. The consumption of such a harvest usually falls on four to five plants.

As for the second feeding, it must be applied during the fruiting period. You need to prepare a solution of mullein with a ratio of 1:10. You can also use bird droppings, ratio 1:15. One bucket of this solution is usually enough for seven to eight plants. To prevent the leaves from getting burned, pour them after top dressing with warm water.

If you want the fruits to ripen faster, you can pinch the points where the plants grow three to four weeks before the end of the growing season.

A very common question is why the end of a young fruit starts to rot. There may be more than one reason for this.

First, it can be due to too much moisture in the soil. Zucchini in the open field, unlike cucumbers, requires regular watering, but excess water is destructive for it. The same goes for the pumpkin, by the way. In principle, you can cut the rotting end to the beginning of a healthy surface, and then burn it with a candle flame. The wound will heal, and the zucchini will continue to grow quietly.

Secondly, if pollination did not take place. In this case, the zucchini simply rots. Here you only have to blame yourself, because the pollination had to be done independently instead of the bee.

Thirdly, the decay of flowers began, which could not fall off due to wet weather conditions. As a rule, in this case, putrefactive processes are transferred to young squash ovaries.

How to harvest zucchini correctly

There is no need to wait for the onset of cold weather, the harvest must take place before this period. As a rule, ten to twelve day old ovaries, which are about fifteen to twenty centimeters long, have the highest palatability. This should be done regularly, since by delaying the harvest, you thereby shorten the process of forming new ovaries. This happens because the necessary substances are spent for the fruit to ripen. And since you, one way or another, remove it after two to three days, the nutrients are wasted.

The full maturation of zucchini in the open field occurs after six to seven weeks. The skin of the fruit acquires a woody character. The pulp coarsens. Such zucchini have a high degree of keeping quality and are able to lie quietly for several months, provided they are fully ripe.

Zucchini in the open field: photo