garden crops

Vegetables are a source of health and longevity. They contain all the carbohydrates, fats, proteins, organic acids, mineral salts, vitamins and other biologically active elements necessary for the body. Vegetables also contain flavoring aromatic and spicy substances that improve the palatability of food. Many vegetables are used in traditional medicine due to their healing properties.

It is impossible to get a high yield of good quality vegetables without knowledge of the biology of crops and their requirements for environmental conditions. In each individual case, it is necessary to adjust the cultivation regimes, the timing of sowing or planting, fertilization, and irrigation. The growth and development of plants is closely related to environmental conditions. The main external factors are heat, light, moisture, air and nutrients. They are all equal and none of them can be replaced by another. Only

in the presence of all these factors and their optimal combination, plants can grow and develop normally. But the requirements of vegetable plants to environmental conditions in different periods of life are not the same, they change during the growing season.

Warmly. The requirements for the thermal regime of various vegetable plants are also not the same and depend on their origin. According to the requirements for heat, vegetable plants are divided into several groups.

The most demanding for heat melon, watermelon, eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, squash, pumpkin, beans, vegetable corn. Seeds of these crops begin to germinate at 13–14 C. They cannot tolerate prolonged temperature drops: at temperatures below 10–12 C, their growth and development are suspended, and they die when frost occurs. The most favorable temperature for the growth, development and fruiting of heat-loving vegetable crops is 20–3 °C. To improve the thermal regime, such crops are placed on the southwestern side of the site, grown on ridges, mulched with film, and protected by rocker plantings.

Less demanding on heat cabbage of all kinds, root crops, parsley, celery, onion, garlic, lettuce, spinach, dill, peas, beans. Their seeds germinate at temperatures below 1 °C. These cultures grow well and develop at a temperature of 17–2 °C.

To winter-hardy vegetables plants include sorrel, rhubarb, horseradish, winter garlic, perennial onions. In plants of this group, growth begins at 1–2 C. Vegetative plants can tolerate frosts down to -1 °C. Being at rest, they easily overwinter in open ground. The optimum temperature for their growth and development is about 15–2 °C.

During the period of growth and development, the requirements for temperature conditions in vegetable crops change. So, during the swelling and germination of seeds, a higher temperature is needed, and when seedlings appear, a lower one. The need of plants for warmth during the day is also different. At night, the temperature should be 5-7 C lower than during the day. Temperate plants have numerous adaptations and mechanisms for prolonged exposure to cold and extreme temperature fluctuations. So, rhubarb, sorrel, onions deposit large reserves of nutrients in the underground organs, which help them withstand even severe frosts. But many crops, and especially heat-loving ones, are greatly harmed by spring and autumn frosts. Moreover, plants tolerate small, but long-term (several hours) frosts worse than short-term (up to 1 hour), but stronger ones. Most often, plants die after the end of frost, when the sun rises: not having time to thaw, they strongly evaporate moisture and become dehydrated. Therefore, the garden should be protected from frost.

When storing vegetables and fruits, a lower temperature is required - about 0 C, in order to slow down the processes of respiration and the breakdown of nutrients.

Light. Sunlight is the only source of energy for the process of photosynthesis. The need for lighting is determined by the species and varietal characteristics of plants, the vegetation phase, as well as the regime of other meteorological and soil-agrotechnical factors. The most crucial period in the life of plants is the emergence of seedlings. At this time, their need for light is the highest. With a lack of light, for example, due to planting density, the plants are strongly stretched and waste their energy unproductively.

In relation to the world vegetable plants are divided into very demanding(watermelon, melon, cucumber, pumpkin, pepper, tomato, vegetable beans, peas) that need prolonged intense lighting; less demanding(garlic, onion, table beets, carrots, cabbage); undemanding(lettuce, spinach, rhubarb).

For normal development, that is, for the passage of the phases of flowering and fruiting, plants need a certain length of daylight hours. On this basis, they are divided into three main groups.

To plants of short daylight hours include: tomatoes, eggplant, watermelon, melon, pepper, beans, zucchini, squash, pumpkin, varieties of cucumbers intended for outdoor cultivation. With a light day of less than 12 hours, they begin fruiting earlier and give a higher yield.

Plants with long daylight hours belong to root crops, cabbage, onions, garlic, green crops, some greenhouse varieties of cucumbers. They require more than 12 hours of daylight to flower and bear fruit, but they tolerate partial shade.

Neutral Day Plants grow equally well with both short and long days. This group includes some varieties of cucumber and tomato.

To achieve better illumination, it is necessary to correctly place the crops, choosing the optimal sowing or planting schemes, thin out and form plants in a timely manner, especially in greenhouses. By artificially increasing or reducing daylight hours, you can change the flowering time of vegetable crops and get a good quality crop. So, against the unwanted shooting of radishes, spinach, lettuce, a short day is specially created in the summer, for which, from 8 pm to 7–8 am, frames made of opaque materials are installed on the beds.

Water makes up 75-85% of the fresh weight of plants, and it is necessary to maintain cells in a state of turgor (filling). With a lack of water, the turgor weakens, and the plants wither. A huge amount of water is spent on the formation of roots, shoots, leaves, fruits and other plant organs. The main source of water for the plant is soil moisture. Water moves nutrients through the plants, and its evaporation regulates the temperature of the plants. Vegetable plants are very demanding on moisture. In different periods of growth and development, their exactingness to moisture is not the same.

Especially moisture-loving cabbage, cucumbers, turnip, radish, radish, lettuce, spinach.

The root system of these plants is poorly developed, and the leaves evaporate a lot of moisture.

Quite demanding moisture onion and garlic . Less moisture-loving tomato, carrot, parsley, beet, pea . Resistant to prolonged lack of water watermelon, melon, pumpkin, beans, corn.

However, excess moisture is harmful to all vegetable plants, since air is displaced from the soil and the roots begin to die. On waterlogged soils or when groundwater is close to standing, plants develop poorly, their productivity decreases sharply. The need for vegetable plants in moisture is not the same in different periods of growth. A lot of moisture is required for seed germination, as well as plants in seedling age. Plants in adulthood, and especially during the formation of productive organs, need less frequent, but plentiful watering.

When growing vegetables, the humidity of not only the soil, but also the air plays an important role. Cucumber, cabbage, beans develop better with high humidity.

WATERMELON comes from South Africa. It was brought to Russia by the Tatars and was originally cultivated on the Lower Volga. Currently, various varieties of watermelon are grown in Central Asia, in the Volga region, in Ukraine. However, when using film shelters and planting seedlings, good watermelons can also be grown in Belarus.

Watermelon is an annual plant with a long, creeping, highly branched stem covered with soft hairs. Leaves without stipules, long-petiolate, strongly pubescent when young, grey-green. Two to four separate tendrils develop from the leaf axils. Flowers yellow, monoecious.

On each plant, 4-6 spherical or oval fruits are tied on long, non-detachable stalks weighing from 2 to 25 kg. The pattern on the bark is green, but can be of different intensity. The color of the pulp varies from white to bright red and crimson. Watermelon fruits have good taste and medicinal properties, contain 10–12% sugar (almost half of it is sucrose), salts of calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, phosphorus, vitamins A, C. For an amateur gardener, early and mid-ripening varieties are of greatest interest watermelon: Skorospelka Kharkiv, Dessert 83, Chernosemyanny, Ogonyok, Tavrichesky, Stokes Kyiv, Rose of the Southeast, Astrakhan; for autumn consumption and winter storage in a sunny area, medium-late maturing varieties Melitopolsky 60 and Melitopolsky 142 are grown.

Watermelon grows well on light-textured soil, is thermophilic, develops relatively slowly and is very responsive to its predecessors, the best of which are peas, beans, potatoes, and corn. You can not place it after a cucumber, melon, pumpkin. In autumn, 2-3 kg / m 2 of humus and 45 g of ammonium nitrate, superphosphate and potassium chloride are added for deep digging. When watering, the dose of mineral fertilizers is doubled.

The largest seeds are selected for sowing, dried and heated for three to four hours at a temperature of 35–4 °C. Early watermelons are grown from potted seedlings at the age of 20–25 days, which are planted on May 15–20 under spunbond film shelters, and late-ripening ones are planted by sowing wetted seeds in late April - early May, when the threat of spring frosts has passed. Early-ripening varieties are sown with row spacing of 100 cm, late-ripening - 140 cm, and in a row at a distance of 70 cm.

Watermelons always succeed if the sowing of seeds and planting of plants is carried out in warm pits, 4 plants per pit. In sunny and well-protected plots, watermelons can be grown without insulated soil, but on cold nights, young plants need to be covered with foil, baskets lined with paper inside.

During the care of watermelons, particular importance is attached to fertilizing, loosening the soil, removing weeds, pinching and watering. Watermelon is the most drought-resistant plant, but at the same time it is very responsive to irrigation. During the period of growth of the main stem and leaves, watermelons require enhanced watering. Reduce watering during fruit ripening. With a slight drying of the soil, the fruits ripen quickly and become sugarier. The first top dressing is carried out 7-10 days after planting the seedlings, and the second and third - at intervals of 12-15 days. At the beginning of the formation of lashes, it is effective to feed the plants at the rate of 1 m 2: 10 g of ammonium nitrate and 15 g of superphosphate, diluted in 10 liters of water. A mixture of fertilizers is applied to moistened soil, followed by a slight flushing of the plants with clean water.

The fruits of watermelons are harvested as they ripen. Ripeness is determined by the drying of the tendril in the axil of the leaf near the stalk, the loss of the matte color of the surface of the fruit and the acquisition of shine, lightening the pattern and color of the fruit, and a dull sound when hit with a click. Productivity - 3-4 kg / m 2.

Watermelons are salted, honey (nardek) is boiled from them, jam and candied fruits are prepared from watermelon peels.

MELON - a very heat demanding plant. Only in the conditions of a warm sunny summer are tasty, sugary fruits formed. However, many melons can form fruits at low temperatures, but the sugar content of the fruits is significantly reduced. Melons grow well on light soils with a high enrichment with organic matter.

The main areas of melon cultivation are in the south, but summer varieties grow successfully in more northern regions. The plant is an annual. The stem is creeping, covered with stiff hairs. The leaves are long-petiolate, pubescent, simple antennae emerge from their axils. The flowers of most varieties are bisexual, bright yellow. 3-5 fruits are formed on the plant. In shape, depending on the variety, they are flattened, spherical, elliptical, ovoid, pear-shaped, color - white, yellow, green. The nutritional value of melons is high: they contain 6-13% sugar, potassium, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, vitamin C and carotene.

Melon varieties: Golden, Kazachka 244, Livadia, Novocherkasskaya 265, Early 133, Early Kharkov, Sagirskaya, Kolkhoznitsa 593,

Dessertnaya 5, Ukrainka 320, Amber, Gift, New Don, Tavria, Komsomolskaya Pravda 142.

Predecessors, tillage and fertilizers are the same as for watermelon. Melon is grown by sowing seeds in late April - early May with row spacing of 100–140 cm. In the middle lane, melons are mainly grown by planting potted seedlings, which, at the age of 25–30 days, are planted in the first half of May on insulated soil in the form of warm pits and film shelters. Seedlings are planted on unheated soil at the end of May (under film shelters). Care consists of loosening row spacing, breaking through plants in a row at a distance of 70 cm, watering and fertilizing. In addition to general methods of care after fruit set, plants pinch second-order shoots above the 4th-5th leaf. Melons need a sunny spot. The fruits are harvested as they ripen, selectively. Ripe melons are recognized by their aroma, the appearance of a yellow or yellowish-brown color of the fruit, the formation of a kind of net on them, and the stalk lagging behind the fruit. Late varieties ripen during storage, so they are harvested carefully with the stalk.

Melon fruits have great healing and dietary value. It is recommended to use melon for cardiovascular diseases, anemia, liver and kidney diseases, atherosclerosis. It has a calming effect on nervous system human, regulates the work of the stomach and intestines, relieves fatigue.

Melon is eaten in fresh, and also boil candied fruit, jam, jam, prepare compotes, mousses, juices.

Availability in melon juice various carbohydrates, nitrogenous and mineral substances makes it valuable for atherosclerosis, colds, disorders of the heart, respiratory organs, blood formation, and digestion. Melon juice is also used in cosmetics to remove age spots, acne and freckles.

PUMPKIN. It's about the queen of the garden - the pumpkin. Despite its impressive size, the pumpkin is considered a berry. From a botanical point of view, a pumpkin is a juicy fruit containing seeds inside. So it turns out that the largest berry in the world is a pumpkin. It was introduced into culture more than five thousand years ago by the inhabitants of Central and South America. They knew pumpkin and grew it in India, China, Ancient Egypt. Pumpkin was brought to Europe at the end of the 15th century. and immediately became a favorite vegetable. At present, it is widespread in almost all agricultural regions. the globe and has more than a thousand varieties. Due to the variety of species and forms, this amazing plant finds the widest application. Pumpkins are not only eaten, they are also used to make dishes for pickling lightly salted cucumbers, for storing bulk products, etc.

