* Calculations use average data for Russia

Melon crops include one- or perennial plants of the gourd family (Cucurbitaceae), which have long outstretched or climbing stems with tendrils: watermelon, melon, pumpkin, zucchini, squash, etc. The most popular, for obvious reasons, are watermelons and melons, which are cultivated for juicy fruits with high taste. Watermelon and melon are eaten mostly fresh as a dessert. However, jam, jam, molasses, watermelon honey (nardek, bekmes) are also made from the fruits of these gourds, candied fruit, marshmallow and pickles are prepared, they are still quite widely used in the canning and confectionery industry. From the seeds of many plants of the gourd family, valuable vegetable oil is obtained.

As part of this article, we will look at a seasonal watermelon growing business. Watermelon owes its high popularity to its valuable dietary, taste and nutritional properties. Watermelon contains high amounts of sucrose and fructose, which give it sweetness, and watermelon pulp and skin contain various beneficial amino acids, macro- and micronutrients, including antioxidants, fiber, calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, sulfur, folic acid and sodium.

General information about watermelons

In our country, watermelons are grown on an industrial scale in the Volga region and in some areas of the southern regions, as well as in the Crimea. Watermelons are heat-loving plants that are well cultivated in the steppe climate with long, hot, dry summers, so in these regions they ripen freely in the open air, acquiring excellent taste. In the middle black earth regions of Russia, as well as in more northern regions, watermelons are usually grown not in the fields (in open ground), where they simply do not have time to ripen in a season, but in greenhouses (under a film). Watermelon has a powerful root system, which provides the plant with enough moisture and nutrients for the ripening of large juicy fruits. The main root of watermelon plants can penetrate the soil to a depth of two meters, and the lateral roots form a large number of roots of the second and third orders, reaching a depth of 3-4 meters.

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At first, the vegetative mass of plants develops rather slowly, since the root system grows intensively during this period. But already 20-30 days after germination, the plants begin to grow actively, forming side shoots. Their growth can reach two meters in just one day. The timing of the flowering of watermelon depends on its precocity. As a rule, flowers can be observed already a month and a half after the emergence of seedlings, and flowering continues until the end of the plant's growing season.

Watermelon flowers, as a rule, are dioecious, that is, both male and female flowers can form on the same plant. In the most common varieties, however, bisexual, that is, hermaphroditic, and male flowers are more often formed, and in some species, female, male, and bisexual flowers. It is possible to distinguish female and male flowers by size: the former, as a rule, are larger, have a wide five-lobed stigma on a short column. Bisexual flowers are similar in appearance to female ones. They differ only in that they form both stamens and pistil at once. The flowers open in the morning at dawn and fade in 15-16 hours. Female and bisexual flowers open earlier than male ones and, if fertilization does not occur, remain open during the next day. Male flowers fade after a few hours.

Depending on the duration of the growing season (that is, from the moment of germination to the onset of the biological maturity of the plant), varieties and hybrids of watermelon are divided into several main types: ultra-early (up to 70 days), early (71-80 days), mid-ripening (81-90 days ), medium-late (91-100 days) and late-ripening (over 100 days). Keep in mind that ultra-early and early-ripening watermelons tend to be less sugary and more watery than mid- and late-ripening ones. However, for industrial cultivation, these varieties are considered more preferable.

Watermelon fruits can vary greatly in shape, color and size. In most cases, they have an oval-round shape with an average diameter of 20-25 cm and an average weight of 3-6 kg. The surface of the watermelon bark is usually smooth, but there are also segmented fruits, and the thickness of the bark depends on the variety, cultivation method and soil quality. In most fruits, the thickness of the bark is from one to one and a half centimeters. In some varieties, the thickness of the bark does not exceed half a centimeter, and in thick-skinned watermelons it can reach 4 cm. Watermelons with an average thickness of stern of 1-1.5 cm are still the most popular. Although thick-skinned watermelons are more convenient to transport and store longer, but buyers, as a rule, they do not want to overpay for the "extra" weight of the inedible fruit bark. Thin-skinned watermelons have a very short shelf life and require careful transportation.

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Watermelon flesh is usually red, but in some varieties it can be orange, yellow, or even pearly. However, experienced entrepreneurs rely mainly on traditional rather than exotic varieties. Seeds also differ in shape, color and size. They can be large, medium or small in weight from 30 to 150 grams / 1000 pieces. black, yellow, white, reddish brown or even greenish. Seed germination is usually maintained for 4-5 years.

Of all the species of these gourds, the common watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) is the most widespread. It is a herbaceous annual plant with spherical, oval, cylindrical or flattened fruits with bark of various shades from white and yellow to dark green with a pattern of stripes or spots. Its flesh is usually pink, red or crimson, but there are also varieties with white or yellow flesh. The stems of this culture are thin, creeping or curly, very flexible. They can be up to four meters long. The seeds of the common watermelon are flat, often bordered, with a scar. This plant blooms throughout the summer months, while the fruits usually ripen no earlier than August-September.

Growing watermelons in open ground

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To begin with, you will need to choose suitable varieties for growing watermelons on melons. Approach this issue with great care. Do not pay attention to the bright pictures on the sites and the assurances of the sellers. To get started, read the growing guidelines or consult an experienced agronomist. When choosing, pay attention to the fact how many days this variety will need to ripen.

Astrakhan, or Bykovsky (white), monastic (green with white stripes and with red or gray seeds), Kamyshinsky (of the same color), Crimson Sweet (early) and a number of others are considered the best varieties of gourds. Seeds are usually sold in packs of five for 35-45 rubles per package. At the same time, some suppliers set a minimum purchase lot - from 500-700 rubles.

Melon crops are planted only when hot weather finally sets in. As a rule, this is the middle-end of May (in the southern regions) or the beginning of June. Watermelon belongs to heat-loving plants, it does not withstand frost and does not tolerate temperature drops to 5-10 ° C. For the normal development of the plant, the temperature should be from 20-25 ° C and above (optimal - 30 ° C). Of great importance is the humidity of the air (it should ideally be 60%) and soil. On the one hand, thanks to a powerful root system, watermelon survives even in arid regions. However, if you want to get large, juicy and tasty fruits, then you need to maintain soil moisture at a certain level.

As mentioned above, watermelon seeds remain viable for 4-5 years. At the same time, two-year-old seeds are considered the most suitable for sowing, since plants grown from fresh seeds (from the previous crop) are not particularly prolific. In extreme cases, annual seeds can also be planted, but in this case it is recommended to warm them up to 60 ° C for a couple of hours. To obtain uniform seedlings, melon seeds are pre-sprouted. To do this, they are wrapped in gauze, dipped in warm water for four hours, and then laid out on wet burlap, wrapped in cloth and kept in it for two days. After that, they can be planted in the ground.

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If you want to plant watermelons earlier than usual (in the second half of May), then you can grow them in seedlings using peat cups, as gourds do not tolerate transplanting. When planting watermelon seeds early, they must first be hardened off to increase their resistance to cold. To do this, they are first soaked, and then hardened for 1-2 days at a temperature of 0 to 20 °C.

Watermelon prefers mechanically light or sandy soils that warm up quickly in the sun. It is best if perennial grasses, winter wheat, corn for silage, green fodder or legumes were grown on the field before melons. Experts recommend returning watermelon crops to the previous place of cultivation of the same or other crops of the pumpkin family no earlier than in 5-8 years. However, this rule is often not respected.

Experienced people advise laying watermelon seeds in the soil not vertically, but horizontally on their side. Thus, it will be easier for the leaves to break through the thick shell of the seed. In open ground, watermelons are planted in rows or nesting. Take into account the fact that one plant should have a fairly large space. This requirement is due, firstly, to the length of the lashes, and secondly, to the size of the fruits, for the ripening of which plants need a very large amount of nutrients. Watermelon seeds are sown manually in shallow holes 4-6 cm deep. 2-3 seeds are placed in one hole, then it is filled with water and covered with earth.

Shoots appear, as a rule, on the tenth - eleventh days of sowing. After another week, the first leaf blooms, and the main shoot begins to form at least two weeks later, or even later, depending on the variety. Caring for gourds is standard - weeding and loosening the soil, removing weeds and regular watering. For the whole season, you need to weed and loosen the melon at least four times, but water it - from 3-4 to 9-12 times per season, depending on the weather and the condition of the plants. When the central leaves of plants begin to wilt, this is a sure sign that they are not getting enough moisture. Watermelons need to be watered with warm water (temperature from 15 ° C) to the very root. Watering should be relatively plentiful so that moisture penetrates deep into the entire arable layer. Water consumption is from 50 to 100 cubic meters per hectare. In not very dry weather, the next, more abundant watering is done after the formation of the ovary and when the fruits reach a weight of 3-5 kg. In this case, the water consumption can be 150 cubic meters per hectare. It is extremely important to develop your own schedule and watering rates, depending on the region and weather conditions, and strictly adhere to them. A lack or excess of moisture can cut the resulting yield by more than half. With excessive watering, there is a high risk of developing various fungal diseases of plants, and excess moisture during fruit ripening can adversely affect their quality: watermelons will turn out unsweetened and watery.

