Useful information

Growing marrow seedlings

Zucchini is grown by direct sowing in the ground or through seedlings. In both cases, the pre-sowing preparation of seeds is an important factor.

Against fungal diseases, the seeds are kept in water for 4-6 hours at a temperature of + 48 + 50 ° C. Then immediately placed in cold water for 1-2 minutes. It is even better to use Fitosporin-M for seed dressing or a mixture of Alirin-B with Gamair (1 tablet per 1 liter of water). The duration of any of these treatments is 8-18 hours at room temperature.

For lovers of folk methods, you can advise aloe or Kalanchoe juice (1: 1) for dressing seeds. Let the seeds stand for 30-40 minutes, then rinse well with water.

Seeds purchased from hands or our own production are simply necessary to pickle. If the seeds were bought in a store and the package indicates that they have undergone pre-sowing preparation, then you should not pickle or warm the seeds in order to avoid deterioration of germination or its complete loss. These seeds are usually colored.

To speed up seed germination, you can use any of the following techniques:

  • Soaking before sowing seeds in water at a temperature of + 25 ° C for a day.
  • Germination before pecking in a damp cloth (emergence of sprouts 5-6 mm in size).
  • Hardening of wet, but not germinated seeds by exposure to variable temperatures for 3-4 days. The seeds soaked the day before are placed in a damp cloth in a refrigerator with a temperature of 0 ° C to -1 ° C for 14-16 hours. Then during the day they are kept at a temperature of + 18 + 20 ° C for 6-8 hours, etc.
  • Seed barbatation.
  • Soaking before sowing in solutions: microelements, Epin, Zircon (from 8 hours to 24 hours, especially with low germination of seeds), potassium humate, wood ash (1 tablespoon without a slide for 1 liter of water), full complex fertilizer, aloe or Kalanchoe juice (1: 9).

Seed hardening is generally effective when sowing seeds in open ground. The plant's resistance to cold increases, and the seeds germinate better. When growing seedlings at home, this trait is lost over time, and the grown seedlings a week before planting requires a mandatory gradual hardening in the open air (i.e. in those conditions where it will grow in the future).

Sometimes, during germination in a damp cloth, the seeds begin to rot. To prevent this, I spread the prepared seeds on a pallet with cotton pads or a cloth and sprinkle a little soil on top.. I moisten everything and put it in a warm (+ 28 + 30 ° C) place before pecking. I periodically check the humidity and add some water. The soil should be wet, but the seeds should not float in the porridge. If necessary, cover the pallet with foil with cut holes. Sprouted seeds are visible on the raised tubercles. I carefully select them and sow them in pots for seedlings.

Seeds of zucchini, squash and pumpkin on germinationZucchini seeds for germination

In the non-chernozem zone, to obtain early production, seeds for seedlings for warm beds with a film cover begin to be sown in the 20th of April. Seedlings are planted on May 20-25. For open ground, seeds are sown for seedlings on May 5-10. Seedlings are planted in the ground on June 5-10 after the threat of return frosts has passed. With a seedless culture, sowing seeds on warm ridges with a film cover - May 20-25, in open ground - June 5-10.

Compositions of mixtures for sowing seeds

  • 50-60% peat, 30-40% humus, 10-20% sod land and 10% semi-rotted sawdust. If necessary, you can add some river sand. Add 3-6 g of ammonium nitrate, 8-15 g of superphosphate and 5-10 g of potassium fertilizer to a bucket of the mixture.
  • Sod land with compost or humus in a 1: 1 ratio. For 10 liters of the mixture, add 1 glass of ash, 20 g of superphosphate, 10 g of potash fertilizer and a little sand.
  • Peat with sand in a 1: 1 ratio.

For those who find it difficult to make soil mixtures themselves, you can buy a universal ready-made soil for seedlings of vegetable crops. Also on sale are specialized soils for growing pumpkin crops.

For more information on how to choose the highest quality purchased soil or prepare it yourself, see the articles Sow me with love and Soils and substrates for growing seedlings.