Pumpkin is an annual plant with a long creeping stem (up to 15 m), a powerful root system that allows it to extract moisture from the soil and endure temporary drought. The leaf surface reaches more than 30 m 2 per plant. Recently, bush forms of pumpkins have also been bred. The plant develops quite quickly, first leaves appear, then - male flowers, and after a few days - and women's. The pumpkin is pollinated by bees and bumblebees, but the wind is bad, because its pollen is heavy.

On the territory of our country, 3 types of pumpkins are common: hard-barked pumpkin, or ordinary, large-fruited pumpkin and nutmeg.

From varieties hard-barked gourd the most famous are: Gribovskaya, Gribovskaya bush, Almond, Mozolevskaya, Orange bush, Don sweet, Bush 39, Aria, Fantasia, Lel, Local yellow, Dnepropetrovsk bush, Ukrainian multiple, Belorussian, Belorussian angiosperm. A variety of hard-barked pumpkins are zucchini, squash, kruknek, etc. Hard-barked pumpkins have sharply cut, furrowed, prickly stems. The bark of ripe fruits is woody, difficult to cut with a knife. The flesh of the fruit is light orange and orange in color, fibrous. The seeds are creamy, with a pronounced rim.

Widely known varieties large-fruited pumpkin: Volga gray, Medicinal, Hundred-pound, Winter sweet, Radical, Dungan, Spanish, Marble, Plastunovskaya, Golden crown. They have a high yield. In large-fruited pumpkins, the stem is round, without grooves, the leaves are round-pentagonal or kidney-shaped. Fruits are dominated by a rounded shape, uniform color - green, orange, red, gray and various transitional colors. Seeds milky white, matte or brown.

Butternut squash: Carotene, Vitamin, Muscat, Kuban VK (high carotene). Since these varieties are late-ripening and thermophilic, they are cultivated mainly in Central Asia, Transcaucasia, Ukraine and southern regions of Russia. In nutmeg pumpkins, ripe fruits are pinkish-brown with a brown or dark orange tint, various shapes- from cylindrical to flattened. The pulp is always dense, bright orange. Seeds have a dirty yellow color. Nutmeg pumpkins surpass all other types of pumpkins in terms of carotene content in fruits.

The sweet pulp of the fruit, which has excellent taste, dietary and medicinal properties, is used for food. It contains: from 5-6 to 20% sugars, carotene, starch, vitamins C, B 1, B 2, PP, fiber, pectin, organic acids, salts of potassium, calcium, magnesium, iron, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin.

Pumpkin is a warm and light-loving culture. It is grown in well-warmed areas, protected from cold winds, light and medium in texture, not acidic, rich soils. The best predecessors for pumpkin are: early potatoes, root crops, tomatoes, legumes, cabbage, onions. You can place a pumpkin in the aisles of corn, bush beans, early potatoes, fodder and table beets, beans. The crop rotation period for pumpkin is 5–6 years. The culture favorably perceives the combined use of organic (6–8 kg) and mineral (20 g / m 2 nitrogen, phosphorus and 30 g / m 2 potassium) fertilizers. Manure and half the dose of phosphorus-potassium fertilizers are recommended to be applied in autumn for plowing. The rest of the fertilizer is applied in spring 2-3 days before pumpkin sowing. By this time, it is necessary to carry out a shallow cultivation (8-10 cm). Acidic light soils prepared for planting pumpkins are filled with 0.2-0.4 kg of calcium-containing substances in autumn, medium - 0.4-0.6 and heavy - 0.6-0.8 kg / m 2. It is more cold hardy than watermelon and melon, but less drought tolerant compared to them. It tolerates soil salinity, grows on almost any type of soil.

Pumpkin is sown when the soil warms up to 15-16 C.

For sowing, it is necessary to use seeds with 90% germination and with high energy germination. To disinfect from various types of infections and accelerate germination, they are treated with a 0.1% aqueous solution of potassium permanganate (1 g per 1 liter) for 4–5 hours.

For an earlier harvest, pumpkin can be grown in potted seedlings. Seedlings are ready for planting in the ground 20-25 days after emergence in the formation stage

2-3 true leaves.

Sowing seeds directly into the ground and planting seedlings is carried out when the soil warms up to 10–12 C and the danger of the return of May frosts has passed. On heavy, loamy soils, pumpkin is best grown on ridges or ridges 20–25 cm high. The seed sowing scheme is 140x140x200 cm (2–3 seeds per hole). The depth of planting on heavy soils is 3 cm, on light soils - 4 cm. In the phase of 1-2 true leaves, they are thinned out, leaving 1 plant in the hole for large-fruited pumpkin, 2 for hard-barked and nutmeg (after the appearance

3-4 leaves leave 1 plant each). Seedlings are planted two plants per hole, after which they are watered abundantly. When growing pumpkins by sowing seeds, the main stem of the pumpkin is pinched over 3-4 leaves. When caring for a pumpkin, the soil around the plant is loosened, weeds are weeded and watering is carried out, sometimes alternating them with top dressing with complete mineral fertilizers, mainly phosphate fertilizers. During the growing season, before the inter-row spacing is closed, it is enough to carry out 2–3 treatments with a cultivator. During the period of intensive growth, pumpkins oppress other vegetation, clearing the bed of weeds. At the end of the growing season, the resulting female flowers and the tops of young shoots are pinched.

A wide variety of dishes can be prepared from pumpkin. It is eaten steamed, boiled, fried and baked. Soup is made from pumpkin. In addition, various cereals and casseroles, candied fruits, jams, marmalade, blended juices are prepared from pumpkin, it is pickled. Juice is especially valued, as it provides the human body with all biologically active substances: vitamins, organic acids, proteins, sugars, macro- and microelements.

Pumpkin is also used in folk medicine. The pulp of the fruit has diuretic, weak choleretic and laxative properties. Pumpkin is indicated for patients with obesity, with kidney and liver disease, with impaired salt metabolism in the body. As a diuretic, a decoction of pumpkin cuttings is used.

Carbohydrates, trace elements, carotene, pectin substances are dissolved in the watery pulp of the pumpkin. Therefore, pumpkin juice is widely used in dietary nutrition for obesity, atherosclerosis, diseases of the stomach, heart, nervous system disorders, as an antiemetic for pregnant women. Juice from fresh pulp is useful for people suffering from insomnia at night. Raw pumpkin juice is taken 2-3 glasses a day. Pumpkin pulp - up to 3 kg per day. A decoction of pumpkin cuttings is prepared in the following way: 2 tbsp. spoons of fresh chopped pumpkin cuttings are poured with 2 cups of boiling water, boiled for 15 minutes, cooled, filtered. Take 1/2 cup 4 times a day. Pumpkin seed oil is obtained from pumpkin seeds for food and medicinal purposes. Pumpkin seed oil contains such valuable substances as tocopherols, sterols, carotenoids, phytosterols, unsaturated fatty acids, vitamins A, C, PP, E, which have a therapeutic effect in various pathologies. Pumpkin seed oil helps with inflammation of the prostate gland and its hypertrophy, with chronic diseases of the liver and stomach, cholecystitis. Pumpkin seeds have long been used to expel worms. In France, pumpkin seeds are used to produce the drug prostafin, intended for the treatment and prevention of prostatitis.

Harvest the pumpkin before the first autumn frosts, with drying and corking of the stalk. Before laying for storage, the fruits are separated from the plant with a knife along with the stalk and laid out under well-ventilated and sunlit canopies for 15–20 days. In storage, pumpkins are laid out on racks in a single layer and the temperature is maintained within 8-1 ° C and low humidity.

Zucchini distributed from northern regions to the tropics. It is believed that it was brought to us from Turkey and Greece. This is an annual plant of the gourd family, bush form, a kind of hard-barked pumpkin. The leaves are five-lobed, with thorny coarse pubescence. The fruits are cylindrical, with white or green bark.

Zucchini are valued for their medicinal properties. Their fruits contain vitamins C, PP, carbohydrates, proteins, fats, sugar, fiber, mineral salts (especially potassium). They have long been used in dietary nutrition for diseases of the vessels, heart and kidneys. They relieve swelling, improve metabolic processes, removing cholesterol and toxic substances from the body along with urine.

Young 7-12-day-old fruits (zelentsy) are used for food.

This crop is prolific and early ripening (vegetation period - 40-60 days). Demanding on heat, but compared to other pumpkins, this is the most cold-resistant plant. Zucchini grow very intensively and have a peculiar system of self-regulation of fruit formation. A plant never produces more fruit than it can "feed".

Seeds (remain viable for 5–8 years), begin to germinate at a temperature of 10–11 C, the most favorable temperature for growth and development is 22–25 C. At more high temperature(above 3 °C) the pollen becomes sterile and no ovary is formed. Seedlings appear 6–7 days after sowing. They are afraid of frost, but they tolerate a short-term cooling (up to 6-1 ° C).

They grow best in warm sunny places in the garden, they are very demanding on soil and mineral fertilizers, especially nitrogen. Acid and heavy clay soils are unsuitable.

The best predecessors are potatoes, cabbage, onions, green vegetables (do not plant after other pumpkins).

Since autumn, the soil is dug up to the depth of the arable layer and applied per 1 m 2: 5-10 kg of manure or compost, 30 g of superphosphate, 10 g of potassium chloride. In the spring, the soil is leveled with a rake, weeds are destroyed, and before sowing, they dig up and add 20 g / m 2 of ammonium nitrate.

For sowing, large, high-quality seeds are selected, which are soaked in hot water at a temperature of 45–5 ° C for 2–3 hours, and then kept in a 1% solution of potassium permanganate for 20 minutes, followed by washing with cold water. You can speed up the emergence of seedlings by germinating seeds.

Sowing is carried out in the 1st decade of May, and when using a film shelter - at the end of April. The sowing scheme is square-nested (60x60 or 70x70 cm). Sowing depth - 6–9 cm (on light soils) or 4–6 cm (on heavy soils). 400–500 g of humus are placed in each hole, mixed with soil and 2–3 seeds are lowered; if the soil is dry, 1–1.5 liters of water are first poured into it; after it is absorbed into the soil, put the seeds and sprinkle them on top with dry earth. After germination, the plants break through, leaving one at a time. To lengthen the harvest period, zucchini can be sown in 2–3 terms with an interval of 5–6 days. When the first true leaf appears, thin out, leaving one plant per hole.

To get earlier production, potted seedlings are planted at the age of 25–30 days.

Zucchini is high-yielding, but for growth and development it requires frequent deep loosening of row-spacings, abundant watering and fertilizing. Water it before fruiting after 6-7 days, and when the fruits appear - after 4-5 days. Zucchini - new type zucchini, a native of Italy. The plant is more powerful in development than an ordinary zucchini. The fruits are elongated, with a thickening towards the top. Coloration from light green to dark green with whitish stripes. fruit pulp medium density, specifically insipid taste, very tender. Agrotechnics of zucchini is the same as that of a regular zucchini.

SQUASH, or bowl gourd, - annual herbaceous plant gourd family, a variety of hard-barked gourd. They are prolific and demanding heat, light intensity. Grows well in light fertile neutral soils. It tastes like zucchini, inferior to it in precocity and yield, but surpasses zucchini in density, pulp and taste. Zelentsy with a diameter of no more than 15 cm (7-10-day ovary) is used for food, which contain sugar, vitamin C, fiber, pectin, mineral salts. The seeds have a lot of fat. In comparison with zucchini and pumpkins, squash has more dry matter, less sugar, no starch, lower energy value. The fiber contained in the fruits activates the activity of the intestines, which is important for older people. In addition, patissons improve the absorption of protein foods, prevent obesity, and maintain an alkaline blood reaction. Due to pectin substances and magnesium salts, excess cholesterol is excreted from the body, and the salts themselves stimulate urination. Therefore, people who are prone to fullness, patients with atherosclerosis, with impaired liver and kidney function, simply need to introduce squash into their diet.

Squash, like zucchini, in the conditions of the non-chernozem zone, it is better to grow seedlings. In the Non-Chernozem zone, such varieties of patissons as Belye 13, Skorospely are grown, the length of the growing season of which is 65–85 days. Plants of bush or semi-bush form, fruits are small, flattened, dish-shaped. By color, patissons are white, cream, yellow, golden, orange. The yield per plant is 15–20 ripe fruits weighing 50–70 g each.

