Want to have Beijing cabbage on your site? Outdoor cultivation is not difficult, but all work must be carried out in accordance with the rules, sowing dates, seasonal characteristics of the region. It is important. Peking cabbage not so long ago appeared on the shelves of vegetable shops. Almost immediately became popular. Particularly like wrought-iron shapes. But in the gardens you do not often see her. Beijing is also attractive in that it is easy to plant, grow. A quick weight gain, yield are an additional plus to the positive qualities of this vegetable.
What is Beijing cabbage
Like any member of the cabbage family, Peking is a long-day plant. To bloom, bear fruit, she needs at least 13 hours of light day. That is, for reproduction (flowering and subsequent receipt of seeds), cabbage needs a long daylight hours. But, if the duration of daylight hours is less than 12 hours, then the seed arrow will not form, but the growth of the leaf, the ovary of heads of cabbage will be active.
Therefore, to grow this vegetable crop for the sake of leaves and heads of cabbage, a limited short daylight is required, the air temperature is about +15 .. + 20 ° C. When shortening the daylight hours, the plant does not start the arrow (does not work on the ovary of seeds) - it simply does not have time to do this, since there is not enough time. All forces are activated on the formation of leaves - and this is what we need, since the main thing in Beijing is the leaves, the leaf rosette that forms the head.
That is, if Beijing cabbage is grown not for seeds, but for leaves, it needs a short daylight hours - that is why it is sown in early spring, when daylight hours are shorter, when the temperature is low, there is no heat.
Peking cabbage, how to grow from seeds
Pekingka is quite cold-resistant, therefore sprouting of sprouts can be observed at +3 .. + 5 ° C. The most optimal temperature regime for activating the vitality of a plant is approximately + 23 ° C. After the appearance of leaflets, the temperature can be lowered to + 15..17 ° C degrees during the day, to + 14 ° C at night.
Seasonal, climatic features of the region determine the conditions for planting Beijing cabbage on seedlings. It can be both open beds in a summer cottage, and a greenhouse.
First of all, determine the variety of cabbage. If you want to get a quick result, then choose varieties that ripen quickly, for example - Khibinsky, Asten, Lenok. Only 50 days after the first shoots are biting, a full-fledged rosette is formed, and after 60 days (from the time of shoots) an elongated semi-open head of cabbage appears.
When to sow Beijing cabbage for seedlings? In early spring, usually the first days of March, cabbage seeds are sown under the film, and in the last days of March and early April (the dates are indicated for the Kuban) - open ground.
Thus, in early May, it is already possible to harvest the first crop, if the Peking was grown in greenhouse conditions.
Plants prefer loose, rich in organic matter soils of medium mechanical composition with a high arable horizon. On light soils, they quickly dry out, and on heavy soils, they become sickly. Organic fertilizers are applied under the previous culture. Soils are not very sensitive to acidity, but saline soil is poorly tolerated. The optimal pH of the soil solution is 5.5-7.0. If the soil is saline, it is necessary to smell sawdust or straw before sowing. Sustained rapid growth requires a significant amount of nutrients, especially nitrogen.
The best predecessors of Beijing cabbage are crops that leave behind themselves a soil with a sufficient amount of nutrients, clean of weeds, which do not have common pathogens (cucumbers, zucchini, onions, tomatoes, legumes).
Seeds begin to germinate at a temperature of 3-4 ° C. Adult plants withstand short-term freezing up to -5-7 ° C. The optimum temperature for plants varies: 18-20 ° C - at an early stage, 15-16 ° C - in the phase of head formation, 10-13 ° C - at the end of this phase. A temperature of 15-16 ° C is necessary for the formation of a firm head. Lower temperatures contribute to the transition to flowering, higher - the formation of narrow leaves. Beijing cabbage does not tolerate prolonged cold weather - it can form arrows. The same thing happens in extreme heat.
Seeding is done as follows:
- seeds are poured with a small amount of hot water (approximately 50 ° C) for 15-20 minutes;
- after the specified time, the seeds are cooled with cold water, dried;
- dry seeds are mixed with small wood sawdust (tyrsa);
- the soil for sowing should be moist, the seeds are sown in rows at a distance of 35-40 cm;
- sowing is nest-like - 3-5 seeds, 30-40 cm apart;
- the seeds are deepened by about 2-3 cm;
- after the sprouts sprout, thinning is done: first the two largest sprouts are left, and then one is the most powerful.