At the beginning of growth, melons and gourds are recommended to be fertilized with cowshed infusion (rotted manure). After harvesting, potash and phosphorus fertilizers are applied for digging melons (half the dose of phosphorus and nitrogen and half the dose of potassium). In some manuals, you can find recommendations for additional fertilization of melons in the spring with nitrogen fertilizers. However, they must be used with extreme caution. Excessively large doses of nitrogen fertilizers reduce the taste of fruits, which, although they grow larger, do not have a characteristic sweet taste. Moreover, high levels of nitrates can be harmful to human health.

With proper care (with regular weed removal), suitable climate, favorable weather conditions, fertile soil and watering, 20-40 tons of crops can be harvested per hectare of sown area when grown on the ground, and 40-70 tons when grown on film. As we mentioned above, the ripening process for early-ripening fruits takes 60-85 days, for mid-ripening and late-ripening fruits - an average of 100 days. You can determine the maturity of the fetus by its appearance - the elasticity and brilliance of the bark, its color, and the brightness of the pattern. If you hit a ripe fruit with your palm, the sound will be deaf. When squeezing such a watermelon, a crackling of the pulp inside is heard. In cool weather, ripe watermelons can remain on melons for up to a month. However, in extreme heat, they burn out in less than a week under the scorching rays of the sun, so take care of the room for storing ripe fruits and timely harvesting in advance.

Growing watermelons in greenhouses

If you want to get an early and / or more abundant harvest, if you plan to grow watermelons in regions where the climate is not suitable for gourds, then you can not do without greenhouses. The following varieties of watermelons are suitable for greenhouse cultivation: F1 Gift to the North, Cinderella, Ultra Early, F1 Charleston near Moscow, Ogonyok, Pannonia F1, F1 Pink Champagne, Siberian, F1 Krimstar ".

Seedlings for the greenhouse are recommended to be sown in the second half of April. For forcing seedlings, a special mixture is prepared, which includes three parts of humus with one part of the earth, a tablespoon of potash and nitrogen fertilizers, three tablespoons of phosphorus fertilizer. Also, if you do not use mineral fertilizers, you can add a glass of wood ash and one teaspoon of potassium sulfate per bucket of soil mixture.

As with sowing seeds in open ground, when planting seedlings, they are laid to a shallow depth - up to 2-3 cm. Before germination, the soil with seeds should be kept at a temperature of 22-25 ° C. When the first shoots appear, the temperature can drop at night to a maximum of 15-17 ° C.

In general, care for watermelon seedlings is the same as for cucumber seedlings. It is necessary to provide the shoots with a long daylight hours - from 12 to 14 hours, otherwise, if there is a lack of light, they will begin to stretch too quickly, giving long but weak shoots. You can provide the necessary lighting with the help of special lamps that are used for greenhouse crops. A week after germination, it is recommended to shade the seedlings with a black film from 18 to 8 hours (from evening to morning). On the tenth day after the shoots appear, the plants are fed with mineral fertilizers (10-15 grams of potassium chloride, ammonia sulfur, 20-25 grams of superphosphate per 10 liters of water).

Do not forget to prepare the soil in the greenhouse in advance for planting seedlings. It is planted only in "warm" beds. To prepare them, a week before planting, a layer of earth 15-20 cm thick is removed from the soil. Hay with humus is laid in this trench, which is sprinkled with nitrogen fertilizers and abundantly moistened with hot water, and then covered with soil and black film. After the soil warms up to at least 10-12 ° C, it will be possible to plant seedlings in it to a depth of 10 cm. - in the third decade of April - the first decade of May. When the lashes appear and as they grow, they are tied to the trellises, and the fruits themselves, due to their large weight, are recommended to be hung in nets. For the rapid growth of plants, the lashes are pinched, leaving three leaves above the fruit and removing weak shoots.

The greenhouse must be regularly ventilated, avoiding drafts. It is desirable that insects that pollinate female flowers get into the greenhouse. However, you can do it yourself. To do this, carefully monitor the appearance of male flowers, which fade very quickly. With manual pollination, they are plucked, the petals are carefully removed and the anthers are applied to the stigma of female flowers several times. Experts advise doing this in the morning at an air temperature of about 20 ° C, but only on condition that the night before this the air temperature did not drop below 12 ° C.

Do not forget to leave enough seeds after harvesting for the next crops. Watermelons that grow from these seeds resist various diseases better and grow faster.

Ripe watermelons are sold to wholesale companies, private sellers, directly to end customers and through fruit and vegetable stores. With small volumes, it is most profitable to sell watermelons on your own, since wholesale prices differ from retail ones at times.

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Watermelons and melons on ridges in open ground are most often grown in the southern regions, but the use of competent technology, as well as the right choice of variety, make it possible to grow a quite decent crop of gourds in the middle zone of our country, as well as in more northern regions.

The best melon varieties for open ground

A properly selected variety is one of the components of obtaining a high-quality and plentiful harvest of such a heat-loving melon crop as a melon in home gardening.

If even late-ripening varieties and hybrids can be used for cultivation in the southern regions, then in central Russia and areas of risky farming, it is necessary to give preference to early and early-ripening varieties, the formation of the crop of which is carried out as soon as possible.

The best varieties of watermelon for open ground

Growing heat-loving watermelons in open ground is easiest in the south of Russia, and in other areas, amateur melon growers most often prefer greenhouse cultivation of sweet berries. However, in recent years, several fundamentally new, very promising varieties and hybrids of watermelon for cultivation in far from ideal conditions have been obtained.

How to grow a watermelon (video)

Direct planting with seeds

To date, in the conditions of home gardening, three methods of growing melons and gourds are actively used:

• direct sowing of crops with seeds in open ground;
• planting ordinary potted seedlings;
• planting grafted seedlings.

The most commonly used are the first two options for growing melon and watermelon.

Both in the first and in the second case, before planting the seeds, pre-sowing preparation of planting material should be carried out:

• selection of the most full-bodied, with characteristic surface staining of the variety, seeds;
• heating seeds at high temperature;
• disinfection of planting material by soaking in a solution of potassium permanganate;
• germinating seeds on damp tissue at room temperature.

We plant germinated seeds in a permanent place in open ground only after the soil warms up well and the threat of return frosts has passed. It is desirable to lower a couple of seeds into each planting hole, which will allow in the future to leave only one, the most developed plant in the hole.

Before the appearance of mass seedlings, it is desirable to cover the crops with a non-woven covering material or garden film. The optimal temperature for seed germination should be above 15-16 ° C. Shoots at this air temperature appear within two weeks.

Growing seedlings

Only knowing what kind of soil gourds love, you can properly prepare the soil for growing high-quality seedlings:

• all gourds love soils that are neutral and fairly light, but rich in organic compounds;
• it is allowed to grow watermelon and melon on dry and saline soils with sufficient fertility indicators;
• it is impossible to cultivate gourds in areas represented by acidic and too wet soils;
• best used for planting and ridges with light medium loamy soils, avoiding cultivation on sandy and heavy loamy soils;

Growing melons in open ground (video)

• for deep digging of the soil, it is recommended to bring in half a bucket of humus or manure;
• clay soils should be improved by adding humus and coarse sand at the rate of a bucket per square meter of planting area;
• ready-made soil for growing seedlings should be improved with basic complex fertilizers;
• in spring, when preparing the site for planting seedlings, 15-25 g of potassium salt and 35-45 g of superphosphate must be applied per square meter;
• a very good result is given by the spring application of nitrogen fertilizers at the rate of 15-25 g per square meter of planting area.

