Features of cultivation of zucchini in open ground

To realize all the power of zucchini and grow a rich harvest, it is important to comply with the basic requirements of agricultural engineering. When performed, even landing in open ground usually gives excellent results. Of course, if there is no weather disaster.

Planting squash should be made strictly in the allotted time. When using seeds, you must wait for half of May. But even at this moment it is necessary to control, so that the earth warms to 12 degrees. Danger is not only the daytime, but also the night chill on the soil. Seeds of zucchini for seedlings are planted on a personal request. This is determined by the consideration that the fruits will have time to ripen.

Another spring cultivation option involves planting in the first days of May. This period is optimal for the middle zone of Russia, if the wells are shed in advance with a warm liquid. It is impossible to ignore the fact that planting zucchini even in June in the open land and in the greenhouse is different in agricultural technology. In any case, those gardeners benefit from waiting for steady heat, rather than seeking to plant a vegetable as soon as possible. Sowing on seedlings in the third decade of April and then approximately until May 14 is aimed at collecting early crops.

If you do this in the second part of July, late fees will be received. But this is only a plus when it is planned to store and preserve fruit for a long time. The best daytime temperature is 23 degrees. At night, it is 4 degrees less.

The early ripening of zucchini distinguishes them from other pumpkin plants. The most active varieties can give a harvest at 40-45 days after sowing. They can even develop at temperatures that are unbearable or barely tolerable for most other plants. Agronomists call this property limited resistance to cold. But still, if it is decided to plant squash in the Urals in the open field, one cannot ignore the mandatory requirements.

A mandatory requirement for this vegetable is the choice of the most illuminated and warm position. Even if all other norms are complied with, placing in the shade can easily reduce fertility by 10 times. Shading is also intolerable when culture itself is its cause. Between plants it is required to leave at least 0.7-0.8 m. If the summer is overcast and the planting is excessively thick, the taste characteristics of the fruit fall sharply.

Optimal conditions for seed germination are folded at 15-18 degrees, and if the temperature drops to 12, developmental activity is lost. The most comfortable indicators for the development of zucchini in the next stage - from 20 to 23 degrees. Leaving an uncovered vegetable when the temperature drops to 10-15 degrees for a more or less long time, it is doomed to stress. It takes such a temperature shock for quite a long time even with the normalization of conditions. As for the ground, the best results are achieved on sandy loams and light loams that have been pre-fertilized.

A very bad idea is to plant squash on heavy soil with excessive moisture. Neutral chemical reaction is important, but recent liming does not affect culture in the best way. If it is not necessary to choose and the whole area is composed of dense clay, the formation of an elevated bed often becomes a way out.

As for the predecessors, the squash in the Urals is fully justified to replace:

• greenery;
• potatoes;
• early cabbage types;
• garlic and onions.

Not always the state of the land in which they plan to plant squash, arranges gardeners.But no one can, and will not, change endlessly the dacha plots in order to get the best result. Much more correct to work on what is already there. A number of techniques have been created that allow us to “pull out” even practically hopeless kitchen gardens. The path through the thorns to the stars for each problem soil is strictly individual. So, peatlands are improved by adding (in terms of 1 sq. M):

• 2 kg of compost;
• 10 kg of clay;
• 100 g wood ash.

As soon as this compound is applied, it is required to immediately dig a bed of at least 0.2 m. The dug up ground is leveled with a rake, and then watered with a solution of organic fertilizer warmed to 40 degrees. Suitable ingredients are sold in all specialized stores. Next, you need to cover the ridge with plastic wrap to retain water and heat energy. The described preparation continues for 7 days, after it you can immediately take up the landing.

Working with light loams reproduces measures to improve heavy clayey earth. The whole difference is that 50% fewer enhancements are introduced. Sand modernized, introducing 1 square. m 10 kg of yellow clay and peat (in the same proportion), 3-5 kg ​​of sawdust and the same amount of humus. Additional support zucchini will 200-300 g of wood ash, replacing complex mineral compounds.