Potted seedlings are used to obtain an earlier and higher yield. Seeds in late April - early May are sown in peat pots. The seeding depth is 2 cm. Seedlings are grown on well-lit window sills, moderately and infrequently watered with warm, settled water. Before planting in the ground (20–25 days), they are fed with urea (10 g per 10 l of water). By this time, they develop 2-3 leaves and a fairly voluminous root system. A few days before planting, seedlings are accustomed to lower temperatures, other lighting conditions, and air. Planted in open ground on June 5-10. The furrows are watered warm solution potassium permanganate or mullein solution (1:10), then dig holes 10-12 cm deep, up to 15 cm wide according to the 70x70 scheme. Plants are planted in holes (ground level should not be higher than the cotyledon leaves). A few peas of superphosphate and 2-3 tablespoons of ash are placed in each well.

During the growing season, 2-3 weeding and loosening, watering are carried out. warm water, if necessary - top dressing.

Squash is boiled, fried, stewed, marinated. Pickled patissons have a very pleasant taste.

KRUKNEKI - it is a bushy form of hard-barked gourd. The plant is low, with original fruits (pear-shaped or club-shaped), with a thin and curved end to the stalk. The color of the fruit is bright orange, the flesh is white, more dense than that of zucchini. In terms of taste, they are also superior to zucchini. Usually the mass of fruits is 300–500 g, but sometimes more. The pulp contains copper, potassium, complex phosphorus compounds. Crooknecks are very useful for atherosclerosis, anemia, and diseases of the kidneys and heart. They contribute to the removal of toxic substances and excess water from the body, and also prevent the absorption of cholesterol, and hence obesity.

Crooknecks are more thermophilic than zucchini, they do not tolerate changes in daily temperatures, so they should be covered with a film at night. You can also spread large boulders between plants. Then, heating up during the day, they will give their heat to the plants at night.

It is better to grow them seedlings and under the film. When planting seedlings in a permanent place, do not change the position of the plant in relation to the light. The reason is the biological characteristics of this plant. Their flowers open only in the evening, so to improve the ovaries, gardeners themselves will have to work for the bee. No more than 3-4 ovaries should be left on the bush at the same time.

It is better to eat young ovaries before the skin is hardened, otherwise it will have to be chopped with an ax. The ovaries need to be collected regularly 1-2 times a week, which contributes to the formation of new greens. Crooknecks are best eaten fresh, and caviar is the best dish.

During the growing season, weeding and loosening are carried out, watering with warm water, regular top dressing (it is better to alternate mineral with organic).

CAPERS. The fruits of this plant are rich in proteins, sugars, vitamins C and P. The buds contain pectin, potassium, calcium, and magnesium. Like seeds, they are high in fat. The flesh of a caper is similar to that of a watermelon. Young fruits and tops of shoots are salted and pickled like cucumbers, used as a seasoning for salads, saltworts, pickles, kidney dishes. Sometimes ripe fruits are eaten raw. Capers are widely used in folk medicine. It helps with headache and toothache, gum disease, rheumatism, scabies, tuberculosis, various tumors and ulcers. Capers prefer dry, well-lit places. Grows on heavy and not fertile soils, develops better on stony soils with deep groundwater. As with other perennials, the soil is dug up in autumn to the depth of a shovel bayonet. Compost or humus is applied to the poor (2-3 kg per 1 m 2). Seeds are sown in a square-nest way (70x70 cm) - several pieces per nest. Caper seeds germinate very poorly, they are distinguished by extended (for several years) germination.

As noted, capers can also be sown in the spring, but in this case, the seeds are stratified or treated in another way before sowing. For example, first they are immersed in boiling water for 30 seconds, after which they are cooled in cold (about 0 C) water for 20 minutes. Then the seeds are left for 1 day in a moist bag at room temperature, and then germinated at a temperature of 20–3 °C.

Plants of this group are equal to meat in terms of protein and carbohydrate content. In 1 kg of fresh legumes - 40-45 g of protein, 50-100 g of carbohydrates, about 2% fat, vitamins

A, B, B 2, C, PP, amino acids. Legume straw also contains an increased amount of protein and is a good animal feed.

PEA VEGETABLE- an annual plant of the legume family, with erect or climbing stems. Fruits are divided into sugar, semi-sugar and peeling fruits according to their structure. Seeds are of three types: transitional, round, brain.

Among vegetable crops, peas are the richest source of protein substances containing valuable amino acids: cystine, lysine, tryptophan, arginine, methionine. This plant has a lot of ascorbic acid, carotene, B vitamins and others, carbohydrates, fiber. Green peas are distinguished by their nutritional value, good taste, and digestibility. The nutritional value of peas is 1.5–2 times higher than that of potatoes and other vegetables, in addition, peas are rich in potassium, phosphorus, iron and calcium salts. Peas are of no small importance in agricultural technology as an accumulator of nitrogen in the soil with the help of nodule bacteria.

Peas develop well on sandy and loamy soil, loose, rich in nutrients. Sowing early, as it is one of the most cold-resistant vegetable crops. Seeds (remain viable for 6–8 years) germinate at 1–2 C (varieties with smooth seeds) and 4–8 C (brain varieties). Shoots of smooth-grained varieties withstand frosts down to -7 C. The optimum temperature for seed germination and subsequent plant growth is 16–2 °C. Row spacing - 25 cm, in a row - 10 cm, seeding depth - 5–6 cm. ammonium nitrate and potassium chloride. Feeding is repeated after 2-3 weeks. Care consists of loosening, removing weeds, watering. Peas are especially demanding on moisture, but suffer from both excessive moisture and drought.

Responds positively to a long day. In most of its varieties, the growing season when grown in the southern regions is longer than in the north, and when grown on a short 10-hour day, the plants of some varieties do not even bloom.

BEANS - annual vegetable crop. Green beans (shoulders) and mature seeds are eaten. Beans are rich in proteins, similar in composition to animal proteins, and in quality - to dietary chicken eggs.

Unripe beans are highly nutritious: they contain glucotanin, a substance similar in its action to insulin. The shoulder blades contain proteins, sugar, vitamins C, B 1, B 2, A, amino acids - tryptophan, lysine, arginine, tyrosine, methionine. A decoction of dried bean leaves is used for kidney disease as a diuretic, externally - against allergies.

Beans are heat demanding. Seeds (remain viable for 5-6 years) begin to germinate at a temperature of 10-12 C, the optimum temperature for germination is 20-22 C.

Seedlings that appear after 5–7 days are very sensitive to spring frosts, they cannot withstand even a slight sub-zero temperature. Mature plants can withstand short light frosts. The optimum temperature for plant growth and development is 20–25 C.

Beans are demanding on soil and air moisture, but do not tolerate stagnant moisture. Refers to plants of a short day (only some varieties are neutral to its duration); demanding of the world.

Of all legumes, beans are the most demanding on soil fertility. Grows best in warm, sandy, lime-rich soils. Cold heavy clay soils with an acidic reaction are unsuitable, as well as waterlogged and soils with a high level of groundwater.

Good predecessors are cabbage, cucumbers, potatoes, root crops and gourds.

Beans cannot be grown in the same area earlier than 3-4 years later.

Autumn tillage includes deep digging of 25–30 cm with the simultaneous application of 30 g of superphosphate and 20 g of potassium salt per 1 m 2. In spring, the soil is loosened and dug up twice - first to a depth of 13–15 cm 5–7 days after loosening, then to 6–8 cm before sowing. Before sowing, 5-10 g/m 2 of ammonium nitrate and microfertilizers are applied.

Seeds are soaked before sowing (for 1-2 days) in a warm pink solution of potassium permanganate. Sow in 2 terms - in late May - early June and after 7-10 days. Sowing method - ordinary. When cultivating bush forms, the row spacing is 30–45 cm, the distance between plants in a row is 12–15 cm. When growing curly beans, the distance between plants in a row can be 8–10 cm, and the row spacing is 40–45 cm. – 2–5 cm, depending on the mechanical composition of the soil (deeper on light soils).

Crop care aims to keep the soil loose and free from weeds.

After the emergence of seedlings, the aisles and rows are periodically loosened.

Watering is carried out both during the period of growth and during the period of fruiting.

When growing curly and semi-curly beans, supports are used.

BLACK EYED PEAS, or cowpea, is becoming more and more common among gardeners. For all its unpretentiousness to growing conditions, it has a number of requirements that distinguish the agricultural technology of its cultivation from the agricultural technology of growing ordinary beans.

We sow cowpea at the same place no earlier than in 3–4 years. The best predecessors are cucumbers, cabbage, tomatoes, potatoes. Since autumn, the soil is filled with organic fertilizer (0.5–1 bucket of humus or compost per 1 m 2), in the spring we apply mineral fertilizers: 30 g of superphosphate and 10–20 g of urea per 1 m 2. Before sowing, cowpea seeds are kept for 20 minutes in a strong solution of potassium permanganate, then thoroughly washed with water. Can be sown with both dry and wet seeds. The soil is desirable moist.

Vigna is a heat-loving plant, its seeds are sown when the soil at a depth of 10–12 cm warms up to 15–17. Seedlings are not only very sensitive to frost, but also do not tolerate short-term drops in temperature. Seeds are planted to a depth of 4-6 cm, with intervals between plants - 60-70 cm, between rows - 80 cm.

This plant needs support. Therefore, it is grown together with corn and other tall crops. Care comes down to regular weeding, loosening, and, if necessary, watering (after the appearance of the first ovaries). Unripe fruits are harvested at the time when the seeds do not yet exceed the size of a wheat grain. Young shoulder blades are the most juicy, with pulp filling the entire space between the valves. Well-ripened beans are removed for grain (seeds).

VEGETABLE BEANS- one of the oldest vegetable crops. Its dry fruits contain 29-35% protein, unripe ones also contain vitamins B 1, B 2, C, mineral salts, carbohydrates, amino acids - lysine, arginine, histidine, methionine.

Green fruits are used for food, which in terms of protein content significantly exceed beans per shoulder and green peas. Beans are used to prepare side dishes, first and second courses, and canned. They are recommended for use in diseases of the intestines, kidneys, liver. However, it should be remembered that insufficiently cooked fruits contain a toxic substance that is completely destroyed during prolonged heat treatment.

Beans are cold-resistant and moisture-loving plants. Grow well in loose, permeable, fertile soil. Beans are grown in their pure form, as well as as a rock culture in crops of cucumber, melon, watermelon. Soil preparation is the same as for peas.

They are sown in early spring in a two-line tape method with a distance between plants in a row of 15–20 cm, between rows - 20 cm and between tapes - 45 cm, as well as in a wide row according to the scheme 45x45x20 cm. The seeding depth is 6–8 cm. The optimum temperature for growth and development of fruits - 15–2 ° C. Shoots can tolerate frosts down to -4. It is necessary to timely carry out weeding, loosening the soil, watering and fertilizing with mineral and organic fertilizers.

Beans grow well on loose permeable fertile soil.

Beans ripen gradually, so the harvest is carried out in several steps. The yield of beans is 2–3 kg / m 2.

Varieties of vegetable beans: Windsor green, Russian black, Windsor white. Fodder beans are also grown: Pikulovitsky, Uladovsky violet, Khmelnytsky local and Khorostovsky, Brown, Banilevsky local.

Cabbage is a very ancient culture. It is widely used in cooking and as a raw material for pickling and canning. Cabbage contains a large amount of valuable easily digestible proteins, various mineral salts, vitamins A, B 1, B 2, PP, E, biotin, folic and pantothenic acids, choline, a large amount of carbohydrates, essential oils. Cabbage juice contains a lot of vitamins U and C. In folk medicine, it is used for indigestion, scurvy and for the treatment of abscesses. White cabbage is the most common, but cauliflower, red cabbage, Savoy, Brussels sprouts and broccoli are distinguished by their dietary and taste properties.

WHITE CABBAGE– biennial plant, light-loving. According to the maturation period, it is divided into early-ripening, medium-early, medium-late and late-ripening. The most favorable temperature for its growth is 15–17 C. Hardened seedlings of cabbage can withstand temperatures as low as 5 C, and mature plant- up to 8 C. Cabbage can be grown on any soil, except for sandy ones. Can get it high yields on fertile loamy and peat-bog soils, but not on acidic and waterlogged ones. The soil in the area intended for cabbage should be loose, rich in humus. Due to the risk of disease, it is recommended to change the site annually. Cabbage is demanding on moisture, but at the same time it does not tolerate prolonged waterlogging. Very responsive to the application of organic and mineral fertilizers. In autumn, 5–6 kg / m 2 of manure or compost is brought in for digging. The amount of manure can be increased up to 10 kg/m2. Peat is best kept in compost, but not applied in its pure form. For early-ripening and mid-early varieties of cabbage planted in early spring, it is better to apply phosphorus-potassium fertilizers in the fall for digging, and nitrogen fertilizers in the spring when preparing the soil. Approximate doses: superphosphate - 20-30 g / m 2, potassium chloride - 10-20 g / m 2, ammonium nitrate - 20-25 g / m 2. Doses of mineral fertilizers can be increased by 50% for medium-late and late-ripening varieties of white cabbage. Early-ripening varieties are planted with seedlings in April, as soon as the soil can be cultivated, and late-ripening - at the end of May. Care consists of loosening, removing weeds, watering, fertilizing. Established seedlings need to be watered especially often. Watering is considered correct when the stick, when pressed, easily enters the ground (between rows and rows) to a depth of 60–70 cm. mullein (1:10). The first top dressing can be carried out 2 weeks after planting the seedlings (at the rate of 1 bucket of solution per 10 plants), the second - at the stage of head formation, the third - 20–25 days after the second. After irrigation, the row spacing is loosened and the plants are spudded, which makes it possible to form an additional root system on the stump and thereby improve the nutrition system and increase the yield.

