Watermelons in the conditions of the Black Earth region can be grown, moreover, even in the open ground. If the watermelons and melons are grown correctly in the open ground in the middle lane, then already in mid-August you can get a good harvest to the best of the sweet berry. To choose for planting in such conditions, you need only early ripe varieties. According to all rules, their vegetation period should last about 75 days from the appearance of sunrises to the time of ripening.
Advice! Well in the middle zone grow watermelons varieties "Crimson", "Sweet", "Sugar Baby" and others. Particular attention should be paid to hybrids of the first level (F1), which have time to mature even in St. Petersburg, not to mention the suburbs.
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Important cultivation features
Seeds need to be sown previously for seedlings. This is done according to the usual scheme, peat or plastic cups are taken from which it will then be convenient to transplant seedlings. Please note that watermelon and melon have extremely delicate roots, so this is an important factor.
Advice! In each cup, you can immediately plant two seeds and see which one gives a stronger sprout. After that, remove the weaker sprout and leave one.
In the case of growing watermelons and melons in the middle lane, you must initially do the proper preparation of the seeds. This is done in early April, because when planting in open ground seedlings should already be 35 days old.
The seed of these seeds is dense, so initially you will need to wrap them in a wet cloth, which is filled with a weak solution of potassium permanganate. Put in a bag, take air into it and tie. Send to a warm place, change water every day, and add fresh air to the bag. On the third day, the seeds will hatch and this is a great time to plant them in moist ground. Deep digging is not necessary - just one centimeter is enough.
Optimum temperature
The video gives a lot of advice on growing watermelons and melons in the open ground in the middle lane, special attention should be paid to air temperature when growing seedlings. Here you need to focus on 18-20 degrees and put the seedlings on the sunniest spot in the apartment.
It is extremely important to water the sprouts on time as the earth dries. It is also not necessary to arrange a swamp, because, this will lead to the development of root rot and as a result, all seedlings may die. Feeding is needed when the first real leaf appears. In April, the sun is enough, but if the days are cloudy, think about additional lighting necessarily.
Permanent landing
It is difficult even in professional forums to find accurate information on growing watermelons and melons in open ground in the middle lane, regarding the specific time of planting seedlings in open ground. Here you need to monitor long-term forecasts specifically in your region.
As a rule, beds can be started to be prepared already in the first ten days of May, and according to the Lunar calendar for the current year, see which day is best for planting seedlings. To be safe, until the weather is warm, you need to cover the seedlings with a film. Be sure to additionally spray the sprouts with a biostimulator on the eve of planting. Ten days before planting, seedlings begin to be exposed to at least a couple of hours on the balcony, so that it gradually gets used to low temperatures.
What is important when growing watermelons and melons in open ground
- Put seedlings on trellis as in the classic cultivation of cucumbers. The difference will be that the trellis should be more powerful, because the watermelons, although they will be small, are certainly more impressive than cucumbers in size and weight.
- Before the final planting on the street beds, put the cups with growths in the water so that they are well softened.
- Prepare holes for dist. 70 cm from each other, add min. fertilizers, other ashes and humus. Pour all over with hot water and mix.
- Plant a glass in the hole, sprinkle with a dry earth and be sure to mulch the bed. Any material for this that is at hand is suitable.
- Garter to carry out when the watermelon lash begins to die. Leave one stem, and pinch all side shoots. Pinch the crown of the main stem when four watermelons are tied on it. For chernozem soil, such a number of fruits is already a success.
These are critical aspects of how growing watermelons and melons in open ground in the middle lane. Of course, you should not think that even with the most proper care it will turn out to collect a crop of large and sweet berries, but such watermelons and melons will definitely have their chic, charm and taste.
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