It should be noted that sowing gourds for seedlings must be carried out no later than mid-late April, which will allow in a month to get a strong and well-developed plant ready for planting in a permanent place. Melon should be planted in a permanent place with a distance of a meter from each other. The planting pattern for a watermelon when placing two plants in a nest is 2.1 x 2.1 m, and with the method of alternating one plant in a nest with two seedlings, it is 1.5 x 1.8 m.

melon care

The melon should be taken care of extremely competently, since this melon culture is very responsive to the correct agricultural technology and forms the highest possible, high-quality crop when performing the following activities:

• melon is more moisture-loving than watermelon, so you need to water the plant weekly;
• plants should be fed three times during the growing season;
• the first top dressing with nitrogen fertilizers is carried out a couple of weeks after planting seedlings in the ground;
• the second and subsequent top dressings are made with an interval of two weeks with complex mineral fertilizers;
• weeding and surface loosening of the soil around the plants should be carried out regularly;
• the main stem of most varieties of melon is barren, therefore, unlike watermelons and pumpkins, it must be pinched after the fourth or fifth leaf;

To prevent melons from cracking, it is necessary to avoid waterlogging of the soil and to irrigate with exclusively warm water.

watermelon care

Proper care of watermelon is a guarantee of obtaining high-quality and healthy garden products. The agrotechnics for caring for watermelon does not differ significantly from the cultivation of other gourds, so you should water, feed, weed the plants and loosen the soil in a timely manner.

Diseases and pests of gourds

In order to protect plants from leaf bacteriosis, watermelons and melons must be treated with Ridomil-Gold before the flowering period. Immediately after the appearance of the ovaries, it is required to use sparing fungicides with a short waiting period, for which it is desirable to use the drug "Kvadris-250".

Melons: shaping (video)

Of the pests, aphids are especially dangerous, against which the powder of the aerial part of the plant is used with a mixture of tobacco dust and ash, as well as the melon fly. Especially often this pest affects melons in the south-east of the Rostov region, as well as in the Volgograd and Astrakhan regions, and in the northern Caucasus. Organophosphorus compounds, neonicotinoids, pyrethroids and other modern insecticides are used to prevent and protect plants.

Last season, my husband Boris Petrovich implemented two of his new projects on our site. I want to talk about their results. The first project was a dream he had for a long time: to use watermelon and melon plants as a design element.

We have been getting a stable harvest of these gourds on the site for the fifth year already, but this is not enough. My husband has long wanted to use watermelons and melons in such a way as to show all their beauty. In the last season, which was difficult due to weather conditions, his dream came true. It all started with the fact that in 2008 my husband added a veranda to our small house. The need for it has matured for a long time: guests often come to us, but there was nowhere to receive them. The veranda turned out to be 4x4 meters in size. Boris Petrovich covered it with a 150 micron thick polyethylene film to protect it from rain. For ventilation of the veranda and comfort inside it, a large window was made in the roof, and for better air movement and coolness in two places, the film on the walls could also be rolled up.

The veranda was built in the fall of 2008, so we could only feel the beauty of the sun rays passing through the film only in the coming summer season of 2009. And all winter my husband thought about how to protect himself from the scorching sun in summer and create an unusual green background on the veranda. He wanted our veranda inside to resemble the tropics with rapidly growing vines. That is why his choice fell on watermelons and melons. When he realized which plants would give the desired effect, the whole picture of the project immediately emerged - from the manufacture of warm ridges to the arrangement of plant lashes and their hearths on the veranda.

To insure the project, he connected the veranda with the house with an open opening. Additional heat through it came to the veranda on cold May days and in early June, and then in the second half of August, when the bulk of melons and gourds began to ripen.

This veranda was very useful to us at the beginning of May for keeping the grown seedlings of vegetables and flowers there. Since May 15, almost all containers with young plants have been there.

In May, I still do not live permanently in the country. And therefore, on my next visit there, a surprise awaited me, which at first upset me. The fact is that on the south side of the veranda, to the right and left of the entrance, the husband made two warm ridges with an area of ​​1.5 m? and a height of 50 cm. I did not like these structures, as they seemed uninteresting and out of place here. In addition, one of these ridges covered from the south and west from the sun the seedlings of flowers I recently planted near the house. At that time I did not really understand what would come of his idea? But an experiment is an experiment. And I gave him two cups of seedlings of watermelons and two cups of melons for this. The case was new, so we decided to use new varieties. To decorate the veranda, we used seedlings of Zemlyanin and Sorrento watermelons, which we purchased for the first time, as well as a new hybrid of Roxalana melon. There was no second melon novelty; I had to use the already tested Gerda melon hybrid. We sown the seeds of these melons and watermelons for seedlings on April 8th.

By May 10, having filled the warm ridges with organic matter, Boris Petrovich covered them with plastic wrap for quick heating. After a dozen days, the ridges breathed warmth. The husband built over them wall-mounted mini-greenhouses made of polyethylene film, which could be opened for planting seedlings, airing the plants and watering them. On May 20, seedlings were planted in mini-greenhouses.

Ten days later, Boris Petrovich decided to complicate his experiment: he planted one glass of cucumber seedlings - the Ecole hybrid - to two melon plants, and a glass of curly bean cowpea vegetable variety Countess to two watermelons. And it was convenient to plant all the plants and take care of them outside the veranda, for this it was enough to roll up a film on mini-greenhouses only a third.

Plants of watermelons and melons were formed into three stems: the main and two strong first lateral shoots. The cucumber was formed into one stem, the husband pinched all the side shoots - two ovaries and a leaf.

After planting, all seedlings quickly took root and began to grow. Already after June 10, all the lashes of melons and watermelons were introduced into the upper part of the veranda from its south side. A week later, the bean shoots caught up with their neighbors and went inside the veranda.

The husband watered the beds twice a week with warm, slightly podzolized water. He constantly monitored the landings so that they would not overgrow. Inside the veranda, under the film ceiling, I pulled the cords in order to guide the whips of developing plants along them. Boris Petrovich built a variety of shelves and swings for the fruit-setting, so that they would lie securely and comfortably on these coasters. I had to work hard, but the veranda turned out to be unusually interesting and beautiful - plants flourished at the top, and below there were comfortable benches and a table for family and guests.

The first melon started on June 10, and the first watermelon was pollinated on June 11. As a result, four watermelons grew on the veranda last season: from the whip of the Sorrento variety - one watermelon weighing 18 kg, the other - 3 kg; from a whip of the Zemlyanin variety - one watermelon in 11 kg, the other - 6 kg. We took 18 melons, their average weight was from 1.5 to 2 kg. Three melons, which we picked last, were already 2.5 kg each. And a lot of cucumbers formed on one lash. Their fruits looked very impressive under the ceiling of the veranda. Beans occupied the western wall of the veranda with their lashes, its pods were up to 70 cm long.

Scourges of watermelons and melons evenly covered the entire south side and top of the greenhouse, creating a beautiful openwork shadow inside. The melons and gourds were constantly cleaned: the growth of the main shoots was not limited, and the side shoots were all pinched after the second leaf. If we didn’t do this, we would get thickets of plant tops and a solid shadow inside. In addition, over the years of growing melons, we realized that we get a large harvest of these crops and large fruits due to the powerful, peeled tops of watermelons and melons. We usually pinch the main lash of these plants only at the last moment - during the period of mass ripening of fruits.

Our veranda in the last rainy summer was a favorite place for grandson to play. We, adults, also often gathered to have tea in it. The sight of ripening fruits, the aroma of ripening melons, the interesting design of the veranda - all this cheered up and inspired for further work. All the fruits we picked there are fully ripe. We think that all the guests who visited our site last summer were also impressed by what they saw on the veranda, they now know that even in the conditions of the North-West they can grow, ripen watermelons and melons, that they can also be beautifully inscribed into the site landscape.

I will dwell separately on the feeding of plants that developed on our veranda. After all, it was necessary from two beds with an area of ​​\u200b\u200b1.5 m? get not only the maximum surface of the leaf mass of melons to decorate the veranda, but also a good harvest of fruits. Without top dressing, such a result cannot be obtained. A year ago, Boris Petrovich developed a method of dry top dressing - with a thick layer of mulch. He used this method for fast-growing cucurbits, now he used it for the veranda.

Its essence is that in mid-July, at the time of maximum fruit set and growth, a nutritious mulch was placed under the plants, consisting of burnt sawdust and hay, soaked in the remains of horse manure and urine. This litter with a layer of 5-8 cm, when watered with warm podzolized water, gave fast-growing plants a balanced nutrition. And melons and gourds successfully grew under it last summer. In addition, their root system under the mulch was protected from hypothermia during cold nights. It was she who helped us grow a good crop of watermelons and melons without the use of other fertilizers. Another plus of it is that after watering the surface of the ridges quickly dried out.

This was my husband's first project, which, in my opinion, he managed to successfully implement. I will report on the results of the second project in the next issue of the magazine.

Galina Romanova, gardener, multiple winner of the competition of the Union of Gardeners, Kolpino

Residents of the central regions of Ukraine cannot boast of a melon harvest - watermelons ripen late, grow small, savory. But a miracle crop of watermelon and melon can be harvested if you use a few professional secrets.