As soon as fertilizers are introduced, the sandy area is dug up to 200-250 mm in depth. Special attention deserves the work with black soil. For them it is required to use the same sawdust and humus as in the previous case. But only the additive is reduced to 2-3 kg per 1 square. m. Similarly, reduced and the introduction of ash, it is used not more than 200 g

If the chernozem itself is good and fertile, often its improvement is not required at all. The efforts expended in such cases only waste energy of gardeners, but do not bring the expected powerful returns. But digging the garden is welcome in any case. But do not assume that the preparatory stage is completed on fertilizers. Dispensation of beds is a prerequisite for success.

It is not necessary to hurry with the use of fungal suppressants However, they should be applied 7-14 days before planting zucchini. A more familiar substitute for branded reagents may be a solution of manganese light colored. It helps eliminate pathogens, not just microscopic fungi. Crop rotation can be considered an indirect measure of preparation (when zucchini is planted in one place with gaps of 36-48 months, no less).

Separate plants help to recognize the acidic ground unacceptable for squash. Only in such places develop wood lice, plantain and horsetail. But there, where clover, coltsfoot, chamomile are seen, there are no complaints about acidity. If no suitable plants are found, a litmus indicator comes to the rescue. With it you need to analyze the water infusions of the earth, taken at five points at different depths (exposure to water - 60 minutes).

The so-called tensiometer also turns out to be a good assistant to the gardener. It most accurately determines the humidity of the earth. In addition to the correct choice of position for zucchini, using this technique, you can eliminate errors in watering.

But certain information can be obtained without special devices. The dry and scattered earth collected in hands has zero humidity. When you can roll a lump that crumbles when you try to throw it, then the humidity is from 25 to 30%.But the soil sticking to the hands, well sliding down and not breaking into parts in flight, has from 50 to 75% of water. Suitable for zucchini material should roll tightly and firmly fixed.

Sandy soil improvement is carried out with magnesium-based fertilizers, including potassium magnesia. To deoxidize podzolic land, use 300 g of ash or 600 g of lime per 1 sq. Km. In various types of soil, along with correction of acidity and mechanical structure, it is sometimes necessary to use fertility enhancing techniques. An important place among such methods is the use of sapropel. It is administered once every 36 months, although annual addition directly into the wells is allowed.

In its pure form, a granulated product from lakes or from other freshwater bodies fits well. But it is even better to use a mixture of sapropel humate with iodine, which helps strengthen the immune system. Judging by the reviews of practitioners, the skillful use of sapropel helps to make the structure of the earth more perfect for 5 years in a row. From the methods of organic farming, preliminary (in the same season) sowing of rape, lupine or phacelia is recommended. As organic mulch, manure, compost and mowed grass are used.

When the need arises to increase the fertility of the soil, along with the abundant input of organic matter, it is required to use complex additives of mineral nature. The best among them are:

• saltpeter;
• urea;
• humic preparations under one brand or another.

Additionally, improving the condition of the soil, as well as enhancing its fruitful strength, helps colonization with Californian worms. If seedlings of zucchini are to be planted in the free land, before this, the wells usually saturate 100 g of an infusion of cow or bird manure. Disinfection of the land produced by copper sulfate. Approximately 7 days before disembarking, it is dissolved in water at a temperature of at least 30 and no more than 40 degrees. On 1 square. m will need to spend 3 liters of solution.

According to experienced gardeners, planting squash seeds in free ground is justified. This gives an optimal result in comparison with the cultivation of seedling vegetables. In each well in the garden you need to put 2 seeds, then there will be more likelihood of ultimate success. Best of all, when zucchini grow 0.5 m from each other. An exception is made for planting in several lanes at once, then approximately 0.9 m is left between these lanes.

It is necessary to form sowing, deepening the seeds by 50-70 mm. But if the soil is very good and ensures normal development, it is possible to reduce this depth to 20-30 mm. A strong string helps withstand this or that scheme when planting squash. On 1 square. m, you can put no more than three seeds. The main landing pattern used in practice is 700x500 mm, all others are not reliable enough.

Optimal care for the ascended zucchini will be realized if there is a gap of 1 m or more between the ridges. Good results are obtained by the intermediate planting of mustard or dill. With their help, you can fill the soil with necessary substances.

An important place in the care of zucchini in the open field is the prevention of their diseases and timely treatment. Important accurate knowledge of the characteristic properties of each disease. The yellowing, which is accompanied by the humidity of the earth and air, is almost guaranteed to be associated with top bacteriosis. With significant development of such an infection, even rotting of the ovary is likely. An additional risk is associated with the arrest of the development of fruits, which seem to consist of vitreous filaments.Alas, that the sick, to save is no longer possible.