The primary task of the gardener is the systematic fight against various pests that affect cabbage. The greatest harm is caused by cabbage fly larvae, cruciferous fleas, butterfly caterpillars, leaf beetles and their larvae, slugs, and aphids.

Harvest early-ripening and mid-early cabbage as the heads of cabbage ripen (when they become dense), and medium-late and late-ripening - from October until the onset of frost.

Cabbage is a staple food useful to humans. Sauerkraut and pickled cabbage improve digestion and increase the digestibility of other foods.

Cabbage juice helps heal stomach ulcers. Juice contains a special vitamin U, helps to cure stomach and intestinal ulcers. Cabbage is useful for heart diseases and as a general tonic. White cabbage juice helps to quickly lose weight and cleanse the body. It is effective to drink it before meals. Numerous additional studies have again confirmed that cabbage juice is well tolerated and has a healing effect due to the anti-ulcus factor, which has a special protective effect on the gastric and intestinal mucosa. This substance is also found in other green plants, but most of all it is in cabbage. Drink daily 5-6 glasses in 3-4 doses 1 hour before meals. Fresh juice promotes scarring of ulcers and rather quickly improves the condition of patients suffering from peptic ulcer of the stomach and intestines. It is also useful for gastritis with low acidity of gastric juice, cholecystitis, promotes the excretion of cholesterol from the body, which is important for the prevention of atherosclerosis, accelerates the growth of children and adolescents, and has a detrimental effect on many microorganisms. Unfortunately, the special “anti-ulcer” vitamin contained in cabbage leaves is very unstable and therefore it is not recommended to harvest it for more than 1-2 days. There is dry cabbage juice, which allows you to save all the valuable substances. 1-2 teaspoons of this powder, dissolved in a glass of water, reproduce all the healing properties of a fresh plant. Among 59 types of vegetables and fruits, the most active antimutagens were found in fresh cabbage juice, although the chemical nature of these substances is still unclear. Cabbage juice is antiallergic. It well neutralizes possible diathesis reactions of orange and tangerine juices. By the way, if you give your child one tablespoon of cabbage juice on an empty stomach, any form of diathesis will disappear.

Juice is stored in the refrigerator for no more than one day, as it acquires an unpleasant odor.

RED CABBAGE- a biennial plant of the cabbage family, a vegetable crop. It belongs to the same species as white cabbage, but unlike it, it has a red-violet color of heads. Contains a large amount of vitamins B 1 , B 2 , B 6 . It is used for food mainly fresh, but it can also be pickled.

Compared to white cabbage, red cabbage is less productive, but more cold-resistant. Its seeds germinate at a temperature of 2–3 C. It is more demanding on soil fertility. Very responsive to the application of organic and mineral fertilizers.

Grow seedlings. Seed preparation, planting seedlings, plant care and other agricultural practices are the same as for white cabbage. Removed in one go. Heads of cabbage have good keeping quality during storage.

CABBAGE KOLRABI- a biennial plant of the cabbage family, cultivated as an annual vegetable crop. The stem is used as food (the spherical base of the stem). The stem contains proteins, sugar, mineral salts, as well as vitamins (vitamin C is more than in all other types of cabbage). It tastes like a cabbage stalk, but much sweeter and juicier.

It is more sensitive to low temperatures than white cabbage, otherwise their requirements for environmental conditions are similar. This early ripening crop produces a crop already 8 weeks after sowing. Grown by seedlings and sowing seeds in the ground. Seedlings are grown in the same way as white cabbage seedlings. It is planted in the ground after 30-35 days (at the end of April - beginning of May). The distance between rows is 70 cm, between plants in a row is 20–25 cm. Seeds are sown in open ground in the 1st decade of May. Subsequent crops are carried out at monthly intervals. Sow to a depth of 1.5–2 cm. The seeds are laid out in a row after 3–4 cm. After the appearance of the 1st true leaf, the seedlings are thinned out, leaving 15–20 cm between plants.

Care in the same way as for white cabbage.

They are harvested when the stems reach a diameter of 7–8 cm. Overripe stems become rough and lose their nutritional value. The keeping quality of kohlrabi is average. Shelf life - up to 2 months.

CABBAGE is an annual lettuce plant of the cabbage family. Leaves or heads of cabbage are used for food, mostly fresh. The leaves contain protein, carbohydrates, pectin, mineral salts and vitamins.

Early maturing and cold-resistant culture. In the open ground, it forms marketable leaves 40–50 days after sowing, forms heads of cabbage in 60–80 days. The optimum temperature for growth and development is 15–22 C. Shade resistant. In hot weather, it quickly forms flowering stems.

It grows well only on fertile soils. In autumn, it is recommended to apply phosphorus-potassium fertilizers for digging: 20–25 g / m 2 superphosphate and 10–15 g / m 2 potassium chloride.

In the spring, 15 g / m 2 of ammonium nitrate are added.

In open ground, Beijing cabbage is sown several times a day. different dates. Immediately after the spring digging, the first sowing is carried out, the subsequent ones - 10-15 days after the emergence of shoots of the previous one. The last sowing dates are from July 20 to August 10.

In the hot period, sowing is not carried out, since the plant prematurely forms flower stalks, without forming not only heads of cabbage, but also leaves. Seeds are not soaked before sowing, they are sown in moist soil to a depth of 0.5–1.5 cm.

Distance between rows - 18-20 cm, between plants in a row - 10-12 cm.

Plant care includes weeding, loosening row spacings, regular watering, fertilizing, disease and pest control.

CAULIFLOWER is an annual plant of the cabbage family. Valued for early maturity, high taste and dietary qualities. It contains many vitamins and mineral salts. Heads (modified inflorescences) are used for food.

In general, it is not demanding on heat, but it is less resistant to low temperatures than white cabbage. The optimum temperature for the formation of large heads is 15–18 C. In hot weather (above 25 C) and lack of moisture, small and loose heads form.

Demanding for lighting in the seedling phase. When shading, the formation of the head is delayed. With a long light day, the heads form faster, but also quickly loosen. More dense heads are formed in conditions of shortened daylight hours.

Grows well in fertile soils. The nutrient requirement of cauliflower is twice that of white cabbage. In addition to basic fertilizers, it must be fed with boron, molybdenum, magnesium and manganese.

It is grown both in seedlings and by sowing seeds on a bed under a film.

Seedlings are grown in the same way as white cabbage seedlings.

RADISH. Vegetable growers call radish a cold-resistant crop, because its seeds germinate already at 4–5 C. Under the film, radish seedlings endure a temporary drop in temperature to +1–2 C. In general, radishes are more sensitive to exceeding optimal temperatures than to understating them; in the first case, it has an increased formation of leaves due to the root crop.

Grow radishes in early spring before sowing in the area of ​​later crops or together with other vegetables. It is very convenient to sow radishes in the same row as carrots, as radishes quickly sprout and point to the carrot row. This helps with weeding between rows.

Most often, radishes are sown in the garden in rows with a distance of 15-20 cm from each other, and in a row - 2.5-3 cm between seeds.

To get an early radish, we recommend covering the bed with spunbond or perforated film, with at least 100 slots per 1 m 2. By covering the bed with crops with a film with 1.8 mm slots, you create a barrier against the raid of the cabbage butterfly, the larvae of which breed in the coarsened trunk of the radish. Covering crops with spunbond also protects them from the most dangerous radish pest - the cruciferous flea.

Soil moisture is maintained within 60–70%. Adjust its frequency and duration of watering. Water in clear weather in the morning. Be careful when watering radishes in early spring, when plant evaporation is low and the soil can easily become waterlogged. In hot sunny weather, especially during the period of strong growth and fruiting, take the watering can more often, but do not forget that when high humidity Soil root crops are affected by bacteria and fungi.

Harvest radishes selectively. Store root vegetables in plastic bags in the refrigerator. Shelf life - up to 35 days depending on the variety. Radish is extremely poorly stored, the first radish, in bunches, is even advised to collect early in the morning, in the chill, so that it does not wilt by dinner. Two - three days after harvest - and no presentation.

TURNIP- a biennial plant of the cabbage family, a root vegetable crop. Root crops contain vitamins B 1, B 2, C, PP, carotene (in varieties with yellow flesh), sugars, proteins, mineral salts and mustard oil, which gives turnips a specific taste and peculiar smell.

Cold-resistant, early maturing plant of a long day. Seeds remain viable for 4–5 years, begin to germinate at a temperature of 2–3 C. Seedlings appear after 3–5 days, they easily tolerate temperature drops to -1 C (adult plants - to -4 C).

Too long daylight hours and prolonged temperature drops contribute to the formation of flower stalks in the first year of vegetation. Fertile sandy and loamy soils with an acidity of 6.0–6.9 are most favorable for cultivation. This plant is responsive to mineral nutrition and moderate soil moisture, sensitive to sulfur content in the soil (during sulfate starvation, the shoots quickly turn yellow).

With a lack of soil fertility, moisture, violations of the light regime, low-quality roots are formed, bitter in taste. Twisted, ugly root crops grow on freshly fertilized soil, so it is better to apply manure under the previous crop. If it was not possible to make it under the predecessor, humus or compost can be made in the fall.

RADISH is grown exclusively in open ground. This is a cold-resistant culture, demanding on soil moisture and lighting conditions. Seeds remain viable for 4–5 years, germinate at 2–3 C; seedlings tolerate short-term frosts down to -3-4 C, and adult plants - up to -5-6 C. With a lack of soil moisture, they become hard. Radish is a long day plant. Under unfavorable conditions (non-observance of sowing dates, prolonged cold spring, hot dry summer, dense seedlings), a large number of flowering plants appear in radish crops that do not form a root crop. They need to be removed. All vegetable crops, except for plants of the cabbage family, can be the predecessors of radish. Under summer varieties, 3–4 kg / m 2 of manure or compost are introduced into infertile soil in autumn, 20–25 g / m 2 of superphosphate and 25–30 g / m 2 of potassium chloride are added to fertile soil. In the spring, before sowing, 30–40 g / m 2 of ammonium nitrate are applied. Summer varieties are sown in late April - early May (or late May - early June), autumn and winter varieties - in the summer, not earlier than mid-June (the optimal time is the 1st decade of June). Sowing is carried out with row spacing of 45 cm. Seeds can be dry or germinated. Sow 2-3 seeds per nest. The depth of seed placement during spring sowing is 1.5–2 cm, during summer sowing it is 3 cm. Seedlings appear after 5–6 days. During the growing season, row spacing is loosened (2–3 times), weeding, thinning in the phase of 1–2 true leaves, watering (15–20 l / m 2, 3–4 times), as well as pest and disease control.

Root crops are used for food, which contain up to 6% sugar, calcium, potassium, magnesium, iron, sodium, phosphorus, sulfur, nicotinic acid, various vitamins, fats and enzymes. Radish stimulates the secretion of gastric juice, promotes the excretion of cholesterol from the body. It is especially valued for the presence of a rare essential oil.

Radish juice is recommended for bronchitis, coughs, and especially for kidney stones, urinary and gall bladders, flatulence. Locally, the most painful places are rubbed with radish juice in case of neuralgia, sciatica, and sciatica. In some cases, the juice is used for eczema, but it is better for this purpose to use gruel from radish seeds, mixed with a small amount of water, in the form of poultices on the affected skin. Radish seeds have antimicrobial and antifungal activity. Radish is considered a good remedy for frostbite. The juice is released easily, but quickly loses its medicinal properties, so it is consumed fresh. Take one tablespoon 3 times a day before meals, children - one teaspoon. Radish juice with honey is very popular. Mix the resulting juice with an equal amount of honey (preferably mixed herbs). Consume as prophylactic to prevent the formation of stones in the gallbladder and kidneys, to prevent atherosclerosis. Start taking with half a glass, bringing this amount to two glasses a day. Take at least 10 days. Radish juice also helps very well when applied externally for rubbing diseased joints with rheumatism and gout, to accelerate the healing of wounds and ulcers. In everyday life, this technique is often used to extract juice: a hole is hollowed out in a whole radish, where sugar or honey is placed. After the root vegetable releases juice, it is drained and drunk 3-4 teaspoons a day.

SWEDE- This is a biennial, cross-pollinated, heat-undemanding plant. Because of this, it is widely cultivated in the northern regions.