To obtain early production, squash is grown through seedlings. Here, as in growing any other vegetable crop, the main thing is quality. It doesn't matter how old you can grow seedlings - two weeks or 30 days. It is important that it is healthy, strong and hardened by the time of disembarkation. Seedlings can be grown on a windowsill, glazed balcony or loggia, greenhouse or greenhouse.

Depending on the age of the finished seedlings, containers are selected for planting seeds. These can be peat or plastic pots, 0.5 liter juice bags, homemade newspaper cups, etc. Zucchini does not tolerate transplanting well, so it is better to sow seeds immediately in separate containers. For a two-week seedling, 8 cm cups are suitable, for a 20-day one - 12 cm, and for a 30-day one - 15 cm.Seeds are sown to a depth of 3-4 cm and lightly watered with water for better contact with the soil. Before germination, crops are kept at a temperature of + 25 + 28 ° C. As soon as shoots appear, the pots are transferred to a bright place with a temperature of + 13 + 14 ° C at night, and + 16 + 17 ° C in the daytime. This temperature is maintained for 3-4 days so that the seedlings get stronger and do not stretch out. Then, throughout the entire growing period, the temperature is maintained during the day in cloudy weather - + 20 + 22оС, in sunny weather - + 25 + 28оС, at night - + 16 + 18оС.

If the seeds are sown without naklyuchnuyu, then take them with a reserve, and sow 2-3 seeds in one pot. In the future, only one best strong seedling is left, which appeared first and has a normal healthy appearance. The rest are removed.

Zucchini seedlings are watered regularly, as the topsoil dries slightly. In no case should you overfill or delay watering, since due to a sharp drop in pressure in the stems, they can crack along. This is fraught with the development of root and stem rot. Irrigation water temperature + 22 + 25оС.

Top dressing of seedlings

During the cultivation of seedlings, it is fed several times.

  • If the seedling mixture was prepared with the addition of humus, compost and mineral fertilizers, then the first feeding is carried out two weeks after germination, the second - 7-10 days after the first.
  • If the seedling mixture was prepared without adding compost, humus and mineral fertilizers, then the first feeding is carried out 7 days after germination, the second - 7-10 days after the first. And if necessary, you can carry out a third feeding (when growing 30-day seedlings) 2-3 days before planting.

Top dressing can be carried out with one of the following solutions (consumption of 100 ml per plant in the first dressing and 200 ml per plant in the second and third dressing):

  • mullein solution 1: 8 or chicken droppings 1:15 with the addition of 20-25 g of superphosphate per 10 liters of solution.
  • for 10 liters of water 10 g of ammonium nitrate, 10 g of potassium sulfate and 30 g of superphosphate.
  • for 1 liter of water 1 teaspoon of nitrophosphate and 1 teaspoon of wood ash.
  • you can make an excellent "green dressing" yourself from fermented weeds (Cm.Herbal starter cultures for plant nutrition). Consumption of working solution "herbal starter" - 100-200 ml per plant, dilute the concentrate with water 1: 4. “The EM extract is used as for regular watering, but only for mature seedlings.

If it is difficult to make fertilizers ourselves, you can use ready-made complex fertilizers: Agricola for seedlings, Solution, etc. Or special fertilizers for pumpkin crops: Agricola No. 5 for cucumber, squash, squash and melon; FlorHumat for cucumbers and zucchini; "HERA" for cucumbers and zucchini; "Sudarushka cucumber" - for cucumbers, zucchini, melons.

In the absence of mullein and chicken manure, you can purchase dry granular chicken manure, liquid extract of cow dung "Biud", or liquid extract of horse manure "Biud", "Bucephal", "Kaury" in stores.

Overgrown zucchini seedlings in the greenhouse

When growing seedlings of 20 days of age or more, in order to obtain more uniformly developed plants, it is good to give frequent (fractional) feeding. In this case, the amount of fertilizer for conventional feeding is divided by the number of fractional feeding and is applied in the form of a weak solution. For example, timing them to the next watering. And it is better to alternate organic and mineral supplements with each other.

In no case should the seedlings be overexposed for more than 30-35 days, even if the seedling containers are of sufficient size. Such seedlings do not take root well and give a late low yield.

On the further cultivation of zucchini - in the article Zucchini seedling and non-seedling method

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