It is very important to water only with water at room temperature and a rational (not excessive) soil moistening. By and large, nothing but these preventive measures can be done. Mealy dew (a fungus that gives a whitish coating on the foliage and on the stems) destroys the nutrients inside the plant. Soon it perishes. What is very bad, powdery mildew can easily move to any other culture, because the fight against it should be lightning fast. Prevention also consists in strict compliance with the irrigation regime. It is equally important to normalize the addition of nitrogen, further accelerating the development of infection. After removal of the affected areas of zucchini, what remains remains to be treated with fungicides. What exactly - decide every time on the situation.

The fight against downy mildew (peronosporozy, as it is also called) must also be the focus of attention of gardeners. Mostly it occurs if the action of humid air is aggravated by irrigation with cold water. But sometimes problems arise and, it seems, for no apparent reason, this should also be taken into account. The disease begins with the formation of oily-looking spots intermediate from green to yellow shade, these spots "adorn" the foliage. Gradually, the color is replaced by gray and slightly brownish, sometimes framed by a dirty bloom.

Unknowing gardeners sometimes wonder why the leaves look like burnt, why they quickly dry. Contrary to the usual logic, when perinospora infection is infected, this symptom urgently requires a stop in irrigation. Spray is carried out first with chlorine and then "Metiram." In cold weather, non-woven covers are used. An indirect measure of protection is strictly calibrated crop rotation.

The appearance during the growing season or at the time of harvesting the brown with yellow spots on the leaves almost always indicates the disease anthracnose. Initially, the affected areas are distinguished by a fuzzy form, but they are rapidly pushing their boundaries and pretty soon capture almost the entire area of ​​the sheet. At the same time, the spots become brown, and the stems are covered with a depressed patina in the form of smaller spots. The final symptom is the wrinkled fruit, the loss of elasticity. Gradually, the vegetables rot and get a bitter taste.

Pathology will develop faster if very often watering zucchini during hot hours. But the addition of water in the evenings and measures against excessive moistening of the air are very valuable. If you manage to capture the development of anthracnosis at an early stage, you can help the cause of protective drugs.

But the best defense is still strictly following the basic norms of agricultural technology. An equally serious challenge for the gardener is throwing various putrefactive conditions.

If they are provoked by a lack of calcium, it is required to add to the ground crushed eggshell (200 g per 1 sq. M). Those ovaries and leaves, which are still affected, will have to be completely removed. After that, foliar top dressing is organized on the leaf with the help of phosphorus composition (ash extract will also do). The earth is watered with the Fitolavin solution. The final step is the addition of previously unused compost, which will contribute to the restoration of normal microflora.

The recipe for foliar feeding from rot is as follows: 3 kg of ash are put into a bucket, 7 liters (up to the edge) of hot water are added, they are kept for 48 hours, the resulting infusion is filtered.

Fusarium first attacks the roots of zucchini and only then affects the ground parts of them. Under the influence of an infection, plants dry out, turn yellow and wither. Cross sections differ in brown vessels. You can fight by dusting the lower parts of the shoots and root wood ash.

For additional improvement of the land, siderats are sown and water is irrigated with solutions of special formulations.Serious risk is associated with such a viral ailment as cucumber mosaic. It can infect any melon plant, and the infection itself overwinters calmly in the ground, in weeds, from where it attacks the plantings. The name is given by their characteristic appearance, on white, yellow and green spots of bizarre form. Additionally, attention is paid to the twisting of the leaf plates and the appearance of mounds.

Gradually, internodes become shorter and the real yield decreases. Since the pathogen of the mosaic is transmitted by harmful insects, the fight against them is almost the best prevention. It is also very important to disinfect all inventory and planting material. Hindering access to the virus helps to remove even the most insignificant weeds in beds with squash.

Ascohitoz is a very serious disease, affecting melons and gourds regardless of the stage of development. First, the foliage is covered with relatively small spots, and moisture is felt to the touch. The affected areas have a dark green color. Their rapid growth is accompanied by darkening and the appearance of a brown tint. If the weather is dry, the sore spots may fall out with the formation of holes. And when the infection is very powerful, you can face the drying of the whole foliage.