Like all table root crops of this family, rutabaga is placed in the fruit shift after cucumbers, tomatoes, early potatoes, and onions. Grow up with early spring sowing of seeds for seedlings or directly into the ground. For winter storage, sown in June. Vegetation period - 110-130 days.

Grow in a seedless and seedling way. High yields are obtained on well-filled organic (4 kg / m 2 rotted manure or compost) and mineral fertilizers (15–20 g / m 2 ammonium nitrate, 20–30 g / m 2 superphosphate and 15 g / m 2 potassium chloride) soil . On acidic soils, lime is added to avoid keel damage. Seedlings are 35 days old. In the middle lane, you can plant until July 1. 3 g of seeds are required per 10 m 2 - up to 9 plants per 1 m 2. Seeding depth - 2–3 cm. Seeding (planting) scheme - single line, row spacing - 45 or 60 cm, distance between plants - 20 cm.

Care - usual for table root crops: post-emergence watering, struggle with soil crust, inter-row loosening, in dry weather one or two waterings during the growing period.

Used fresh, boiled and fried. Used for prefabricated vegetable, vegetarian, meat soups and stews.

Harvesting is carried out selectively before the onset of frost.

CARROT is a biennial vegetable plant, known to man with ancient times. Seeds are obtained in the second year. In order to grow the seeds ourselves, from the fall, healthy, most characteristic for this variety in color, shape and color, root crops are selected. It is better to take medium, with a small head. Tall, strongly branching plants grow from large ones, and from small ones, weighing up to 50 g, single-stemmed seed plants are formed, producing few seeds.

The testes are harvested in the phase of full harvesting ripeness. If this is not possible, then cleaning begins when the umbrellas become light brown in color. For sowing, it is better to take seeds from the central umbrella and umbrellas of the 1st order.

Soil cultivation for sowing begins in the fall: they dig it to the full depth and, if necessary, lime it, since this crop grows better on neutral soils at pH 7.5. For this root crop, humus-rich, medium-sized sandy soils are suitable. In the old days, gardeners said: “She loves sandy soil, on which she will be born smoother and tastier, and will not so much grow into tops, but on black soil she will let grass out more than her root.” He does not like stony and freshly fertilized soils: ugly, branched root crops grow on them.

Carrot seeds are very small, have low germination and germinate slowly, so they must be sown early in moist, weed-free soil. Carrots are not demanding on soil moisture, but give high yields when irrigated. When dry weather changes to wet and uneven watering, the roots of carrots crack.

Carrots are of great nutritional importance: they contain salts of potassium, calcium, phosphorus, iron, magnesium and 6-12% carbohydrates. Root crops are also rich in carotene and vitamins C, B 1, B 2, B 6, PP, H, E, K. They are eaten both raw and boiled, as a seasoning and raw material for the production of carrot juice, as well as in canning industry.

Carrot juice contains a lot of carotene and vitamin A, as well as calcium, phosphorus and iron, due to which it is considered almost an elixir of youth. Carrot juice improves appetite and digestion, strengthens teeth as well as the nervous system, increases the body's resistance to infectious diseases and is unparalleled in increasing tone. But they should not be abused, because due to an excess of carotene, the skin of the face may acquire a yellowish tint. Carrot juice contains a whole pantry of useful substances, especially carotenoids, which are converted in our body into vitamin A. It improves immunity and strengthens nerves, as well as vision. Carrot juice treats eyes, inflammatory processes in the oral cavity, runny nose. Carrot juice is rich in carotene, a significant amount of iron, cobalt, copper, improves metabolism, promotes blood formation and oxygen supply to organs and tissues. Carrot juice is prescribed for cardiac disorders, eye diseases, inflammatory processes in the oral cavity, colds, lack of milk in lactating women. Often this drink is taken as a diuretic and promotes the removal of stones from the bladder, for which doctors advise drinking it 1 tablespoon 3-4 times a day. In general, carrot juice can be drunk daily up to 500 g or more. It is only necessary that it be fresh, with preserved biologically active substances. Carrot juice supports eyesight, cleanses the skin, mucous membranes of the respiratory and digestive tracts; an excess of carrot juice is not recommended for women with a weakened liver.

Carrot juice is useful for anemia, increases the body's resistance to colds. This product is necessary for people with impaired vision, dry skin. It is used for exacerbation of peptic ulcer, in diets for myocardial infarction, cholelithiasis. Carrots do not contribute to flatulence.

KOZELETS (SCORZONERA) is a black sweet root. It was first cultivated 300 years ago by the Spaniards. Scorzonera belongs to the Asteraceae family. It forms a long, conical brown or dark brown root. This vegetable is very nutritious and healthy. It tastes like a walnut. It contains insulin and is recommended for diabetics.

Scorzonera is a perennial, in the first year of life it forms a simple taproot and a rosette of leaves, and the next year a flower arrow grows with an inflorescence-basket of reed yellow, purple or reddish flowers with a vanilla smell. Subsequently, fruits are formed - seeds with a fly of feathery hairs.

Sunny areas with fertile, if possible, light soils should be taken under the black root. It is not recommended to apply fresh manure, it causes branching of the root, due to which the presentation is lost. The main fertilizer is applied in the fall (20 g of superphosphate, 15–20 g / m 2 of potassium salt). Nitrogen is applied in three doses: the first time - after germination, the second time - in mid-July, the third - in the second half of August. With each top dressing, it is applied at 5 g / m 2.

The black root has a long growing season, so its seeds are sown in early April. However, if you do not have time, you can do it at the end of the summer. Then the harvest is harvested the next year, although often overwintered plants bloom prematurely.

Seeds are not subject to long-term storage, they quickly lose their germination. They are sown in grooves, which are placed at a distance of 15–25 cm from each other. Embedding depth - 1-2 cm. Shoots will appear in two weeks. If necessary, thin them out. At the beginning, 3–5 cm are left between plants, and then 12–15 cm. Thickened crops do not give a good result. Care techniques are the same as for other cultures.

The root begins to grow in late summer. They start harvesting in late autumn or spring, trying not to damage the root, otherwise it will lose the white milky juice, which gives it a sharp and piquant taste.

The best place to store scorzonera is in a cold cellar. Unwashed roots are tied into bundles and must be added dropwise in wet sand in an upright position. If there is no cellar, they can be buried on the ridge, covered with a 20-centimeter layer of leaves.

This culture is suitable for distillation. The roots left for the winter begin to grow in early spring. The beds are sprinkled so that the layer of earth is 15 cm. When the growth point appears on the surface of the soil roller, the earth is raked from the plants, exposing young shoots. You can engage in distillation without hilling, then the shoots turn out green, they are worse in taste than bleached ones. For cultivation in our conditions, we can recommend the following varieties: Ordinary, Russian giant, Volcano, One-year gigantic, Black Peter, Black Lisa.

Dishes from scorzonera are prepared in the same way as from cauliflower. The boiled root is fried and served as a side dish or added to soups.

"VEGETABLE OYSTER" - a very valuable plant similar to scorzonera. This is a goat's beard, or white oat root, an ancient South European vegetable crop. She hails from the Mediterranean. Root vegetables are light in color and taste like fish or oysters. Sometimes this plant is called "vegetable oyster". The technology for growing and preparing white oat root is the same as that of scorzonera.

SALAD ranks first in calcium content, second, after spinach, in minerals in general. Has a complete set of vitamins. Absolute superiority in vitamins E and K among vegetables.

And it even becomes a shame that lettuce is not widely spread in our country. Before we continue to praise, let's say for certainty that we are talking only about lettuce, the most popular among salad vegetables. Of its five varieties, three are grown here: leaf, head, Roman (aka romaine), and, which is very pleasant, more and more are grown every year.

Leaf lettuce is the earliest, yields one hundred centners per hectare, head lettuce is the most common, with crispy or slightly oily leaves collected in heads, it is twice as productive as leaf lettuce, and romaine is four times more productive. Only ripens late, by autumn. But with skillful handling, its oblong heads of cabbage are stored until the winter.

Lettuce differs from other leafy vegetables in its keeping quality. True, the leaves plucked in the morning look good only until next day, but if they are cooled and kept in polyethylene, then they will last for several days, and heads of cabbage - for several weeks.

Lettuce is a cold-resistant plant of a long day. Demanding on nutritional conditions and providing moisture, in case of drought it quickly switches to stalking. It grows well on fertile, cultivated soils that have a slightly acidic or neutral reaction. Before sowing, the soil is dug up and fertilizers are applied.

Lettuce seeds are sown in the ground from mid-April to the end of August with an interval of 10-15 days. Sow in furrows to a depth of 1–1.5 cm.

Head lettuce is grown both by seedlings and by sowing seeds in the ground. To obtain seedlings, seeds are sown at the end of March in seed boxes or greenhouses to a depth of 0.5 cm. Seedlings are planted at the end of April. Seeds are sown in the ground at different times: early ripening varieties - from April 10–15 to May 10; mid-season and late - from April 15 to June 15. Seed sowing depth - 1-2 cm.

Romaine lettuce is grown both outdoors and indoors. In protected ground, seeds are sown from late February to mid-June. For seedlings, seeds are sown on March 10-15. Seedlings are planted at the end of April. Sowing seeds in the ground is carried out from the end of April, at several times, until mid-July. The depth of seed placement is 0.5–1 cm.

Caring for crops of all varieties of lettuce: loosening row spacings, weeding, if necessary, thinning, watering in dry weather, if necessary, in the two-leaf phase, ammonium nitrate (10–15 g / m 2) is fertilized.

CRESS SALAD- an annual plant of the cabbage family, a green vegetable crop. Fresh leaves with a tart taste are used for food, containing a large amount of ascorbic acid, carotene, rutin, B vitamins, as well as mineral salts, etc.

Early maturing, cold-resistant, light and moisture-loving plant. Seeds (remain viable for 3-4 years) germinate 2-3 days after sowing, after 2-3 weeks the leaves can be removed.

It grows on any soil, but light, fertile ones are better suited. Best grown in shady, moist areas. AT summer months at high temperatures, it quickly forms flowering stems, the leaves become coarse, so watercress should be sown in early spring (from April 20–25) or in the 2nd half of summer, with multiple crops - every 7-10 days.

For summer crops, it is better to use late varieties that are resistant to premature stemming.

Grow watercress in high beds (12–14 cm). Before each sowing, the bed is dug up. For 1 m 2, 1 glass of ash and 1 tablespoon of nitrophoska are added. Seeds are sown in moist soil to a depth of 0.5–1 cm in an ordinary way with row spacing of 12–15 cm. During the growing season, row spacing is loosened and regular watering is carried out. Harvest watercress 2-3 weeks after germination (depending on variety).

SPINACH. Spinach is a green vegetable crop. Its leaves contain a large number of various vitamins, nitrogenous substances, folic acid, etc. The rosette leaves of young plants are used as food.

Cold hardy plant. Seeds germinate at 4 C, withstand frosts down to -8 -1 °C. Grows well in fertile, well-drained, non-acidic soils. At temperatures above 2 ° C, a long day and a lack of moisture, it forms flower-bearing stems, the leaves coarsen. Responsive to fertilization, however, an excess amount of organic fertilizers leads to the accumulation of nitrates in the leaves.

Sow at several times. Most early harvests obtained during winter crops - from mid-August to mid-September. Before winter, they are sown in November, before the onset of stable frosts, so that the seeds do not have time to germinate. Spring-summer crops are carried out from late April to mid-August with an interval of 2-3 weeks. The most productive crops are in early spring and late July - early August.

SORREL- a perennial plant of the buckwheat family, a green vegetable crop. Valued for its pleasant taste and as an early green crop rich in vitamins

Sorrel is a cold-resistant plant, easily tolerates spring frosts, seeds germinate at a temperature of 2–3 C. Grows well on moist, slightly acidic soils. Responsive to the application of mineral and organic fertilizers. It tolerates a slight darkening well, so it can be sown in the aisles of the garden. In one place they grow no more than 3-4 years.

Sorrel is sown in early spring (April), summer (mid-June) or before winter (late October - early November). Seeds are sown in the soil (they are pre-soaked in summer) to a depth of 1.5–2 cm. Crops are lightly mulched with peat or humus.

Crop care: thinning of seedlings, loosening of row spacings, regular, moderate watering, removal of flowering stems.

The leaves are cut when their length reaches 8-10 cm. During the growing season, 4-5 cuts are made at intervals of 2-2.5 weeks.