“It is better to plant watermelons in the second year after adding organic matter to the soil,” says Orest Barabash, head of the Department of Vegetable Growing at the Ukrainian Agrarian University, Doctor of Agricultural Sciences. - Watermelons grow best on sandy soils. In addition, not all varieties are suitable for mid-latitudes. I would recommend these: Borisfen, Borchansky, Golopristansky, Dumara, Obry, Sichnevy, Chernomorsky. These varieties ripen by mid-August. Melon should be taken mainly of three varieties: Serpyanka, Titovka and Bereginya.

In order for the harvest to be good, melons are best grown in seedlings. Seeds are sown on April 10-15. Before that, they need to be wetted, wait until they hatch, and planted in peat pots 10 × 10 centimeters in size. The pots must be filled with soil up to half - when the seedlings are pulled out, it will be necessary to pour the earth.

Watermelons are planted in open ground from May 18 to May 25, when the threat of frost disappears. If the soil is not sufficiently fertilized, half a kilogram of humus is placed in the pits and 8-10 centimeters of earth are poured on top. When planting, it is necessary to strictly observe the row spacing: for watermelon - 1.8 meters, for melon - 1.4. In a row, watermelon seedlings are planted at a distance of 1.4-1.8 meters, melons - 0.7-1.4. Two plants can be planted in the holes at once.

When the seedlings grow up, they are evenly distributed: one shoot to the right, one to the left. On the central stem, where the fruits are formed, you need to leave 3-4 ovaries, and pinch off the rest of the stem on the 6-7th leaf.

Melons are grown using the same technology. But, unlike watermelon, melon forms fruits on lateral shoots. 6-7 ovaries are left on the plants, and the stems are pinched off over the fruits on the 3rd-4th leaf.

Lunisolar sowing calendar

March 28 - rutabagas, turnips, potatoes, Jerusalem artichokes, turnip onions, radishes, beets, horseradish, bulb flowers;

Planting and growing watermelons and melons in open ground

Watermelon and melon are associated with the taste of summer, and every gardener dreams of growing delicious fruits on his plot. Watermelon has long been used as a healing diuretic to cleanse the body. Melons are thermophilic and grow in a warm climate, so for their cultivation and planting watermelons in the open field, you need to have special knowledge.

Be sure to find out in advance whether it is possible to plant gourds if a cucumber, pepper, pumpkin or zucchini grows nearby.

Is it possible to plant watermelons and melons side by side?

Melons belong to the gourd family. Cultures are very useful and contain a huge amount of vitamins. If you learn how to properly grow these plants, you can get a high yield of delicious fruits.

Melon is quite suitable for "neighborhood" with watermelon. Plants tend to grow. It is not recommended to plant them too close together..

Proper sowing of seeds for seedlings at home

Seeds for seedlings are planted approximately 60 days before planting in open ground. So, already in mid-March, the seeds should be bought. You can buy them at any specialized store or ask those who have already managed to grow a quality crop of watermelons and melons.

It is impossible to get a good harvest from the seeds of last year's watermelon. The best seeds to plant - 5 years ago. It is important to understand that only any early-ripening varieties with a ripening period of up to 70-85 days are suitable for our climate. It is better to give preference to hybrid varieties that are more adapted to adverse conditions.

When preparing seeds, you need to make sure that they are not empty. To do this, seeds are immersed in a container with water, Anything that comes up can be safely thrown away.. Watermelon seeds germinate more slowly than melon seeds. Therefore, it is recommended to scald watermelon seeds with boiling water, for better germination, and only then sow.

Preparation for planting and soaking

1. Soak. Each individual type of seed must be wrapped and soaked in cloth rags and maintain in a humid environment until germination. You can also soak in special napkins.
2. If the seeds have already hatched, but there is no way to plant them in a timely manner, you can leave the seeds in the refrigerator.

Seeds germinated at home are planted in separate small pots with a diameter of 10 cm, preferably peat. The soil should be a mixture of: humus, sod land 3:1, add peat, sawdust, humus 3:1:0.5.

planted in each pot 2 seeds to the depth 5 cm. Moisten the soil with a sprayer. Cover the container with cling film on top and put in a warm place +25 degrees.

• when the seeds germinate, move them to sunlight at a temperature +22 degrees. Remove the film;
• the best place for seedlings is the windowsill on the south side of the house;
• a week after sowing, feed the seedlings with mineral fertilizers, and a week later - infusion of mullein with superphosphate.

Landing in open ground

When planting in open ground, you need to focus on climatic conditions, the selected crop variety, and the readiness of seedlings.

Soil selection

Before planting melons in open ground, you need to choose a place for planting. Exotic plants love sunny places where there is no shade and wind.

Melons and watermelons need rich soils, as well as those that can withstand moisture well. The ideal option is sandy and sandy loamy soil with a pH of 6-7 units.

Preparing seedlings of watermelons

When the seedlings appear 5-7 leaves, it is ready for transplanting into open ground. The best time - the end of May. However, you need to focus on weather conditions so that at night the air temperature remains +15 degrees.

A week before planting in open ground, seedlings must be taken out for hardening at a daily temperature of + 16 + 20 degrees.

Seedlings are ready for transplanting after the appearance of 5-7 leaves

Outdoor Landing Pattern - Depth and Distance

For planting in open ground, you must adhere to the following rules:

1. Holes should be made in the garden at a distance 0.5-0.7 meters apart in a checkerboard pattern. Leave 70cm spacing between rows.
2. Seedlings are placed in holes so that the surface remains only a few top leaves. The soil should be crushed and sprinkled with sand around to protect the plant from rot.
3. Harvest after planting should be watered with summer or slightly warmed water.
4. To protect a young plant from the scorching sun, it is necessary to close the sprouts for 2-3 days with moistened caps made of plastic or paper.

Features of growing melons

To ensure free access of oxygen to the roots, the soil needs to be constantly loosen to a depth of 10 cm. With the development of lateral loops, spud the culture. In order for the plant not to spend all its strength on gaining mass during the growth period, you need to pinch the main stem. For the full development of melons, three shoots are enough.

When fruit ovaries appear, 2-6 of the strongest and largest specimens are left on the bush. To reduce the load on the whip, it is recommended to tie the fruits into nets and hang on a support. The fruits are placed on foil linings to prevent rotting.

To reduce the load on the whip, the fruits can be hung in a net.

If watermelons will be used for storage and transportation in the future, then it is better to take a berry not fully ripe.

Advantages of planting in open ground:

• in warm weather, you can achieve maximum ripeness fruits;
• daily watering of the culture is not necessary;
• it is possible to increase the yield if the basic rules for selecting soil and planting seeds for seedlings are observed.

Growing watermelons and melons in a summer cottage is quite realistic. Some even grow them in bags or greenhouses. If you follow all the recommendations, then by the end of summer you can enjoy sweet, sugary fruits. The main advantage of growing melons in your garden is the absence of chemicals.

Gourds: how to grow melon, pumpkin, watermelon

Golden melons, pot-bellied pumpkins, sugar watermelons - all these are gourds. They are all relatives, but each plant has its own growing secrets. How to get a good harvest of gourds, the nuances of planting and care, agricultural techniques - so that all the relatives of garbuzov are alive and healthy.

Traditionally and erroneously, it is believed that good watermelons and melons grow only "in the south." And we are in a hurry to buy imported fruits, but we don’t even buy watermelon and melon seeds. But in vain! Modern varieties and hybrids can be successfully grown in our gardens.

Do-it-yourself watermelons, melons, pumpkins grown from seeds - they will not yield to the southern ones in taste. And nutritionists have long been talking about the benefits of these fruits. They contain a lot of carotene, potassium, phosphorus, organic acids, iron salts. In terms of useful qualities, they, in many respects, are in no way inferior to fruits.

General rules for growing gourds from seeds

All gourds need a lot of light and heat, moisture in the soil and dry air.

1. The peculiarity of gourds is their thermophilicity and the need for direct sunlight, without shading.
2. The temperature at which pumpkin, watermelon, melon develop best from seeds is above +20°C. For abundant flowering with female flowers and fruit set - the recommended temperature during the day: + 20 ° С - + 25 ° С, and at night it does not fall below: + 18 ° С - + 20 ° С.
3. At a temperature of +12°С, the development of melons slows down significantly, and at +10°С and below, it stops altogether. During frosts, melons and gourds can die.
4. The root system of gourds is powerful, well developed, so pumpkins, watermelons, and melons successfully resist drought. Pubescent leaves - prevent the evaporation of moisture from the leaf plate.
5. In order for the harvest of gourds to be plentiful, and the fruits tasty and large, it is necessary to ensure regular watering.
6. Increased air humidity in the place where melons and gourds are grown from seeds should be excluded. In high humidity, they can be affected by diseases. To keep the air dry - water under the root.
7. Seeds of gourds are sown in one place every 4-5 years. It is not necessary to sow gourds in one place every year. Bad predecessors for watermelon, melon and pumpkin: cucumbers, squash, zucchini. Good: herbs, cereals, cereals, corn, tomatoes, fodder crops, potatoes, beets, carrots, herbs and other vegetables.
8. Melon crops respond well to top dressing, the number of female flowers increases, the formation of the ovary, the pouring of fruits, their taste and quality.
9. From seeds, gourds can also be grown through seedlings. By direct sowing of seeds into the ground, it is better to grow only early and mid-ripening pumpkins and early watermelons and melons.
10. To get large fruits and more ovaries, whip pumpkins, watermelons, melons - pinch. One way: by the end of August, pinch the tops of all shoots that have an ovary. The second way: pinch the plant over 4-5 real leaves so that side shoots appear, and then remove the tops after the appearance of 2-3 ovaries on each.