Fight with askohitoz fully goes only in the early stages of its development. To do this, dry the sore spots with a mixture of chalk and crushed coal. If the gardener does not seek to strictly comply with the principles of natural farming, he can use Trichodermin. Bacteriosis is evidenced by the appearance of small ulcers of a watery structure, characterized by a brown tint. Fruits become covered with brown ulcers and become crooked, the disease still has the name of angular spotting.

The only sensible step is to remove all the affected parts of the plant and normalize watering. Protection from fungal infections and from their distribution to new copies of zucchini are:

• minimal use of active organics;
• calcium saturation of the earth;
• autumn sowing of oilseed or mustard radish.

When the earth is prepared, the zucchini are planted in it and it seems that all the rules are followed - not the time to relax. Yes, this vegetable is much less picky about the presence of water than cucumbers, tomatoes or melons. But there are still clear rules, the non-observance of which threatens farmers with a number of problems. Even on dry days it is necessary to water squash 1 or 2 times in 7 days, using 10 liters of water per 1 square meter. The fact is that this plant has deep-rooted roots that can “pull” water even in a situation when other species are irrevocably dying.

Pouring liquid on zucchini should not be under the root itself, but in the special grooves surrounding the main stem. If the weather is rainy, you need to stop watering at all. Moreover, in order to grow crops with guarantee, against the backdrop of excessive precipitation, water supply channels are often prepared. With their help, it is possible to avoid the appearance of puddles that have a detrimental effect on zucchini. When a wet summer comes, some of the growers even use canopies or unnecessary umbrellas.

No other agronomist will call such withdrawal an undue waste of power. It allows you to avoid fungal aggression, rotting. From excess moisture rot sometimes not only the fruits and ovaries. The same problem overtakes the buds, and even flower stalks. Of course, working with squashes cannot be limited to one irrigation. Pinching whips zucchini is not required - this is not a pumpkin. When early flowers are blooming, the largest leaves should be cut from the middle part of the bush variety. Please note that the removal of 3-4 leaves will be sufficient, because excessive enthusiasm for this business will weaken the plant. As a result of this treatment:

• plantings will become more accessible to sunlight;
• it will be easier for pollinators to make their way even to the most remote corners;
• airing the depths of the bush will improve;
• the acquisition of full ripeness will accelerate.

In the autumn, the beds where the zucchini grows need to be saturated with fresh or composted organic matter. In addition to manure and bird droppings, peat and garden compost work well. But if gardeners want to see how strong and well-growing plants sprout, they will not limit themselves to organic matter. An important addition to it are mixtures of potassium and phosphorus.

The very first feeding is usually practiced in the spring months, as soon as 4-5 developed leaves form. But it is imperative to get ahead of budding. Just at this period, pumpkin vegetables are experiencing a lack of nitrogen, without which they can not fully develop. To remedy the situation, an aqueous solution of slurry is used at a concentration of 10%, to which is added another 30 g of nitrophobia. This composition consumes 1 l per bush, depending on the state of zucchini, you can enter it a little more or a little less at your discretion.

The second time feeding is needed against the background of flowering, in which the zucchini are covered with flowers of sunny color. At this point, they need the use of similar doses of another solution. It is prepared, spreading in a bucket 25 g of nitroammofoski and 400 g of wood ash. It is possible to apply also the ashes received at combustion of a grass. Thus, weeds and unnecessary shoots of other plants from the harmful component of the garden become helpers of summer residents.

For the third time, giving zucchini extra food is required to:

• stretch for a longer period the formation of fruits;
• saturate the vegetable with phosphorus and thereby strengthen its roots;
• optimize the quality of the crop due to potassium supplements.

The necessary substances are scattered around all the bushes and used in the inter-row sprinkling with ash. Immediately after this, it is required to water the plants in a planned manner. The advantage of ash fertilizer is that it gives zucchini not only potassium and phosphorus, but a whole set of useful substances. Each of them contributes to accelerated and more complete development. Another indirect advantage is the suppression of a number of fungal and bacterial lesions.

The fruit of the squash is removed systematically, even without really reckoning with the small size of individual specimens. The release of the life force of plants allows them to quickly form new ovaries and develop them. That is why the total yield increases, but the quality is not lost. Experienced farmers try, if not every day, then at least once or twice a week to inspect their beds. With excessively developed leaves, even relatively large fruits can be easily missed when inspecting plants rarely and fluently.