BASIL- an annual plant. It occupies one of the leading places among spicy plants, is considered the "king" of spices. Its scent is reminiscent of allspice. The ground part of the plant contains essential oils, carotene, rutin. A very heat-loving culture, it dies even with light frosts. It prefers light loamy soils rich in organic matter, well warmed up and protected from cold winds. Does not tolerate cold damp soils and darkening. It is highly resistant to diseases and pests. Grow from seedlings. Dry seeds are sown in a box to a depth of 0.5–1 cm in March. Under normal conditions, seedlings appear on the 10-12th day. Seedlings are planted in open ground when frosts are past, in holes or grooves with a distance of 15–20 cm in a row and 60 cm between rows. Planting is best done in the afternoon. Planting depth - 6-8 cm. Until the seedlings are completely established, 2-3 waterings of 0.5-0.7 liters are required for each plant. After the seedlings have taken root, watering is temporarily stopped, the rows are loosened, destroying the crust and weeds.

DILL is an annual plant of the celery family. Dill greens contain salts of iron, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, vitamins C, B 1, B 2, PP, carotene. Cold-resistant plant of a long day. It responds well to watering, but at the same time it easily tolerates short dry periods. Dill prefers fertile light soils, is responsive to organic and nitrogen fertilizers, but high doses of fertilizers should be avoided, as the plant is able to accumulate nitrates. Sow before winter or early spring. Apply multiple spring-summer crops with an interval of 10-12 days. Seeds have low germination and germinate slowly. Before sowing, it is recommended to soak them in water or a solution containing trace elements. Planting depth - 3-4 cm. It easily propagates by self-sowing, so annual crops can be omitted. When leaving, it is necessary to destroy weeds and water the plants in a timely manner. Vegetation period - 80-130 days.

CELERY is a biennial plant of the celery family. The leaves, stems and roots are eaten. The plant is rich in vitamins, contains proteins, pectins, mineral salts, essential oils that give celery a specific flavor, etc. Cold-resistant plant. Seeds begin to germinate at a temperature of 5 C, seedlings tolerate frosts of -3-4 C, adult plants - up to -7 C. The optimum temperature for plant growth is 18-2 ° C. It grows well on floodplain soils, chernozems, light sandy loams and loams, as well as on drained peat bogs. Demanding on moisture and acidity of the soil (does not like acidic soils). It should be planted in open, not shaded areas, as it is a long day plant. The best predecessors are cabbage, zucchini, cucumber, potatoes. For previous crops or in autumn for digging, 3-4 g / m 2 of manure or compost, as well as potash (20 g / m 2) and phosphate (35 g / m 2) fertilizers, should be applied. In the spring, 12–15 g / m 2 of nitrogen fertilizers and 40 g / m 2 are applied wood ash; on peatlands, in addition, 0.5 g of copper sulfate and 0.1 g of boric acid are added. This plant has a long growing season, so in the middle lane it is grown mainly in seedlings. Seeds for seedlings are sown in late February - early March.

PARSLEY- a biennial spicy herbaceous plant of the celery family. In culture, two varieties - root and leaf. The leaves contain vitamins C, B 1, B 2, PP, carotene, as well as folic acid, sugars, salts of potassium, calcium, phosphorus, iron, nitrogenous substances, and roots contain proteins and carbohydrates.

Cold hardy plant. Seeds germinate at a temperature of 3–4 C (the optimum temperature for growth is 18–22 C). Shoots appear in 15-20 days.

Moisture-loving, but does not tolerate waterlogging. Prefers fertilized loose loamy and sandy soils, grows well on drained peat bogs. It is a long day plant, so it should be planted in open, unshaded areas.

Sow in early spring (in the second half of April), in the middle of summer (at the end of July) and before winter (October - November). The depth of seed placement is 1.5–3 cm. Crops must be thinned out, cleaned of weeds, watered (the soil is loosened the next day after watering).

HYSSOP- a perennial semi-shrub of the Lamiaceae family, a spicy-tasting vegetable crop.

The young leaves and flowers are eaten. pleasant aroma and bitter-spicy taste. They contain essential oils, sugar, vitamin C, carotene, organic acids, etc.

In one place grows 5-7 years. Cold hardy, drought tolerant. The plant is demanding on light, but little demanding on soil and moisture. Grows best in light, well-drained and fertile soils.

Propagated by seeds, division of the bush and cuttings. Seeds are sown directly into the ground in late autumn or early spring. The depth of seed placement is 0.5–1 cm.

When growing seedlings, seeds are sown in a greenhouse 50–60 days before planting plants in open ground. Distance between rows - 60 cm, between plants in a row - 25 cm. Planting depth of seedlings and green cuttings - 8-10 cm, parts of the bush - 18-20 cm.

Plant care: watering (2–3 times per season, 15–20 l / m 2 each), loosening row spacing (3–4), weeding in rows (2–3), top dressing after cutting greens.

Harvesting is carried out at the beginning of flowering, cutting off young shoots with leaves and buds. 2-3 cuts are made per season.

LEEK- a biennial plant of the onion family, a green vegetable crop. It has a pleasant slightly spicy taste, contains proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals. It is a cold hardy crop. Mature plants successfully overwinter in the temperate zone. Moisture demanding. It grows well on loamy, high-humus floodplain soils with a neutral reaction. Unsuitable for growing leeks are heavy clay and light sandy soils, as well as waterlogged and acidic ones. The soil for planting is prepared in the fall. For digging, they add per 1 m 2: 6–8 kg of manure or compost, 40 g of superphosphate and 30 g of potassium sulfate. Nitrogen fertilizers are added in the spring before planting. In the middle lane, leeks are grown in seedlings. Seeds are sown in late February - early March in seed boxes to a depth of 1 cm. The surface is mulched or covered with a film. Shoots appear in 12-15 days. After the formation of the top sheet, the seedlings dive into pots. In May, seedlings at the age of 50–70 days are planted in open ground on ridges or flat surface. Seedlings are planted 2 cm deeper than they were in the pot. During the growing season, loosening of row spacings, weeding, watering and fertilizing with liquid organic fertilizers are carried out as necessary. For summer consumption, plants are harvested selectively in August, for winter storage - in late September - early October.

CHNITT-ONION- a perennial plant of the onion family, a green vegetable crop. Young leaves containing ascorbic acid, sugar, phytoncides and carotene are eaten. Frost-resistant plant of a long day. Demanding on soil moisture. Can grow on any soil. The soil for sowing is prepared in the fall. Under digging for 1 m 2, they add: 3–4 kg of manure or compost, 20–30 g of superphosphate, 15–20 g of potassium chloride. Under pre-sowing treatment, 15–20 g of ammonium nitrate are applied. The best sowing dates are early spring (late April - early May) or late August. Before sowing, the seeds are soaked for two days in warm water (it is changed several times), then they are dried to flowability. The seeds are sown directly in open ground in rows with row spacing of 30 cm. The sowing depth is 2–3 cm, the soil is slightly compacted. Shoots appear in 2-3 weeks. The leaves are small, tender, fragrant, form a dense bush. Plant care: weeding, loosening row spacing, thinning, watering; for the 2nd year - early spring top dressing with mineral fertilizers (per 1 m 2 - 10–15 g of ammonium nitrate, 10–20 g of superphosphate, 10 g of potassium chloride). Leaves are harvested several times a season. In autumn, chives can be dug up and grown greens in a greenhouse or at home. This plant can be used as an ornamental crop.

shallot has long been considered an aristocratic onion that delights gourmets because it is juicier, softer and more aromatic than onions. Many French cuisine recipes include shallots, which do not drown out the delicate taste of other products. According to morphological and biological characteristics, it is very close to onions. The differences are only in the weakened ability of shallots to seed propagation, its strong branching, in its smaller bulbs and their better storage capacity. It easily interbreeds with onions and produces fertile offspring. Differs in precocity. In the temperate zone, the bulbs mature 70–80 days after the start of leaf regrowth, and the greens can be cut 28–30 days after planting. Agricultural technology is basically the same as onion. Fertile soils are preferred, heavier in mechanical composition than for onions.

GARLIC- an annual plant of the onion family, one of the types of onions.

This is a cold and winter-hardy plant (especially winter varieties). Shoots appear early and can tolerate short-term frosts down to -15 C. The optimum temperature for the formation of cloves is 15–2 ° C, for their ripening - 20–25 C. Spring varieties of garlic are not frost-resistant.

Long day plant. With a short day, the leaves grow intensively, but arrows and teeth do not form. The plant is not demanding on the intensity of lighting, but with shading, the yield decreases.

Demanding on moisture and soil fertility. Winter varieties grow better on sandy loamy soils, spring varieties grow better on medium and light loamy and even on light alkaline soils with a deep arable horizon. It especially needs soil moisture at the beginning of the growing season (planting, germination) and during the formation of teeth and the appearance of arrows.

3 types of garlic are grown: winter shooter, winter non-shooter and spring (mostly non-shooter). The bulbs are calibrated before planting. For planting use bulbs with a diameter of more than 1 cm.

Spring garlic is planted in early spring. Grown in the same way as winter.

During the growing season, they are watered (1 time in 8-10 days), weeded, the row-spacing is loosened, if necessary, top dressing is carried out. Watering should be stopped 2-3 weeks before harvesting. Arrows are removed from arrowed garlic. Shortly before harvesting, the upper part of the bulb is freed from the soil so that they ripen faster.

BEET CHARD - mediterranean plant. Belongs to one of the varieties of the Western European group of beets. In the first year of life, a developed leaf rosette and well-branched roots (rough and unsuitable for food) are formed. Juicy fleshy petioles and young leaves are eaten. There are varieties of petiolate and leafy. In petioles, the thickness of the petiole is 5 cm. The leaves and petioles of chard are much tastier than those of ordinary table beets. Therefore, beetroot is mainly used for making borscht.

Leaf beet does not impose special requirements on the soil, but it prefers well-groomed lit areas. The plant is winter-hardy. You should not place it on the beds where spinach or table, fodder, sugar beets used to grow.

Seeds are sown in early April, can be sown again in mid-summer to have fresh greens until late autumn.

The distance between rows is 30–40 cm. The depth of seed placement is 2–3 cm. After emergence, the distance between plants is left: 5–7 cm between leafy varieties and 15–20 cm between petioles.

You can harvest leaf beets in 1.5–2 months. The most valuable are young, not yet unfolded leaves.

Petiole varieties are harvested 3-4 months after planting. If the chard is a biennial, then more than 1/4 of all leaves should not be cut off on such beets at a time so that fruits form next year. After harvesting, beets should be watered abundantly and fed with ammonium nitrate or urea (15–20 g per 1 m 2). You can also use organic fertilizers diluted in water.

According to the color of the cuttings, chard is divided into:

1) green petiolate;

2) red petiolate;

3) yellow-petiolate;

nutritious dishes from beet chard.

Fried petioles. Wash the petioles thoroughly and boil in salted water. Cut into small oblong pieces up to 5 cm and fry in oil. Sprinkle with crushed garlic or any herbs of your choice, you can use breadcrumbs.

Petiole salad. 250 g of beet stalks cut into pieces and stew in salted water. Drain the water. Add 100 g of tomato, 100 g of sweet pepper, a bunch of parsley and dill to the cooled petioles. Season with vegetable oil or mayonnaise.

Beet salad. Finely chop 250 g of thoroughly washed beet leaves and 250 g of green onion, add salt, sour cream or mayonnaise to taste.

For the roots of the plant, you need to create optimal mode temperature and humidity. They select a place well protected from the wind in the garden, make a bed and lay manure in the middle with a layer of 15–20 cm, and pour a little loose earth on top. If sowing is carried out early, you can use small-sized film shelters in combination with a steam bed or a double film. After sowing seeds or planting seedlings, the bed is covered with a film, and the second is pulled over arcs or frames. Cucumbers do very well when grown in trenches. To do this, they dig a trench 40-50 cm deep, put loose materials (tops, hay, small sawdust) on the bottom, pour the earth on top with a layer of 20 cm, and then install frames with a slope to better accumulate heat.

If you grow cucumbers in a garden without shelters, then be sure to provide protection from cold winds. To do this, place along the ridge or along the edge of the plot backstage of corn, sunflower, Jerusalem artichoke, zucchini or pumpkin. With such protection, cucumbers can be sown in open ground at the end of May.

On the north side, sprinkle film greenhouses and small shelters with earth so that it does not blow, and it is advisable to make the entrance from south side. The root system of cucumbers cannot withstand temperature fluctuations, sometimes the stem even cracks, so immediately mulch the crops with black or old opaque film, straw, mowed grass or sawdust.

Calibrated cucumber seeds before sowing are heated for 2 hours at a temperature of 50-6 ° C or dried throughout the winter at a temperature of 18-25 C. This helps to accelerate the formation of female flowers on the plant.

Hardening of germinated seeds for 1–2 days on a glacier at a temperature of 0–1 C contributes to better resistance of cucumber plants to low temperatures.

Cucumbers with compactor are often sown. 7–8 g of cucumbers and 2–3 g of vernalized carrot seeds or 3–4 g of soaked table beet seeds are sown simultaneously per 1 m2.