Different melons and gourds have their own characteristics of growth, development, and care. Let's look at the nuances of agricultural technology, choosing seeds of different varieties and growing crops.

Features of growing gourds

melon from seeds

In the southern regions, you can grow any variety, and in cooler regions - the best melon varieties: super-early Titovka, Early 133, reliable early hybrid Amal F1, traditional Kolkhoznitsa, etc.

Grounds and illumination.

Neutral or slightly alkaline cultivated soils without stagnant water are suitable for growing melons. Good melons will only grow in full sun. Seeds are sown in fertilized soil since autumn.

Preparation of melon seeds for sowing.

Before sowing, dip the seeds in a 1% -2% salt solution. The best seeds will sink to the bottom. Rinse them with water and treat with germination stimulants.

Sowing melon seeds.

Sow seedlings in containers with a volume of 150 ml or more. Sow 3-4 seeds each. Before planting in open ground, seedlings should be 25-35 days old. Seedlings will appear within 6-10 days at a temperature of +25°C. Sowing depth 4 cm - 7 cm. In the garden, seeds are sown when the soil warms up to at least + 12 ° C

Planting a melon.

When planting melons, make nests of 3-4 plants in each hole. Distance between nests - 50 cm - 70 cm in a row. Row spacing - from 120 cm. When planting, add a complete complex mineral fertilizer to the planting site.

Melon care.

When 5-6 true leaves appear, remove the weakest plants from the hole, leave 1-2 of the strongest. Feed the plants several times a season with specialized fertilizers. Water regularly, under the root. 203 weeks before fruit ripening, stop watering. Then the melons will be sweeter.

Watermelon from seeds

When choosing watermelon seeds, please note that the most delicious are medium-late and late varieties, and the earliest ones will definitely have time to pour and ripen regardless of the weather. The most popular varieties are: Crimson Suite, oval with light green skin Charleston Gray, with bright yellow flesh - Janusik variety, etc.

Grounds and illumination.

Watermelons love light sandy soil, enriched in autumn with compost or humus. And sunny places without the slightest shading.

Preparing watermelon seeds for sowing.

In a 3%-5% salt solution, the best seeds will sit on the bottom. Rinse them, treat with a stimulant and sow.

Sowing seeds of watermelon.

The timing of sowing watermelon seeds for seedlings is determined as follows: the age of the plant for open ground is 30-35 days. Shoots appear within 10 days. When the soil warms up to + 12 ° C, it can be sown in open ground. Sowing depth: 4 cm - 6 cm.

Planting a watermelon.

Several sprouts or seeds - form 3-4 plants in holes. After a month, 1-2 of the strongest plants are left. The distance in a row between nests is from 50 cm. Between rows: from 150 cm.

Watermelon care.

Top dressing is carried out regularly, like a melon, once every 2 weeks, starting from the moment 3-4 true leaves are formed. To prevent the lashes from being whipped by the wind, you can sprinkle them with peat or other mulch. Watermelons do not like their leaves to turn over and break. The ends of the lashes are pinched according to the general rules for melons.

pumpkin seed

Of all melons, pumpkin has one of the longest maturation periods. For most varieties, it is 110-120 days from germination to harvest. There are seeds of early pumpkin varieties, usually they are short climbing or bushy plants, with fruits weighing up to 2 kg (portioned). Pumpkin has the ability to ripen during storage and be stored at room temperature for several months without loss of taste. And there is a pumpkin, the seeds of which are formed without a hard shell, they can be eaten without peeling - gymnosperms.

Grounds and illumination.

The pumpkin plant itself is unpretentious and will survive on any soil. But in order for sweet, ripened fruits to grow from seeds, cultivated, light, nutritious soil is needed. You can plant a pumpkin in light partial shade, but the whips will rush to the light and the best fruits will only be in a lighted, well-warmed place.

Preparing pumpkin seeds for sowing.

Choose the fullest and largest seeds, treat them with a stimulant before sowing.

Sowing pumpkin seeds.

In order to get larger and more mature fruits, and a richer harvest, grow seedlings. Sowing in both beds and containers is done to a depth of 4 cm - 6 cm.

Planting a pumpkin.

Seedlings and seeds are planted in a garden bed when the temperature at night no longer drops below + 12 ° C. Plants are planted in nests, holes up to 50 cm in diameter are made in advance, and filled with fertilizers. Large-fruited pumpkins are grown - 1 plant per nest, hard-barked and nutmeg - 2-3 plants each.

Pumpkin care.

Fertilize and water your pumpkins regularly, especially when the fruit is in full bloom. During weeding and loosening, lightly spud the bushes.

It is possible to grow gourds - pumpkins, watermelons and melons of good quality and sugar content in any region of Ukraine. To do this, you only need to follow the recommendations for growing and buy seeds of varieties suitable for you.

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Five tricks to grow watermelons and melons even in harsh conditions

Trick one: double cover

With this method, watermelons and melons are sown in open ground to a depth of 3-4 cm: watermelons are 1.5–2 m apart, melons are 1–1.2 m apart. Each clade contains 2–3 seeds. But they do this not at the end of May, as is usually recommended, but in the first half - then they will have enough time to fully mature. Someone will say: so there is still half a month of frosts ahead, the seedlings will die! And here is the main trick - young plants must be covered. And in an unusual way.

First, the crops are covered with a liter plastic bottle with a cut bottom. The bottom of it is spudded with sand and poured through the neck with warm water (45-50 ° C). On top of the first bottle they put a second, five-liter, also without a bottom. It turns out a kind of nesting doll, in which heat is perfectly preserved.

When the first true leaf appears on the plants, the strongest of the three seedlings in each hole is left. After thinning, the plants are abundantly watered and covered, but now only with five-liter bottles. And do not rush to take them off at the beginning of June - let the watermelons and melons bask under plastic caps until June 15-20.

Trick two: a place in the sun

Ideally, if the soil in the area for watermelons and melons is light, sandy. But this is not the most important thing. It is important that the melon gets a lot of sun. So there should not be any trees and shrubs nearby.

But when the fruits begin to ripen, they must be shaded so that they do not bake in the sun. Burdock leaves or newspaper are suitable for this - they are placed on top of watermelons and melons on hot days.

Trick three: plank under the barrel

Another problem of gourds in cool conditions is rot. Dampness rots fruits and even shoots. And to avoid this, you need to put a plank under each melon and watermelon so that they do not come into contact with the soil. Pour 2-3 handfuls of sand at the root collar.

Trick four: watering aside

In gourds, the roots go deep into the soil - in hot and dry conditions, they get their own water. But in the northern regions, where groundwater is often very close, long roots play a cruel joke - having reached the aquifer, they rot.

Therefore, it is important to make the roots grow not in depth, but in breadth. This is easy to do - you need to water the plants not at the root, but along the furrows that are made in the middle between the rows.

However, it is important not to overdo it with watering - they are needed only in very strong heat. And the next day, the earth must be loosened and mulched so that there is no soil crust.

Trick five: trimming lashes

A large number of fruits in a cool short summer will still not have time to ripen, and the bush will spend energy on them to the detriment of the rest of the crop. So no more than 5-6 watermelons or melons should be left on each plant.

In watermelons, female flowers form on the main lash, so they don’t touch it, but the side ones are cut out. And for melons, on the contrary, the main lash is cut off over 5-6 leaves.

With this method of growing melons, the crop can be harvested at the end of August.

How to grow gourds in open ground?

