Planting cabbage for many summer residents is not particularly difficult, because the culture is not too picky. However, non-compliance with the simplest agricultural standards can lead to the fact that the crop will be too small or die at all.
One of the common problems is stretching the legs in the absence of full ovaries of the head. You can deal with this phenomenon as simple folk methods, as well as special chemical fertilizing.
Content
Reasons for stretching
Such a plant requires special growing conditions. Most often, planting owners pay special attention to the irrigation regime and its abundance, while this is not always able to solve the problem. Among the main factors affecting the development of too long legs, include:
- insufficient lighting;
- too tight fit;
- lack of nutrients in the soil;
- negative neighborhood with other cultures.
In some cases, the cause of strong stretching will be the wrong choice of variety, the wrong time of planting. Early varieties, contrary to popular belief, are not easy to ripen faster, they are tied in certain climatic conditions. When landing after the end of March and the beginning of April, problems with the outgrowing leg and the lack of a head may arise.
This plant, regardless of variety, requires a certain balance of shadow and light. Without sufficient illumination, the leaves will not form fully, turning into a long leg, and not turning into a full ovary. The stem will stretch, trying to get to the rays of the sun. But in the complete absence of shade, the same situation can be observed, but already due to overdrying and lack of moisture.
A critically small amount of nitrogen in the soil will not allow the leaves to form, as a result, it will not give the necessary impetus for the head of the ovary. But an excess of fertilizers, especially organic ones, can unnecessarily stimulate growth in the foot zone, and there will be no more forces left to form a head of cabbage.
Excessive watering is also harmful to cabbage, as well as insufficient. It leads to thickening of the legs, deformation of the leaves and decay, even at the optimum planting frequency.
Signs and Symptoms
The first signs that there are certain problems with agricultural machinery or cultivar can be seen even at the stage of seedling germination. Too thin stalk, disproportionately high height with a small leaf size suggests that the soil does not fit this variety. If the land for seedlings was taken directly on the site, similar problems should be expected in the process of growth after transplants.
As a rule, an excessively long leg is formed immediately; incorrect proportions are easy to notice. But such a characteristic is quite normal for some individual varieties, especially later ones. Therefore, you can focus on the standard terms for the appearance of the ovary head. Early varieties should form a tight ovary in June, in July they can be harvested as a finished crop. Mid-season varieties pass into the stage of active formation in August, therefore, by mid-July, the ovaries should already be visible. Late, autumn species, enter the growth stage in September, so at the end of July the ovaries should be at any time of disembarkation.
In some cases, the formation of a leg too long in cabbage is accompanied by the development of several inferior ovaries. It can be immediately 2 and even 3 small little fork. They differ in color and have an irregular shape. The growth of the legs will continue.Such a plant can be destroyed, since it will not yield yields.
What to do: the most effective ways
If rapid growth of the leg is observed with insufficient formation of ovaries, you should analyze the frequency and volume of watering, in addition, do some simple work:
- to spud plants;
- to top dress;
- tie the leaves.
These folk methods are quite effective and do not require significant financial costs. On average, for normal growth of cabbage, 35 liters of water per day per plant are required. Waterlogging should not be allowed, especially with heap planting.
A young head of cabbage in moderately hot weather with sufficient lighting evaporates about 15-20 liters of water through the leaves, which corresponds to the standard size of a bucket. Based on these indicators and calculate the optimal watering.
Hilling is necessary to ensure that the long leg is not easy to take nutrients from the plant, but become their full source. With such artificial deepening, the leg will give young roots. This will allow to increase the flow of nutrients, and secure the future head of cabbage in a stable upright position. Hilling can be done up to two times per season, depending on whether the stem growth has stopped or not.
The simplest option for feeding is the application of ash. It contains a small amount of nitrogen, which is necessary for the formation of the ovary and at the same time does not give too much push for the growth of the stem and side leaves. 1 cup of dry ash is diluted in 10 liters of warm water, insisted for 15 minutes, after which root watering is carried out in moderation for each bush. You can feed twice with an interval of two weeks.
If the leg has already grown large enough and there are fears that the heads of cabbage will not grow fully, the use of chemical compounds is an excellent solution. Good results were shown by Mikasa and Zavyaz preparations, which can be used both in the southern regions and in areas of risky farming. The solution should be prepared and processed according to the manufacturer's instructions, taking into account the age of the plant.
Prevention
The main preventive measure against the formation of an unnaturally long cabbage leg will be the correct calculation of the landing density. When there is not enough space for the plants, they are actively drawn in, trying to find more free areas, the heads of cabbage will be too small and too dense even with an ovary. Early varieties are planted at a distance of 35 centimeters between the bushes with an interval between rows of 50 centimeters, for mid-season varieties these parameters will be 50 and 65 centimeters, respectively. Later species require even more space - 65 centimeters between holes and 75 centimeters between rows.
If a mistake in the density of planting has already been made, experienced agricultural technicians advise thinning the bed of cabbage, as this will bring much more benefit.
Soil should be prepared before planting, especially if it is too loose and light or too acidic. In the first case, heavy fertilizers will help, for example, based on peat, in the second - liming.
One of the important preventive measures will be the correct choice of a “neighbor” for cabbage. To avoid excessive proliferation of the leg, it is necessary to abandon such crops as corn, Jerusalem artichoke, sunflower or raspberry.
Advice
The key to a good cabbage crop is timely planting and proper top dressing. It is recommended that you strictly follow the instructions given by the seed producer or nursery that created the particular hybrid.Deviation from the deadlines for a week, especially two, often leads to overgrowing of the legs and the absence of heads. Therefore, you need to fertilize plants strictly according to the calendar, and not just in your free time.
In order to ensure low shading and still not completely block the luminous flux, it is worthwhile to think over a planting plan in advance, choosing successful “neighbors” for cabbage. Nearby you can plant dill, celery, leek. In addition to a small height, sufficient for weak shading at certain hours of the day, these crops will give useful volatile products that repel major pests.
Reviews
Michael: we plant cabbage in large quantities and the earthing up always helps from a long leg, heads of cabbage turn out much more, never lie down and never fall to the ground. They faced the same problem when they planted cabbage in a new area for the first time, fertilizing with ash helped, they made it once, the next year they fertilized the soil in advance, it is much easier. Great help from the long legs of plants.
Svetlana: in one year, all the legs of the cabbage were very long and slightly curved, some plants even fell as a result. They were treated with Mikasa and the ovaries immediately appeared, and our cabbage stopped growing upwards. Then they spud immediately, it turned out to be very useful, although they did not do it before. Harvest last year was excellent, next season I will plant less.
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