Following the planting of seedling vegetable crops, they water, loosen the aisles. Row spacings are also loosened (including mini-tractors) and other vegetable crops: carrots, table beets, parsley, green crops.

Very often, due to downy mildew (peronosporosis), there is a shortage of cucumbers. The disease manifests itself most aggressively in open ground. This happens in the first or second decade of July due to sharp daily fluctuations in air temperature, as a result of which moisture settles on the underside of the leaf, contributing to the development of the disease. Unfortunately, there are no varieties of cucumber that are absolutely resistant to diseases. Therefore, it is necessary to maneuver with agrotechnical methods in order to get ahead of the outbreak of cucumber disease. One of these methods is trellis culture.

The essence of the trellis method of growing cucumber is that the aerial part of the plants is attached to lattice supports made of slats, poles, stakes, walls or frames with wire or twine stretched in several rows.

Growing cucumber on a vertical trellis has a number of advantages: the soil surface between the rows remains unoccupied by plants throughout the growing season; in well-ventilated crops, the difference in daily air temperatures is not so noticeable, which means that droplet liquid moisture is less formed on the underside of the leaf. With the trellis method of cultivation, the conditions for the germination of peronosporosis spores worsen; during the harvesting of fruits, the plants are not injured, and it is easier to collect the fruits - there is no need to turn the stems and shoots. Experience has shown that tied plants are less susceptible to infection by false powdery mildew compared to those on the ground. The period of fruiting is extended, the productivity of plants increases. C10 m 2 you can get from 60 to 180 kg of greens, quite healthy and of high quality.

Consider the trellis method of growing cucumber in detail.

After harvesting the previous crop (tomatoes, onions or early potatoes) in late August - early September, mineral fertilizers must be applied to the soil at the rate (in grams per 10 m 2): urea - 250, superphosphate - 300, potassium chloride - 150; and from organic fertilizers - 60-80 kg of manure for the same area. Dig and cut the site in the second half of September. In winter, hold the snow on the site, for which you install shields or lay out brushwood.

In the second half of April, pre-planting tillage should be started: loosen the soil with a metal rake to a depth of 10–12 cm. After loosening, divide the site into cells for installing trellis posts. The row spacing should be chosen taking into account the comfortable passage between the rows. On large plantations, in this case, we are talking about the passage of equipment. Having installed the trellis poles, it is necessary to loosen the soil. Before sowing or planting a cucumber between the posts in three horizontal rows, stretch a galvanized wire with a diameter of 2.5–3 mm. The lowest row of wire should be at a distance of 15-20 cm from the soil, the second - at a height of 70-80 cm from the bottom row and the third - at the height of the trellis posts (160-170 cm from the soil). After pulling the wire, cut the furrows with a hiller to a depth of 10 cm.

When the first true leaf appears, do not forget to thin out the plants in a row, leaving six to eight strong and healthy seedlings per 1 m, and two or three in the nest. With a delay in thinning, the plants are stretched and more quickly affected by diseases. Such a technique as pinching is not always justified. Only plants of late-ripening varieties and predominantly with a male type of flowering should be pinched over the fourth or fifth leaf. In most modern varieties and hybrids of cucumber female type flowering. Pinching the point of growth can only damage them, and then the plants do not start growing for a long time.

When watering, it is very important that a strong jet of water does not fall on the roots of plants. Make grooves between or around plants and water only over them.

Young plants often die from excessive watering. Cucumbers should be watered every 2-3 days only with warm water and better in the afternoon, but no later than 18 hours. When four or five leaves appear, it is advisable to stop watering before the formation of ovaries, because excessive moisture during this period can delay flowering.

But if the plants began to fade slightly, watering must be resumed.

Cucumbers are watered abundantly, especially during the period of mass fruiting, only in dry hot weather(the depth of soil wetting should be at least 15–20 cm). If you strictly observe agricultural technology and do everything in a timely manner, then from each square meter open ground, you can get 5-10 kg of environmentally friendly products.

If, after abundant fruiting, a sharp decline in yield suddenly occurs, this is a signal of their fatigue (malnutrition). Feed cucumbers with nitrogen and potash fertilizers (weak solution). Add boric acid to them at the tip of a knife, after dissolving it in 2 liters of hot water.

If the fruits of the cucumber have become light green, and the upper part (where the flower used to be) is sharply narrowed, pointed, then this indicates a lack of nitrogen. If the fruit is narrowed from the opposite end, at the stalk, and the top, on the contrary, is swollen like a ball, then the plant experiences an acute lack of potassium. Plants with dense dark green foliage are fed with phosphorus.

Very often, when growing cucumbers, amateur gardeners are faced with an abundance of male flowers and a lack or absence of female ones. How to be? Firstly, it is recommended to plant different varieties of cucumbers in the same area or nearby. Secondly, in some long-climbing varieties, you need to pinch the top of the main stem above the fifth or sixth leaf, after which the side lashes will grow faster.

There are also tricks that accelerate the appearance of female flowers. It has also been established that the appearance of female flowers is often delayed due to insufficient carbon nutrition of the plant. This can be avoided by fertilizing with organic matter (it contains carbon dioxide), as well as by carefully loosening the soil after watering. Cucumbers should be harvested frequently, as rare collections reduce the yield; while trying not to damage the whip.

At the end of July, as well as during a cold snap, various diseases may appear on the borage. If light yellow spots are found on the leaves, and on the underside of the cobweb, then the plant is affected by a spider mite. Prepare an infusion of onion or garlic scales and spray pests with it. To prevent the appearance of powdery mildew (white coating on the leaves), you need to regularly spray the tops with a solution of copper sulfate (1 teaspoon per 10 liters of water), soda ash (20 g per 10 liters of water) or potassium permanganate (3 g per 10 liters of water) ; feed with high doses of potassium fertilizers. When powdery mildew is affected, cucumbers are sprayed once a week with a solution of colloidal sulfur (15–20 g per 10 liters of water) or mullein (1:10), insisting it for 4 hours and necessarily filtering it. Spraying is carried out in the evening or in cloudy weather. Diseased leaves are carefully cut and destroyed.

As for cucumbers, the lack of moisture during fruiting can be the cause of the bitterness of greens. At the same time, excess moisture delays the appearance of female flowers. The same thing happens if cucumbers are watered with cold water. That is why a slight drying of the soil a few days before flowering, when many buds have already appeared, stimulates and accelerates the formation of female flowers.

You should take into account the specifics of feeding cucumbers. After all, their need for nutrients varies depending on age, sun exposure and soil temperature. If during the formation of the root system they needed phosphorus (20–30 g of superphosphate per 1 m 2), during the growth of lashes and the formation of the leaf apparatus - in nitrogen, then with the appearance of flowers they need potassium.

Tomato is a perennial plant, but is cultivated as an annual vegetable crop. Tomato is a heat-demanding crop. The optimum temperature for plant growth and development is 22–25 C. Demanding on light and soil moisture, but does not tolerate high air humidity. It can grow on any fertile soil, except for very acidic ones. Responsive to the introduction of organic and mineral fertilizers. Tomato also needs trace elements (manganese, boron, copper, etc.), they are applied in the form of micronutrient fertilizers.

Grow tomatoes in seedlings. To obtain early tomatoes, seeds for seedlings are sown in early March, to obtain mid-ripening and late tomatoes - from 1 to 5 April. Seeds are sown directly in pots or seed boxes. Seeds of many varieties of tomatoes germinate in 2-3 days.

However hybrid varieties with small seeds, as well as varieties of foreign selection, germinate only on the 7th and even 10th day. This must be taken into account and do not throw away soaked seeds ahead of time. Dried, long-stored seeds also exhibit low germination energy. Therefore, when storing seeds, it is better to put paper bags in plastic bags or in glass jars with a lid.

You can speed up seed germination. For example, if you heat them in a thermos at a temperature of 45 C for 2 hours (check with a thermometer) and then pickle for 20 minutes in dark purple potassium permanganate, rinse and soak in a rag - accelerated germination will be provided. The germination of seeds is also accelerated by such a technique as barbating - an increased supply of oxygen to the solution. To do this, they take an aquarium compressor and a jar of water, lower the tip to the bottom, put the seeds in gauze bags and let air through the hose for 2-4 hours. Do not dry the seeds in the attic, stove or on the battery - hasty drying is harmful. Dry the seeds on the window in the room. 10–15 days after emergence, seedlings in the cotyledon phase or 1–2 true leaves are transplanted into pots with a nutrient mixture.

Sow to a depth of 1–2 cm. Then the soil is watered with warm water, the boxes are covered with foil and placed in a dark, warm (20–25 C) place. After germination, the film is removed, the boxes are rearranged for 4–7 days in a cooler place (12–15 C). In the future, the air temperature during the day is maintained at 18–22 C, at night - 15–16 C, if the seedlings are pulled out, it is necessary to reduce watering, lower the air temperature to 12 C, then sprinkle the seedlings with a solution of superphosphate. Stop fertilizing with organic and mineral fertilizers, pour ash into the soil.

Sometimes the cotyledon leaves, during germination, pull the "skin" of the seeds out of the soil. Most likely this is due to the fact that the seeds are sown too small (planting depth - 1 instead of 1.5–2 cm).

A few days before planting seedlings, the temperature in the rooms is brought to a level close to outdoor temperature. The first time the seedlings are fed 8-12 days after picking (for 10 liters of water, 5 g of ammonium nitrate, 15 g of potassium chloride and 40 g of superphosphate). If necessary, additional feeding is carried out after 8-12 days. Seedlings are watered abundantly the day before planting. It is planted in open ground on June 5-10 (50-60 days after sowing seeds), under film shelters - May 15-20. To protect the planted seedlings from frost, you need to put the arcs (in the greenhouse, and in the open field - a double film) and cover them with an additional film. In case of frosts, heating under the film with simple incandescent bulbs (3 pieces of 60 W per 5–6 m bed) gives a good result, cover the film with stitched strips of newspapers on top. Thus, the air temperature can be raised by 6–7 C. And the seedlings will not freeze. In case of frost, water the ridges with water. To increase the frost resistance of tomatoes, it is necessary to harden the seeds (bury them in the snow for 3–4 hours), accustom the seedlings 2 weeks before planting to lower temperatures, taking them out to the balcony or street (gradually increasing the time spent in the air).

After planting, the seedlings are watered no earlier than after 10–12 days, and they are watered not under the root, but retreating 5 cm from the stem, without wetting the leaves with water. Watering is given in the morning.

Low-growing compact plants that form few stepchildren can not be stepchildren.

Place tomatoes in open ground away from planting potatoes. In autumn, in infertile areas, up to 6 kg / m 2 of organic fertilizers are applied for digging. In the spring, before planting, mineral fertilizers are applied or used for top dressing. For film greenhouses and greenhouses, the soil is also prepared in autumn or spring, enriching it with humus or compost and digging it up. Sometimes the soil is made bulk, making it up from soddy soil, humus, peat, sawdust, sand, etc. In greenhouses, seedlings are planted with two-line ribbons, the distance between plants in a row is 25–40 cm. 10–12 days after planting, the plants are tied up with twine .

The state of tomatoes can be judged by their appearance. If the leaves are curled, superphosphate is excluded from top dressing and the amount of potassium chloride and urea is increased.

If flowering and fruiting is delayed, nitrogen fertilizers are excluded from top dressing. When the flowers fall, the bushes are sprayed with a solution of boric acid (1 g per 1 liter of water).

When the ovaries fall off, they are fed with a solution of mullein (1:10), adding a matchbox of ammonium nitrate or urea to it.

Throughout the entire period, stepsoning continues. At the end of the first month, pinch the tops of the plants to stop their growth.

To protect tomatoes from phytophthora disease, use a weak solution of copper sulfate (1 teaspoon per 10 liters of water) and 1% Bordeaux liquid or copper-soap emulsion.

Prepare it as follows: dissolve 200 g of laundry or green soap in warm or rain water. Separately, a teaspoon of copper sulfate is poured into a half-liter jar of water, and then mixed with soapy water.

Spray the bushes once a week, preferably after rain.

Fruits are thoroughly washed before use.

Tomatoes are watered abundantly twice a week. With irregular watering, their fruits crack. The same can happen with carrots.

Every 10 days, it is recommended to feed the tomatoes with mineral fertilizers: a solution of raspberry potassium permanganate or urea, potassium chloride and superphosphate. However, it is best to alternate between an aqueous solution of mullein (1:10) and an infusion of ash (1 cup of ash per 1 liter of water).

Flowers fall off at very high temperatures (above 3 ° C in a greenhouse), high humidity or extreme dryness of air and soil. The temperature during the day is desirable around 22–25 C, at night 18 C; during the day, ventilate the greenhouse well, even creating a draft. Tomatoes are a self-pollinating crop, they do not need bees and other insects. But to improve pollination, they tap the stem once every 3–4 days so that heavy pollen spills onto the flowers located below. To avoid cross-pollination, make sure that the brush of plants of one variety is not located under the brush of another (plant less often). In open ground, cross-pollination is observed more often. And double flowers appear in plants of some varieties (a certain percentage). Double flowers produce gnarled fruits. They must be plucked quickly, as they retard the growth of other fruits.