In order to get a generous autumn harvest of Peking, re-sowing is carried out from the last days of August to September 15-17 (terms for the Kuban).
Peking cabbage seedlings can also be grown on the windowsill.
To do this, the seeds are buried by 0.5-1 cm in the soil. After 2 or 3 leaves appear, the strongest of them are left, and the rest are plucked. After 3-4 weeks, plants can be transplanted into the open ground (25 × 35 cm).
Before planting, the plants are watered, the sick and the weak are rejected. Three days before planting, the plants are treated with insecticides (Confidor, Aktara) against cabbage flies, cruciferous fleas. When planting, they make sure that the root neck does not fall below the soil level, otherwise the plants will rot.
Handling seedlings must be done carefully, as the roots of Beijing are quite fragile. After planting, all the bushes are watered closer to the roots.
To quickly head out, you can shorten daylight by artificial means - with the onset of the evening, cover the seedlings with some suitable covering material (for example, lutrasil).
How to grow Chinese cabbage in open ground or a greenhouse
In greenhouse conditions, seedlings are planted in early April. To feed the soil, it is preliminarily brought in a compost bucket for every 2 m². If in a greenhouse you sow seeds directly into the ground, then the first seedlings can be expected after 3 or 4 days. For better plant development, pre-mix the seeds with sand, and moisten the ground well.
Greenhouse cultivation of Beijing cabbage provides for a shallow penetration of seeds into the soil. The sowing depth should be approximately 1 cm, the rows should be located approximately 10 cm apart, and between the bushes should be somewhere around 4-5 cm.
If Peking cabbage is planted on an open plot of land, then the place itself should be well lit, be relatively calm (if possible). The soil under the cabbage should be sufficiently moist, saturated with humus. It will be very good if the source of moisture (irrigation system) is not far from the beds with Beijing cabbage.
As already mentioned, Peking is a cold-resistant plant, so it tolerates lower temperatures quite comfortably. At 4 ° C, the seeds germinate without problems, and a temperature of + 15..22 ° C provides optimal conditions for the harmonious development of a vegetable crop. Thus, the cultivation of Beijing cabbage in the open field should begin in early May (and the seeds for this seedlings should be sown by the end of March).
Do not plant the bushes very close to each other, 12-16 pieces per 1 m² will be enough.
As for the seedlingless method of planting, it is usually produced three times during the whole season:
- late March to early April;
- 14 days after the first seeding;
- in early September.
The rate of ripening of cabbage will depend on these time parameters. Since Peking is a precocious vegetable crop, the formation of a rosette can be observed after 40-50 days, and the appearance of full heads of cabbage can be observed 60-80 days after sowing seeds in the soil. Subsequent cabbage care will consist of timely soil moisture, loosening, removing weeds from the beds.
At this stage, it is highly discouraged to use any additives or fertilizers. Pekingka is very “fond” of accumulating nitrates, all kinds of chemical compounds, so to preserve your health, it is better to abandon excipients.
Beijing cabbage, the cultivation and care of which is based on three rules:
- proper lighting
- temperature condition
- moisturizing.
She will be grateful to you for one very valuable agricultural technique - a modern covering material (non-woven fabric) will protect young seedlings from sudden temperature changes. Do not forget that young shoots react very poorly to cold, in contrast to already formed plants. Covering material can also protect Beijing from the scorching sun, heat, and in the rainy period - from excess moisture.
Leaf varieties are harvested at a height of 10-15 cm, in the phase of 5-7 leaves.
Headed forms - as thick heads are formed, when their mass with an open outlet reaches 300 g. Covering leaves are removed, heads are placed in boxes.
Harvest can be all at once, but can be divided into two methods, pulling out the plants along with the roots. If you pull out through one, the remaining heads of cabbage will grow very quickly.
Early ripe hybrids of Beijing cabbage are harvested until a sharp drop in air temperature. Growing late-ripe varieties or hybrids in the fall allows you to extend the growing season until constant frost.
The heads of cabbage frozen in open ground (-3-5 ° С) after thawing at a positive temperature do not lose their presentation and taste, they are characterized by a high content of ascorbic acid (50 mg% and higher), sugars (4-5%). Thanks to this feature, Beijing cabbage can be harvested at the end of November.
With the onset of cold weather, you can cover the heads of cabbage remaining on the bed with earth, humus or shelter. And early in the spring you will get greens of Beijing cabbage for salad.
Let your harvest be plentiful, and the process of growing and care - informative and positive.