Methods for growing gourds in open ground

Growing by sowing seeds in non-insulated soil

Site selection and crop rotation. In many places in the temperate zone, virgin and fallow lands are being developed. Where the soils are sufficiently fertile, the newly developed lands should be widely used for gourds: they give high yields on them. For example, in the Altai Territory in 1954, on the Kuibyshev collective farm of the Uglovsky District, on a virgin lands from an area of ​​20 hectares, a crop of watermelon of the Pobeditel 395 variety was obtained at 750 centners per 1 hectare. In the same year, the Znamya Kommunizma collective farm in the Kulundinsky district (Altai Territory) harvested 350 centners of table watermelon and 700 centners of feed watermelon per hectare from an area of ​​32 hectares. In the same area, the Khrushchev collective farm, on an area of ​​36 hectares, grew a crop of fodder watermelon at 400 centners per 1 hectare and table watermelon 130 centners per 1 hectare.

The collective farm named after Lenin of the Kalmansky district in the virgin lands received a harvest of 750 centners of pumpkin variety Stopoundovaya per 1 hectare on an area of ​​13 hectares.

In vegetable farms, gourds can be placed in a special crop rotation along with other heat-loving crops. Good predecessors for gourds are legumes, onions, cabbage, root crops and seed plants of vegetable crops that do not belong to the pumpkin family. In order to prevent pests and diseases, melon crops should not be returned to their original place earlier than 4 years.

Melons are often sown after winter wheat sown on fertilized fallow.

In areas where melons and gourds occupy small areas, it is better to place them on parison plots, in the aisles of a young garden and in other warm areas. If possible, it is best to choose a site for melons with a southern, southwestern or southeastern slope with light sandy or loamy soil and permeable subsoil.

On the southern slopes, the ripening of fruits in watermelon and melon occurs 1-1 1/2 weeks earlier than on a flat surface, and the fruits, as a rule, are more sugary.

Fertilization and tillage. Gourds place high demands on fertilizer and tillage. For all areas of the zone, deep plowing is effective, the introduction of increased doses of phosphorus and potash fertilizers together with manure or compost. However, the doses of fertilizers should be different depending on soil differences and rainfall. The smallest amount of fertilizers is applied on chernozem, and the largest - on non-chernozem soils.

Preparing seeds for sowing. Before sowing, the seeds must be treated. In the temperate zone, it is especially important for sowing to select the largest seeds that have the greatest weight, since large, heavy seeds yield a crop 25-30% higher. In addition, the experiments of the Gribovskaya vegetable breeding station showed that in the cold spring period, plants from large seeds give a lower percentage of loss. So, in 1953, three batches of seeds of the Gribovskaya Rassadnaya 13 melon were sown. The first batch had an absolute seed weight of 50 g, the second 40 and the third 30 g. Due to the cold weather, the plants did not germinate well, many died. A seedling count in early June showed that plants from a batch of seeds with an absolute weight of 50 g were preserved by 39.2%, from a batch of seeds with an absolute weight of 40 g - by 28%, and from a batch with an absolute weight of 30 g - by 23%. ,one%. Similar results were on the Gribov experimental selection frame in 1956.

In the temperate zone, getting quick and friendly entries is of great importance. In most cases, sowing with germinated and soaked seeds is effective. Seeds of melons, pumpkins and zucchini are soaked before sowing one day, table and fodder watermelons - two days. In the experiments of the V. R. Williams All-Union Scientific Research Institute of Feeds, the yield increase from soaking the seeds of the hundred-pound pumpkin for two hours was 21.2% compared with the yield obtained by sowing with dry seeds.

Sowing carried out in such a way that the seedlings do not fall under the influence of the last spring frosts, when the soil temperature at a depth of 10 cm is not lower than 12 °. Pumpkin can be sown before watermelons and melons when the soil temperature reaches 8-10°C. On average, 1.5-5 kg ​​of melon seeds, 2-5 kg ​​of watermelon, 4-5 kg ​​of bush pumpkins and marrows, 3-4 kg of long-leafing pumpkins are required per 1 ha. 3-5 pumpkin seeds or 10-15 melon or watermelon seeds are sown in each hole and covered with soil.

The depth of seed placement depends on the composition of the soil. On light soils, melon seeds are buried to a depth of 3-3.5 cm, watermelons - 4-6, pumpkins - 5-8 cm. 3-5, pumpkins 4-5 cm.

If the soil is not moist enough, then in order to get quick, friendly shoots, the holes are watered before sowing and the seeds are placed in moist, freshly watered soil and covered with dry earth.

On large areas, gourds are sown with SKG-6 and CHI-6 seeders.

Care. Crops before germination, as well as young shoots, must be protected from birds. After germination, that is, approximately 10-12 days after sowing, all areas with gourds should be cultivated to a depth of 10-12 cm in two directions with tractor or horse cultivators, depending on the size of the feeding area.

During the summer, at least three loosenings are carried out, of which the second and subsequent loosenings must be done to a depth of 5-6 cm. Before the last cultivation, the whips have to be thrown into rows so as not to damage them with tractor wheels and cultivator paws. After the last plowing, the lashes are straightened over the site, and the soil near the plants is loosened by hand. With the cultivation of the soil around the root neck of the plants, thinning is combined.

The method of powdering lashes into grooves in areas with excessive moisture can be effective only in dry years, since with an excess of moisture in the soil, lashes of watermelons and melons sprinkled with earth rot.

Gourds are pollinated by insects. According to the estimates of the agronomist M. K. Sakharov (1951), the number of visits by bees to the flowers of gourds is 84.8-96.2% of the number of visits to them by other pollinators. He found that from plants whose flowers are pollinated by bees, the seeds are 2 times more viable than from those plants that were pollinated by other insects or artificially. Therefore, during the flowering period, it is necessary to export 1-2 bee colonies per 1 ha to the melon site.

Many melon growers use the technique of turning watermelon fruits 180 ° once or twice to get a more beautiful fruit. This technique is carried out carefully, without twisting the stem, 20 days after the formation of the ovary. The fruits are turned in the direction opposite to the sun to avoid burns. Turning melon fruits is not practiced.

There are a number of works that indicate the expediency of limiting the lashes in gourds by pinching the tops and cutting out non-fruiting shoots. In the Moscow region, in the experiments of the V. R. Williams All-Union Research Institute of Feeds (1953), pinching the tops of pumpkin lashes at the beginning of fruit set increased the yield by 33%. In the experiments of the department of vegetable growing of the Moscow Agricultural Academy named after K. A. Timiryazev (1939), the yield of Etamskaya pumpkin without pinching was 11 tons, and with pinching - 22.5 tons per 1 ha. The work of the same station showed that the pinching of melons sharply increases the yield, as well as the number of ripe fruits. In zucchini, it is recommended to pinch the top of the main stem during budding. At the Gribovskaya vegetable breeding station (Moscow region), positive results were obtained from pinching all the tops of pumpkin, melon and watermelon lashes at a time when 2-3 fruits are formed on the plant. Thanks to pinching, excessive thickening of the lashes is eliminated and fruit growth is enhanced due to the large influx of plastic substances to them. According to the West Siberian Vegetable Experimental Station, pinching the main stem of melons above the 5-6th leaf significantly accelerates fruit ripening.

The Muslyumovsky state farm in the Chelyabinsk region successfully applied pinching of melons of the main stem over the 3rd leaf, first-order lashes over the 7-8th leaf, second-order lashes over the 4th leaf, counting from the formed ovary. In pinched plants, crop maturation began two weeks earlier than in controls. According to the state farm, in 8 hours one worker performs pinching the tops of the main lashes on an area of ​​0.15 hectares, and pinching the axes of the first and second order on an area of ​​0.05 hectares.

Growing watermelons in your garden

• Sowing watermelons
• How to water
• Video footage

A lot has been said about the benefits of watermelons: sweet juicy fruits are indicated for diseases of the heart and blood vessels, kidneys, liver, salt metabolism disorders, obesity and many other ailments. It is the richest source of potassium, magnesium, iron, folic acid, vitamins, acids and pectins. However, many are simply afraid to buy watermelons for fear of being poisoned by them. It's no secret that unscrupulous entrepreneurs who grow products increase the dose of pesticides and fertilizers in order to get a higher yield. Naturally, natural is much healthier and safer for our health.

Watermelons are very demanding on heat and light; it is not for nothing that they are considered one of the most heat-loving crops. Seeds will germinate at a temperature of at least 15 degrees, and the temperature norm for flowering will be from plus 18 to 20 ° C (in the morning) and up to 25 degrees in the daytime. As soon as the daytime temperature drops below 20 ° C, plant growth will slow down. Choose seeds that are not early maturing, but also not characterized by long maturation. Many summer residents praise the varieties of watermelons Ogonyok and Sugar Baby. They differ from other varieties of watermelons with an average size of 4–6 kg and a dark green color without clearly defined lines, the flesh is dark red, and the stones are black.

Watermelon is drought-resistant due to its well-developed, powerful root system, but at the same time it does not tolerate shading.