Pollination zucchini in a small area is often carried out with their own hands. They take a male flower and tear off the petals from it - this is a prerequisite. Next you need to gently shake off the pollen on the pistils of 1-3 female ovaries. More of her resource is not enough. Who does not want to do all this manually, must use tools that attract the attention of insects. As such baits use 30 g of honey, dissolved in 200 g of warm water. Another option involves the dissolution of sugar in hot water (concentration is 10%). Both mixtures must be thoroughly stirred and cooled naturally to room temperature. Next, a light sprinkling of zucchini is made, even a thin broom is suitable for it.

But there is another option: the location near the beds of several small tanks. In this role can play banks, small plastic bottles, lids from large containers and so on. It is categorically unacceptable to fertilize zucchini with any compound that includes chlorine.This can be done only in the case when the vegetable has ceased to be sharply needed in principle.

If the seedlings of zucchini are stretched, you should not expect that the situation will improve by itself, because such plants are weakened. Ignoring the problem and trying to still plant the seedlings on a stable place, only worsen the prospects. There are several factors provoking the stretching of seedlings, but all of them are somehow tightly connected with the mistakes of gardeners. Most often, the culprit is the natural desire of zucchini to be in the most light environment.

Excessively dense planting provokes attempts by the stems to reach the free space and outrun the “neighbors” in length. But the biological urge is unreasonable, irrational. The plant cannot understand the senselessness of the simultaneous growth of all the shoots, nor the connection of its state with the actions of people. However, sometimes you can hear the objections - the gardeners refer to the fact that there is enough space for the seedlings, and yet it is too lengthened. In such cases, first of all it is necessary to understand whether the temperature is too great.

Excessive heating of the room, especially at night, misleads the seedlings and forces them to grow very powerfully. Also it is necessary to take into account that the tightening with moving to the free ground can also become the cause of lengthening. It is recommended not to keep the seedlings longer than 3-4 weeks in pots or other containers. Even with severely adverse weather, it is better to take the risk sometimes. But it happens that even experienced gardeners make a mistake and still receive unusually extended seedlings.

In this case, it is necessary to urgently slow down its development and take care of the stability of zucchini. Sometimes the exit of large windows on the sunny side does not help to provide decent lighting: all calculations are knocked down by a steadily overcast sky. If for this reason, or because of the wrong orientation of the windows, a short daylight exposure, insolation is not sufficient, it is necessary to compensate for this fact with fluorescent lamps. No matter how sorry the cost of electricity, but the lamps will have to work up to 12 hours per day. Additionally, you need to take care that the temperature does not go beyond the limits of the normal corridor - in the daytime 22-28, in the dark 18-20 degrees.

When the night air warms up as much as the day air, the enhanced backlight does not fix things, only the electric current is wasted. Since the plants are constantly evolving, it is necessary to follow and systematically move them away from each other. Immediately before planting in a free land, the intervals between the pots should be at least 150 mm.

A great deal of attention is recommended to be paid to the depth of the seedlings, for squash it is produced by a ring method. The stems are carefully folded into a ring (sometimes in a semicircle) and, after pressing on the soil, they are covered with earth. Once again you need to pay attention: this work is done with the greatest accuracy, so that the stem itself is intact and the seed of the cotyledon remains outside. The stem that remains inside will shoot out and become shorter, soon the squash will get stronger. We must not forget that after the appearance of roots going sideways, the growth will sharply accelerate, so the transplant to a stable place should be carried out as soon as possible.

Moving zucchini seedlings into free land is possible after the end of frosts, in different places and in different years this time falls on half of May - half of June. Even if the seedlings themselves seem to be overdeveloped, it is impossible to hurry, because the very first frosts will cause extraordinary damage.Seedlings with arbitrarily long stems need to be carefully replanted anyway, because the roots remain delicate parts of the plant.

Pustula is another serious difficulty in growing zucchini. And just to cope with the problem without understanding the reasons will not work. A characteristic sign of barren flowers are elongated thin legs and thorns (in male flowers), a relatively short and completely smooth base (in female ovaries). There are many factors that can lead to a glut of vegetable garden. Get rid of all these flowers should not be, removing them, gardeners block selfing pollination zucchini.

