Squash - growing in the open field

Squash are from the pumpkin family. These vegetables are very similar in taste to zucchini, but they cannot be found outside the plots. Patisson is the final result of natural crossing. As a result of long-term selection during breeding, the squash adapted well to the ripening of fruits in different climatic conditions of the regions. In fact, they differ from zucchini in their appearance and color of the bark, the most elastic pulp. Other qualities of this culture and cooking methods strongly resemble zucchini. In this article, you can consider in some detail the methods of growing squash in the open field and caring for them.

Squash: description of the vegetable

Patissons: photo in the open field

Squash is a one-year vegetable plant in the form of a shrub or semi-shrub. Leaves, stems, flowers exactly repeat the appearance of zucchini, the differences begin from the period of fruit appearance. The vegetables of the culture are called pumpkins, round in shape, somewhat reminiscent of a flower plate, slightly flattened with smooth or wavy edges, an extensive palette of colors: from white to orange, and even dark green vegetables. The size is about 30 cm in diameter, and green squash, about 10-12 cm in diameter, are characterized by a high taste.

Growing squash in the open field and caring for them: video

Just like pumpkin, vegetables of the presented culture are planted in the same place only after a 4-5 year interval. Cabbage and nightshade families are more suitable predecessors for them, potatoes are no exception. You can not plant squash in the same place after related crops.

Patissons: preparation for planting

For squash, neutral earths with acidity pH = 6-7 are suitable. In the event that in past years the land for a long time was fertilized only with minerals, then most likely the soil is acidic. The soil must be slightly deoxidized in the fall by the method of soling or planting green manure for the winter. The norm for adding wood ash is 0.2-0.3 kg / sq. m area. In the event that peat ash is used for deoxidation, the limit is increased to 1.5-2 times. For the sake of winter planting of siderates, vetch-oat mixture, mustard with legumes, vetch, etc. are used.

It is more advisable to add humus or rotted compost under the crops in the fall under the digging up (together they can reduce acidity and are a good fertilizer). It is better to postpone the addition of mineral fertilizers until spring with the addition of spring-summer fertilizers.

Seed preparation for seedlings

In order to get good shoots, you need to buy squash seeds in specialized stores.

When self-preparing crop seeds, they need to be prepared for planting:

Process for 15-20 minutes in a solution of potassium permanganate. Rinse under running water and dry very well.

Then, after 2-3 days, to improve germination, it is necessary to soak the seeds for a day in a solution of boric acid (about 20 mg of powder is added per 1 liter of water). Then they should be rinsed and dried well.

Immediately before sowing, the seeds of the squash should be soaked in plain water, so that the vegetable seeds swell. Dry seeds can also be planted.

Important! For sowing, you can take the seeds of squash only 2 - 3 years of age.The seeds must be thoroughly dried. Raw seeds always form only male flowers.

Squash: planting in open ground

Patissons are considered heat-loving vegetables, and are planted in open soil in the last days of May or in the first days of June, when the danger of late frosts in spring passes, and the ground warms up to a temperature of + 14 ... + 17 ° С.

Planting dates can be moved and harvested earlier than usual if vegetables are grown: using seedlings, on warm soil, with warming the soil on the sides before planting. And then the harvest will ripen 2-3 weeks earlier.

The soil is insulated in the fall, in the same way as for other vegetables. Since the soil, during the decay of organic matter, heats up to the required temperatures much earlier than the air warms up to the required temperature, planting vegetables or prepared seedlings in an open area allows them to be under unstable shelters. Such a mini-greenhouse is regularly ventilated.

Seedlings or sprouts are watered sparingly with ordinary warm water with biofungicides mixed in it. Only biofungicides are used in order to preserve the beneficial microflora of the soil and protect the roots of vegetables from fungal and bacterial infection. You can use planriz or phytosporin-M. When warm and even hot weather is established, the above shelters are removed. Seedlings of crops are grown in the same way as marrows.

In the case when the soil was well fertilized in the autumn period, then immediately before sowing or planting vegetables in a hole, one teaspoon of ash can be added and mixed with the soil. Dried soil must be moistened.

Vegetable seeds or seedlings are planted with the usual or square-nesting method according to the scheme 50 by 50 cm or 50 by 70 cm. The depth of planting of crop seeds depends on the type of soil. On light soils, seeds are placed to a depth of 8 cm, and on heavy soils - no deeper than 5-6 cm. 2 seeds are planted in each hole, and when the first shoots appear, frail sprouts are removed.

Outdoor squash care

Squash are vegetables with a short fruiting period. Therefore, it is necessary to add fertilizing to plants twice a season. Moreover, with sufficient fertilization of the site with useful substances during the autumn-spring preparation of the soil, it is permissible not to make additional fertilizing.

The first time feeding of squash is carried out before active flowering, organic fertilizers are more suitable. Special solutions are prepared from manure and bird droppings and added, avoiding contact with the leaves. If there is no organic matter, then add nitroammofosk, nitrophosk, kemir at the rate of about 50-70 g / sq. m.

The second time they feed the squash during active fruiting. Phosphorus-potassium supplements are added at the rate of approximately 50-60 g / sq. m.

Patissons die from the cold, so it should be watered only with warm water. When watering the roots, the main thing is not to flood the plants. The earth should always be moist.

Pinching plants

Often, improperly selected fertilizers provoke the growth of the plant, leading to a decrease in the formation of fruits. Therefore, it is necessary to promptly remove old leaves along the bottom of the stem. You can only remove 2 sheets every 2-3 days.

Protecting crops from disease

Squash, identical to squash, become infected with root rot in too wet soil, powdery mildew, often fusarium, and green mosaic. The use of chemicals on crops is prohibited. If there is an epidemic, then the plants and the ground are sprayed with biofungicides:

Patissons are processed strictly following all recommendations. To prevent mass morbidity, it is more expedient to spray plants with biofungicides about 2-3 times a month for prophylactic purposes from the very beginning. It is also permissible to use tank mixtures in order to reduce the load on the plant.Biofungicides are harmless to humans, animals and children; therefore, they are advised to be used throughout the entire fruiting period and before harvesting.

Squash: picking vegetables

Patissons: photo in the open field

Patissons are harvested when they reach a size of 6-10 cm in diameter for canning and 10-12 cm in diameter for cooking stews, caviar, filling with minced meat. If the fruits of the squash are overripe, then the peel will be tough and with large seeds. The pulp also becomes firm and loses its taste to green vegetables.

By planting squash, observing the crop rotation, you can grow multi-colored vegetables of various varieties. It follows that the site will be decorated and very healthy vegetables will grow.