Growing watermelons: what soils are suitable

For growing watermelon, sandy loamy soils are suitable, warming up in the sun and protected from strong winds. Absolutely unsuitable is too moist land, with a heavy mechanical composition and characterized by being near groundwater. The best option is neutral or alkaline soil, but not acidic, where very small fruits will grow, which will have time to crack while still green. Change planting sites every year - this is good for the soil: next year, it is better to plant corn or wheat in place of watermelons.

Sowing watermelons

The first shoots will appear after 8-10 days, which will be considered the norm. If the ground is still cold, then the germination time increases, and the seedlings may simply die. This can also lead to the development of pathogenic flora in seedlings, which will further adversely affect their development during the growing season.

Each hole should be filled with ash (1 tablespoon) mixed with earth, humus and nitroammophos (1 teaspoon). In the future, this will increase yields by about 20%. The seeding depth is 5-8 cm. After sowing, mulch the soil surface with humus so that a crust does not appear, which can harm the seedlings when they emerge to the surface.

watermelon care

To accelerate the growth of watermelon, various shelters are used: from simple individual ones to group film ones. At the same time, even simple shelters with a film increase the temperature, thereby accelerating maturation by two to three weeks. In addition, with the help of such devices, you will protect plants from pests such as bugs.

You can arrange tunnel shelters with frames made of vines or wire rod. They are removed, as a rule, in early June, on a cloudy day, so that the plants cannot “burn out” under the scorching sun. Otherwise, they will weaken or become a source of infection for mass melons.

As for pollination, when grown under a film, it is carried out manually. To attract bees next to watermelons, you can plant honey plants or spray melons with a weak solution of honey or sugar.

How to water watermelons

During the cultivation of watermelons under the film, they are watered as they dry. After removing the shelters, watering should be stopped. In open ground, watering stops with the beginning of fruit set.

In the future, care comes down to breaking through seedlings, loosening, weeding the soil, destroying weeds and top dressing. Don't let it thicken! Melon crops are very light-loving, so if you want to grow a large and sweet watermelon in the open field - remember that only one plant should remain in the hole - try to keep 1 sq. meter had no more than three landings.

Video about growing gourds

Video: growing under drip irrigation

Video about square watermelons of Japan

Lecture plan:

a) features of the agricultural technology of melon growing on sandy soils;

b) agricultural technology for growing melons and gourds on irrigated lands;

c) agrotechnics of fodder melons;

d) agricultural technology for growing melons and gourds on drip irrigation.

1. Features of agrotechnics of melon growing on sandy soils.

In our country, melon growing on sandy soils occupies quite a large area. The melons and gourds yield the highest yield on unused sandy loams enriched with organic matter and on sandy loamy chernozems. Of the gourds, watermelon develops best on sandy loamy soils.

On sandy soils melons and gourds give higher yields, higher quality and lower cost.

However, in order to obtain high yields of gourds on the sands, it is necessary to apply specific cultivation techniques. These include: crop rotations with perennial grasses, the introduction of large doses of humus, spring plowing of the soil, various anti-erosion measures, such as sowing backstage, planting forest belts, and other techniques specific to melon growing on sandy soils.

On sandy soils, in most cases, deep autumn plowing is used, which is especially useful for a horizon with layers of sand compacted to a solid state. Such deep plowing is carried out, usually in two years on the third. On very soft sandy soils in areas with strong winds, autumn plowing is not used to avoid wind erosion, and the main tillage is carried out in the spring. It consists of plowing to a depth of 25 - 27 cm with simultaneous harrowing in one track. It is best to carry out plantation plowing on sandy soils. At the same time, sometimes plowing is done in strips 70 - 80 m wide, and unplowed strips 5 - 6 m wide are left between them. The strips protect the crop from wind, sand and dust, and serve as a place for the removal of fruits for transportation.

For the northern regions of Kazakhstan with sandy soils, the scientist Ehrenburg, for example, recommends: Sowing strips 50-100 m wide, occupied by gourds, alternate with intervals of the same width, occupied by perennial grasses. After 3 - 4 years, the grass layer is plowed under melons, and the former melon strips are occupied with perennial grasses. The stripes are usually located across the prevailing winds. Good results are obtained by rolling the field after sowing with annular rollers, which increase the yield of gourds by almost 40%.

On sandy and sandy loamy soils, rotted manure with deep plowing gives a great effect. It improves the water regime of sandy soils and enriches them with organic matter in the zone of the greatest development of the root system. It is applied at a dose of 30-40 tons per hectare. Simultaneously with manure, mineral fertilizers are given: 3 - 4 centners of superphosphate, 2 - 3 centners of ammonium sulfate and 1.5 - 2 centners per hectare of 40% potassium salt. On sandy soils, the incorporation of organic and mineral fertilizers should be as deep as possible.

For melons and gourds, sandy soils with a shear level of groundwater are most characteristic. With a deep occurrence of groundwater, they become inaccessible to plants, and when they stand close, they displace soil air and lead to wilting of plants.

In areas where a large amount of precipitation falls in the form of snow, snow retention is effective, which allows increasing soil moisture reserves.

Spring tillage on sandy soils consists of one pre-sowing cultivation, which is aimed at the destruction of weeds.

Seeds of gourds on sandy soils are sown somewhat deeper than on bound soils, and the feeding area is provided significantly, large: for watermelons, for example, from 4 to 9 m2, instead of 1.5 - 3 m2, and for pumpkins from 8 to 11 m2 , instead of 2 - 4 m2.

On sandy soils, a strong positive effect on melons and gourds is provided by feeding them with fertilizers in liquid form. Fertilizer rates for top dressing are as follows: bird droppings give 4 - 8 centners, ammonium sulfate 1.5 centners, superphosphate 3.5 centners and potassium salt 0.7 centners per hectare. The first top dressing is applied to a depth of 6 - 8 cm, the second - to 10 - 12 cm.

Cultivation of row-spacings on sandy soils is carried out in the same way as on connected soils, but taking into account the spraying of the topsoil. On sandy soils, they try to reduce the number of inter-row cultivation to a minimum, and in the absence of weeds, do not carry out at all.

Forest belts on sandy soils are planted 10 m wide with an inter-strip space of 140 m. They increase the yield of gourds by 30-100% and accelerate the ripening of fruits by 10-12 days.

Sorghum, corn, sunflower, winter rye, sudanese and other tall plants are used as stage plants. The wings are placed at a distance of 20 m from each other. In width, they consist of 2-3 rows of tilled tall plants. Backstage, as forest belts, according to research, also increase the yield of gourds by 30 - 100%.

An important method of erosion control is the furrowing of the field. Furrowing is carried out with a single-hull plow with plumb lines in the middle of the row spacing, 6 m along and 6 m across the rows. The groove, as it falls asleep, is restored periodically every 10 days.

The above methods of agricultural technology make it possible to obtain second crops of gourds on sandy soils. These techniques also make it possible to protect light sandy soils from erosion, by which they are damaged to some extent than cohesive soils.

2. Agricultural technology for growing melons and gourds on irrigated lands.

During the growing season, watering of gourds should be carried out with a decrease in soil moisture in a layer of 0 - 80 cm to 80% HB with an irrigation rate of 500 - 700 m3 / ha.

Watering is carried out until the melon wilts and, depending on soil moisture, to maintain it at the above optimal level and is repeated after 5-15 days. Then watering is not carried out for about 30 - 40 days until the time the ovaries of berry fruits appear on the plants. Such a long break in watering is necessary in order to increase the growth of roots in depth, delay the growth of the vegetative mass and accelerate the onset of fruit formation. After a break, from the moment the ovaries appear on the melon, watering is resumed and carried out when the soil moisture decreases from 0 - 80 cm to 80% HB. Watering continues until the time of the final formation of the fruits, so that the ripening of the fruits does not take place during the dry period. If melons are watered regularly, without interruptions during flowering and fruit ripening, then, as melon growers say, the ovaries will fall off on the plants, and the set and formed fruits will not be able to ripen normally and will be watery, not sweet.

Watering gourds is recommended along the furrows, as sprinkling causes the development of fungal diseases, in particular powdery mildew and anthracnose. The best time for watering melons is night and morning hours. Night watering not only increases the yield of melons, but also reduces their incidence of Fusarium wilt.

After watering melon plants loosen and spud. Plants are spudded for the first time when 1-2 true leaves appear. When hilling, the soil is sprinkled with a small roller around the plant. During irrigation, the earth settles, and during inter-row cultivation, the rollers are destroyed, therefore, usually in the phase of 3-4 true leaves, a second hilling is done. The roller protects the root neck from flooding during watering.

Hilling is a mandatory technique when growing gourds in irrigated conditions.