Therefore, it is required to eliminate only excessively numerous, exceeding the norm of the ovary. They absorb a lot of power from the plant, do not give to get a normal crop and in addition become comfortable positions for attacks of harmful insects. Often the cause of barren flowers is the poor quality of the seeds. Only “age-related” (stored 2 or 3 years) types of seed give a decent result. The recent collection of seeds more often leads to the appearance of empty flowers.

To achieve an increased effect, you need to fill the young seeds with hot (over 50 degrees) water and withstand 5 or 6 hours. Then they are wrapped in a damp cloth and film. To eliminate the negative effect of overcooling of seeds, especially those stored at high humidity, they are heated before sowing.

In some cases, watering zucchini with cold water, soon discover the appearance of a small number of female ovaries, surrounded by a mass of barren flowers. It is possible to eliminate such a development of events if:

• take water for irrigation no colder than 16 degrees;
• pour it strictly under the root;
• stop watering, in principle, 5-7 days before harvesting.

Pustules also appear because zucchini feeds too actively. Particularly high risk when overrun nitrogen mixtures. The introduction of small doses of phosphorus and potassium at the same time as a temporary reduction in irrigation helps to correct the situation. Then the plants will be motivated for full development. Pustototsveta can abound under the influence of various diseases - false and powdery mildew, white rot, anthracnose, spotted mosaic.

Importantly, the risk is associated with the appearance of pests - germ fly, melon aphid, spider mite and whitefly. Then it is required not only to cope with the "aggressors", but also to uproot, and then burn the affected zucchini. They are able to become a favorable environment for the development of new diseases and the spread of pests. When all these reasons are rejected or eliminated, and empty flowers still appear in significant numbers, this is almost certainly due to poor soil quality. Devastation of flowers can be caused by exhaustion, and excessive moisture, and undue dryness.

The emergence of fruits in rainy weather is difficult because the bees do not fly. Then you need to lure them specifically. But honey or sugar solutions are not placed next to zucchini, but gently pour into their flowers themselves, for this it is necessary to push the petals apart. If there are no pollinators at all or their activity is zero, compulsory fertilization becomes the only possible measure. It is carried out no earlier than 8 and no later than 12 noon.

A mass of barren flowers appears on zucchini, which are covered with cold dew at night. It is very easy to fix the case; you only need to water the plants with a warm liquid. The same warming is practiced after rains and when the temperature drops to 10 degrees or less.

Bush squash, according to experienced people, is much better than branching species. They occupy a strictly limited place and do not try to capture it excessively. To increase the aesthetic appeal of the beds helps planting 1-2 plants in each of them in a vertical mode. Nothing complicated here, just lay one tire on the other. If the tips of young plants begin to rot, the problem is 100% related to the wet land.

The problem area should be cut to clean mass and burn open fire. The cut-off place will be covered with a protective stopper, and the fruit will develop further. You can not save the zucchini, which are supersaturated with water. They will have to eat as soon as possible.

If the ovary itself began to rot, nothing can be done. It is categorically unacceptable to introduce fresh manure into the wells at the time of planting. This can provoke excessive development of the green part instead of fruit and infection of root rot. But for feeding such fertilizer is quite possible. At the end of the night cold even systematic feeding infusion of manure mass or weeds is allowed.

Normally, a healthy squash bush produces 25-35 fruits during the season, and if there are more or less of them, this is certainly a cause for alarm. If you plan to leave the harvest for the winter, wait for full maturity on the branches. When fruits of a geometrically distorted configuration are obtained, potassium deficiency is evident. About 0.5 kg of ash per plant is poured over the wet earth. An alternative option is an evening spraying with “Uniflor-Bud”, which should be used, dissolving 60 g of the compound in 10 liters of water.

Having noticed the narrowing of the tip and its lightening in comparison with the other part of the fruit, it is necessary to give the plant more nitrogen. For this purpose, apply infusions of manure, weeds, or bird droppings. Zucchini should not be planted immediately after crops close to them, such as pumpkin, cucumber and squash. Placing the roots in one tier means simultaneously absorbing the same type of nutrients and saturating the earth with pathological agents. Since the zucchini plant late, sometimes it is possible to even grow siderats in front of them.

How to grow zucchini in the open field, see below in the video.