To get larger fruits, pluck some of the flowers in the brush. But in general, large-fruited varieties have only a salad purpose. In addition, they arrive quite late. So that tomatoes do not get sick with late blight and brown spot, they should not be planted after potatoes and peppers, as well as with these crops. For prevention, water the soil once a week with pink potassium permanganate and sprinkle with ash. Spray the seedlings 2-8 days before planting boric acid(1.5 g of powder per 3 l of water) and copper sulfate (3 g per 3 l), diluting them in hot water. When the ovaries reach the size walnut, sprinkle the plants with a 1% solution of Bordeaux liquid, copper chloride or copper sulphate (40-60 g per 10 liters of water). You can also spray with infusion of garlic (pass 1.5–2 cups of garlic through a meat grinder, dilute with hot water, put a few grains of potassium permanganate, add up to 10 liters, mix without insisting, strain and use). All treatments for late blight should be repeated after 5–7 days (4 treatments in total). It is useful to spray the plant with infusion of ash (200–300 g per 10 l), water the soil every 10–15 days with infusion of superphosphate (40–50 g / 10 l). Cover tomato bushes in the open field in late July - early August at night with a film. If late blight is noticed (brown leaves, brown dry spots on the fruits), immediately collect all the fruits. Cut out the sore spots and destroy them, pickle the rest, as the fruits cannot be stored. And everyone is healthy large fruits in metal mesh for eggs or in a gauze bag, dip in hot water at a temperature of 6 ° C for 1 minute, dry well and put in a warm place for ripening.

In the first decade of August, remove all brushes with unblown flowers from the tomato and pinch the top after the fourth brush, and turn the ripening fruits towards the sun. Under brushes undersized plants place supports so that the fruits do not come into contact with the ground and do not deteriorate. Continue to remove stepchildren, as well as lower yellowing leaves. On the stem, make a through longitudinal cut 5-6 cm long at a height of 12 cm from the soil and push it apart with a wooden stick.

In addition, to speed up the ripening of fruits, tear the roots. To do this, grab the bottom of the stem with your hand and pull it up slightly. As a result, the smallest active roots will break off, the supply of nutrients from the soil to the plant will decrease, and it will be forced to use the substances deposited in the leaves. Watering should be stopped 7-10 days before the end of the growing season.

It is advisable to remove all formed tomato fruits from the bushes brown and even green and lay them for ripening. This will greatly speed up the filling of the fruits remaining on the bush, which will increase the yield. Ripening is best done in a well-ventilated room at a temperature of 20–25 C. At a temperature of 12 C, ripening slows down significantly, at 1 ° C and below, many fruits rot.

Lay the tomatoes on the buttocks or in boxes in two or three layers. To speed up ripening, put a few red ones in boxes with green fruits. By the way, if ripening needs to be delayed in order to extend the period of consumption of fresh tomatoes, look through the boxes daily and choose red fruits from them.

Pepper is a heat-demanding crop. Minimum temperature seed germination is 10–12 C. The best temperature for the growth and development of pepper plants is 18–25 C. At temperatures above 35 C, plants are inhibited and buds and flowers fall off.

Peppers are more drought tolerant than cabbage, cucumber, and other vegetable crops. However, it responds well to irrigation with increased growth and higher yields.

As a native of southern latitudes, pepper requires good lighting, in shaded areas good harvest do not receive.

Sweet pepper is grown, as a rule, in seedlings.

Pepper seedlings, like early tomatoes, can be grown in warm greenhouses and film greenhouses. Seeds are usually sown in nutrient pots and cubes, but can also be grown at home - on windowsills and balconies in flower pots, plastic or paper cups, milk bags. Seedlings are grown

Restoration of broken roots in pepper seedlings is weak. Therefore, it is better to grow its seedlings without picking, sowing seeds directly into pots or soil. Sow with soaked or germinated seeds. The temperature when growing seedlings before germination is maintained at 25–28 C, after germination for 4–7 days it is reduced during the day to 16–18, at night to 12–14 C.

In the following days, the temperature is increased: in sunny weather - up to 22-28 C, in cloudy weather - up to 18-20, at night - up to 15-18 C.

Peppers are very sensitive to lack of moisture. Therefore, its seedlings are watered abundantly and often, but in order to avoid plant disease with a "black leg", with excessive moisture, it is necessary to intensively ventilate the seedling structures. Seedlings are usually watered in the first half of the day, first after 2–3 days, and when 3–4 leaves appear in plants, daily.

Pepper seedlings are fed twice with mineral fertilizers, dissolving 126 g of superphosphate, 50 g of urea and 30 g of potassium salt in 10 liters of water, spending this solution on 2-3 m 2 of the nursery. The first top dressing is carried out in the phase of 2-3 leaves, the second - 10-15 days before planting in the ground. After applying fertilizers, they are washed off from the plants, watering the seedlings with clean water.

During the growing season, seedlings carry out 1–2 additions under greenhouse land plants.

10–12 days before planting, temperature and light hardening of plants is carried out, first with intensive ventilation, and then opening seedling structures.

By the time of planting, the seedlings should have a well-developed fibrous root capable of holding the earth when removed from the seedling structure.

Seedling height - 16-20 cm with 8-10 developed leaves.

Care for strawberries should be constant. The lack of snow in January adversely affects the overwintering of plants; lack of snow is especially dangerous for strawberries. Its roots are close to the surface of the soil, and without snow, the plants freeze. But it also happens that the beds with strawberries in December were abundantly covered with snow, and in January it is partially blown away. We urgently need to take action. Throw brushwood, spruce branches on the beds with strawberries, make snow rollers.

If the temperature drops sharply, but there is no snow, mulch the row-spacings in planting strawberries with peat or rotted manure with a layer of 8-10 cm.

In the spring, while the strawberry plant has not yet fully awakened from hibernation, rake dead leaves on a fruit-bearing planting, feed the plants with nitrogen, loosen the soil in a row, and dig the aisles. If the plants were damaged in the fall by a strawberry mite, treat them with an extract of garlic (200 g of garlic are ground and thoroughly washed through gauze in 10 liters of water), tobacco infusion (400 g is poured with boiling water, insisted for two days, filtered, add 40 g of soap) or before the start plant growth, water them with hot water at a temperature of 7 ° C.

When the peduncles are advanced, the plants are sprayed with an insecticide against the raspberry-strawberry weevil.

At the beginning of flowering against gray rot, the soil along the rows is sprinkled with ash. Straw, poles, boards, strips of roofing material are placed under the flower stalks or coasters are made of wire, plastic pipes so that the berries remain in weight, do not come into contact with the ground, are better blown and less rot.

In addition, before flowering, plants can be sprinkled with a soap-copper emulsion (200 g of soap is dissolved in 9 liters of water and 15–20 g of copper sulfate separately in 1 liter of hot water, then it is poured into soapy water, stirring). If flakes do not form, then the solution is ready. If formed, then the water is hard, and then add up to 50 g of linen (calcined) soda.

Whiskers are periodically removed during the period of berry picking, rotten berries are collected separately, then they are buried in the ground.

During the harvest, there is a need for watering. This is done by pouring water into the furrows between the rows.

After harvesting, if plants are damaged by strawberry mites and the leaf apparatus is infected with spots, the leaves are mowed at a height of 3–5 cm from the ground, but no later than August 5. After that, they feed, loosen the soil in the row, dig up the aisles, water and, if necessary, spray the plants against strawberry mites with tobacco infusion, garlic extract, as indicated above. Spraying is repeated after 10-12 days. During the autumn, another weeding and periodic removal of the mustache is possible. In more northern regions and in elevated areas in October, it is advisable to slightly spud the plants with earth or mulch with peat. Poisoned baits and spruce branches are stacked against rodents along the periphery of the site. In winter, during the period of thaws, the snow is compacted along the row and the passages of rodents are destroyed.

After harvesting, it is necessary to examine the strawberry plot. When identifying plants affected by wilting, strawberry nematode and, to a strong extent, strawberry mites, they and their neighboring plants should be removed and burned. The soil is then disinfected with bleach at the rate of 100 g per 1 m 2.

At the end of August, it is necessary to plant strawberries. But the site, of course, should be ready by this time. It is well lit (out in the open). The soil is filled with organic fertilizers, loosened, leveled. With deep digging, all weed roots are carefully selected and taken out of the site. Previously, there were no potatoes or tomatoes in this area. So it's all right. It is better to plant seedlings in rows. Where the first row of strawberries is planned, pull the cord. Along the cord with a scoop or bayonet, make holes of such depth that the root system freely fits in them. Stick the scoop from the cord vertically. Then one wall (adjacent to the cord) of all the holes will be vertical. Attach seedlings to it. See that the roots do not bend or twist, but are freely placed in the hole. Using the same bayonet or scoop, straighten the roots and cover with earth. Then, with both hands, press down on the plant so that the soil fits snugly around the roots. Make a hole around the plant for watering. After watering, be sure to mulch the soil with peat or compost. When planting, watering and mulching, make sure that the apical bud, or, as they often say, the heart of the seedling, is not covered up. But don't plant the plants too high, don't expose the roots, and don't raise the bulk of the plants above the soil. In both cases, this will negatively affect their growth. After landing the first row, move the cord to the place of the second row. The distances between adjacent lines should be 50-60 cm, and between adjacent plants - about 25 cm.

All landing work, including planting, strawberries, it is better to coincide with cloudy days, and even better if it rains at this time. But it’s not worth waiting for such weather on purpose, you can’t wait, and time will pass. So you have to work even on hot dry days. On such days, it is better to plant strawberries in the late evening, and for the day, plants should be shaded with freshly cut grass or paper.

You can grow remontant repeatedly fruiting strawberries. There are about 20 such varieties (small-fruited and large-fruited). Large-fruited include Rixa, Sakhalin remontant, Aida, small-fruited ones - Alpine, Barono Solemacher, White Lotus, Monthly, etc. There are types of strawberries mustachioed and beardless, they bear fruit on the main bush and on mustaches of the first and second orders.

Strawberries grown from seeds are more durable. In early March, you need to sow the seeds in a box with earth, cover with foil and keep in a warm place. After the appearance of two true leaves, it is seated at a distance of 3 cm from each other. In mid-May, grown seedlings are planted in open ground. It is useful to add potassium sulfate to the soil under strawberries. Strawberries begin to bear fruit the next year from mid-June to October. After three years of planting strawberries, it is recommended to renew, as they freeze and die in winter. Fruiting parts of strawberries rise higher and higher above the ground every year, and if under natural conditions they are covered with fallen leaves, then in the garden it is not protected by anything.

New bushes can be grown from seeds, or you can divide old, abundantly fruiting bushes. The division must be carried out no later than September 15th. Bushes will begin to bear fruit next year.

Do you want to have strawberries for the New Year? Not later than September, until the plants have entered the dormant stage, plant a few of them in flower pots and hold on the windowsill, where it should be dry and cool (no more than 15 C). Excess heat leads to the development of leaves at the expense of fruiting. Such strawberries bear fruit until the end of December. After this comes the stage of rest. Keep pots with plants at this time at a temperature of 7 C. In February, a new growth of the plant begins, in April fresh berries will appear again.

The berries of remontant strawberries are somewhat dry, therefore, in order to feel the aroma, they are slightly crushed and sprinkled with sugar.

ASPARAGUS belongs to the early vegetable crops, which produce products at a time when there is still very little greenery.

Shoots have a pleasant taste and delicate aroma. They are boiled and eaten with various sauces, butter and breadcrumbs, used in soups and salads, and also as a side dish for meat dishes. They are also canned and frozen. Asparagus is superior in nutritional value to most vegetables.

The plant is herbaceous, 50-150 mm high, perennial, cultivated in one place for up to 15 years. Asparagus is one of the cold-resistant plants. Rhizomes do not freeze at a temperature of -25-3 °C. At the same time, asparagus seeds during the germination period are very demanding on heat. At this time, a temperature of at least +1 ° C is required, and the optimum is + 20–25 C. Young plants are sensitive to frost, their shoots in spring and autumn, in the absence of snow, are damaged at a temperature of -5-7 C.

This plant can be classified as a shade-tolerant crop. Only at a very young age, with a lack of light, the growth and development of asparagus slows down. The best are fertile light sandy, sandy or loamy soils. Heavy soils cause the curvature of the shoots.

Propagated by seeds, growing seedlings, less often by dividing the rhizome. Under the nursery allocate areas with fertile light soil. During processing, 5-6 kg of manure and mineral fertilizers are applied per 1 m 2: ammonium nitrate and potassium salt - 30 g each, superphosphate-40 g.