In general, watering correctly carried out at the optimal time leads to an increase in the size of the fruit, a large yield of marketable products, an earlier harvest and an increase in the efficiency of fertilizers.

3. Agrotechnics of fodder melons.

Fodder melons include fodder watermelon, fodder pumpkins and squash. Forage gourds are a valuable special feed for all types of agricultural animals. Their practical significance is due to the fact that, along with silage in winter, they replace green grass. Feed melons, like fodder root crops, are easily absorbed by the animal's body. They contain a significant amount of carbohydrates and vitamins, stimulate the appetite of animals, improve digestion and promote a better use of roughage. They increase the productivity of dairy cows, the egg production of chickens, the fattening of pigs and other animals. In terms of nutritional value, fodder melons, and especially fodder pumpkin, not only are not inferior to fodder root crops, but significantly exceed them.

Fodder melons - zucchini, fodder watermelon and pumpkin are included in the green conveyor schemes and are their mandatory components in all regions of Ukraine.

The best predecessor for all melons and gourds is the herbal layer of a perennial cereal-bean mixture. Good yields can also be obtained by sowing gourds on virgin lands and perennial natural fallows.

On chernozem soils rich in humus, tilled crops, such as, for example, corn, millet, can be allowed as a predecessor.

Melons are good predecessors for all grain and row crops.

The place of gourds in the crop rotation also depends on the purpose of cultivation, for example, when using fodder gourds in summer to feed cows or pigs, they must be sown near livestock in summer.

When harvesting fodder melons for the winter, they should be cultivated near the winter location of livestock to reduce the cost of transfer.

Autumn basic soil preparation for fodder melons and gourds does not differ from soil preparation for other crops.

If fodder melons are sown on grain crops, then immediately after their harvesting, the stubble is peeled to a depth of 4-5 cm. After 2-3 weeks, after the germination of weeds, the plot is plowed deeply. With deeper autumn plowing, a higher yield and better quality of melons and gourds are obtained than with shallow plowing.

In the spring, as the ridges of the plowing area dry out, cultivation is carried out once or twice to preserve moisture and better warm the soil.

Forage gourds are late sowing crops, therefore, in order to protect the soil from overgrowing with weeds, it is advisable to carry out pre-sowing cultivation of the soil with a cultivator and a cultivator to a depth of at least 10-12 cm simultaneously with pre-sowing cultivation after harrowing in one or two tracks, it is easier to avoid unnecessary moisture loss.

In general, it is necessary to ensure that in the spring before sowing the field is loosened and free from weeds.

All fodder melons are very fond of fresh, undepleted soils and require a good harvest in non-arable lands. Organic fertilizers are especially well called for. In our southern conditions, more soil at a dose of 15 - 20 tons per hectare must be applied in the fall before plowing. Spring application of humus is unacceptable, because for its incorporation it will be necessary to plow the soil, which is associated with a greater loss of moisture. The introduction of humus should be carried out immediately before plowing the land. Of the mineral fertilizers, superphosphate gives the greatest effect in our southern conditions, which is applied under autumn plowing in the amount of 2-5 centners per hectare, depending on growing conditions.

For sowing, it is necessary to take seeds of only good quality, best of all 1st class. Seeds should be large, well poured and ripe. For these purposes, the seeds are sorted, discarding small, immature and feeble.

Choosing the right time for sowing fodder melons is a moment of exceptional importance. These crops should not be sown too early in the spring, as if sown too early, the seeds do not germinate for a long time and rot in the soil.

The temperature of the soil at a depth of 10 cm when sowing gourds should be at least 10 ° C for pumpkin, and at least 12 ° C for fodder watermelon. Observations show that the decisive moment, for example, for the emergence of friendly seedlings of fodder watermelon is the average air temperature (morning, afternoon and evening) of 15 ° C for at least 1-2 days. Usually, fodder melons are sown in our country in late April - early May. However, the exact calendar dates of sowing cannot be established, since the course of spring, even in the same region, is not the same in different years. In general, fodder marrows are sown first, then pumpkins, and fodder watermelons are sown last.

It is very important that there are no frosts after the emergence of gourds, since at temperatures below zero they die.

Seeding rates for fodder crops range from 2 to 4 kg/ha and depend on the crop, sowing pattern and seed size. The size of the seeds varies relatively little in fodder watermelon and varies greatly in different types of pumpkins. Bush pumpkins (zucchini, squash) are always sown more densely (with a smaller feeding area) and therefore more seeds per 1 hectare are required.

The yield of gourds to some extent depends on the choice of the correct feeding area. There are varieties that produce very long, but not numerous lashes, intertwining with neighboring plants, but not particularly obscuring each other.

A normal yield of fodder melons can be obtained only when favorable conditions are created for the full development of shoots. In thickened crops of gourds, some plants are oppressed by others, which reduces the yield and worsens the quality of the fruit. In the south of Ukraine, the best feeding area for fodder watermelons will be 3 m2, for pumpkin 2 - 4 m2, for fodder marrows 0.5 - 1 m2.

When placing plants on the square, one must reckon with the biology of growth - it scatters its lashes in all directions and therefore each plant must be taken as far as possible in a square. The pumpkin stretches with its main lash most often to the east, occupying an elongated figure with its shoots and leaves, so the area where pumpkin plants should be placed should have an elongated shape from west to east, zucchini have a greatly shortened main lash, so that the bush almost does not stretch in an easterly direction, therefore they, like fodder watermelons, require a square footprint.

Seeds of fodder gourds are sown in three ways in row, two-line tape and nesting. With an ordinary method of sowing fodder watermelon and pumpkins with a row spacing of 1.4; 2.1 and 2.8 meters, zucchini with a row spacing of 70 cm.

Sowing fodder pumpkin with a two-line tape method is carried out according to the scheme (2.1 + 0.7) × 1.4 m, it is better to sow fodder watermelons and zucchini in a square way as per the watermelon scheme 1.4 × 1.4 m, zucchini according to scheme 0, 7×0.7 m.

Seeds of fodder gourds are sown to a depth of 4 to 7 cm, the depth of seed placement depends on proper and timely care.

Care should primarily pursue the goal of maintaining moisture in the soil, providing the crop with nutrients, and controlling weeds, diseases and pests.

The main methods of care are cultivation, loosening of row spacings, weeding with simultaneous thinning of plants. The number of treatment spacings depends on the weediness of the field and the state of the weather and during the growing season of plants varies from 3 to 5. The loosening of row spacings in dry years is especially important.

The procedure for performing work on caring for crops is as follows: after the emergence of seedlings, the first loosening is performed.

With the appearance of the first true leaf in the plants, the cultivation of row spacings is carried out, after 15-18 days, if there are weed roots on the site, the next cultivation is done. When cultivating row spacings, the cultivator must be adjusted so that the undercutting implements do not damage the roots of the plants. Simultaneously with the second cultivation, the final thinning of the seedlings is done, leaving one plant per hole.

The third inter-row cultivation is carried out when the lashes have already grown. Before cultivation, these whips are passed and thrown temporarily on the beds to avoid damage by machines. After cultivation, the whips are placed in their previous positions and at the same time the soil is manually loosened in rows. The straightened lashes are immediately sprinkled with earth near the shoots so that they take on additional roots and improve the supply of plants with moisture and nutrient minerals. Fixing and sprinkling the lashes with earth is quite a big job. They try to attach or pin it with hooked branches or with the device of special wind-shelter wings from tall crops used for silage, such as sunflowers, corn, and sorghum. Three-row wings, laid simultaneously with the sowing of melons, every 15-20 m across the prevailing winds, provide good protection from the wind and at the same time completely prevent the twisting of the lashes and the death of part of the assimilation apparatus of plants - watermelons, pumpkins - when twisting the lashes, even the death of young ovaries is observed due to burning by the sun.

Undoubtedly, backstage plants also consume water and nutrients for their development, therefore melons located along them give a smaller yield, but backstage plants in themselves are of particular value, since they go for food along with fodder watermelons and pumpkins.

Fertilizing plants during their growing season gives very good results. Top dressing should be carried out in the early periods of plant growth. Only then can it have an impact on the harvest.

If top dressing is given once for the whole summer, then it is better to carry it out before the formation of lashes; if 2 - 3 times, then the first top dressing is given at the stage of 4 - 5 leaves, the second - at the formation of lashes and the third - at the beginning of fruit set. When applying liquid top dressing, the solution should not be allowed to get on the plants so as not to cause them a burn.

However, it is important not only to grow the crop, but also to harvest it efficiently, in a timely manner and without loss.

Pumpkins and watermelons are harvested depending on the conditions of fruit ripening.

Pumpkins are harvested as the fruits ripen, which is recognized by their color and hardness.