Cauliflower surpasses even white cabbage in its nutritional properties. And how beautiful she looks in a salad bowl! It has a huge amount of nutrients, vitamins C, B1, B2, PP. If you do not tolerate white cabbage because of the high fiber content, then it's time to think about cauliflower settling in your garden plot. It is digested much faster and is considered a dietary vegetable. Boiled white heads, in soups and side dishes, in marinated form will be an excellent vitamin supplement to your table. The topic of our article today is planting cauliflower, so let's go directly to the agrotechnical subtleties.
Site preparation
Cauliflower is planted on pre-prepared beds, while agricultural technology must comply with certain rules. In the autumn, after the main crop is harvested, the soil begins to be prepared for spring sowing. To do this, it is loosened, removing weed grass and insect larvae. After about two weeks, fertilizers are applied to it - 5 kg of organic, 30 g of potash and phosphorus fertilizers are consumed per square meter . After fertilizing, the bed is dug up on a bayonet shovel and left to rest until spring.
With the onset of heat, the soil is loosened and urea is introduced - about 20 g per square meter. Do not forget: cauliflower is planted in dense soil, that is, you do not need to re-dig it. If you did not have time to dig up the earth in the fall, you will have to do it in the spring, but then before planting it will have to be compacted, slightly tamped. This affects the quality of the heads: compliance with this rule requires that they be tight and tasty.
Landing methods
Planting cauliflower is most often carried out in the seedling method. However, today gardeners often resort to open sowing of seeds in the ground. Do not forget that the ripening of the heads occurs quickly enough, and to harvest during the whole summer, sowing of seeds can be done in 3-4 terms with an interval of 20 days. For the earliest planting, seedlings are grown in greenhouses and greenhouses, and summer and autumn crops are made directly into the ground. Do not forget that when the air temperature drops, the seedlings must be protected with a film.
There are a huge number of varieties on the market today. Early growing plants are perfect for growing in sheltered soil. Until recently, good cauliflower was grown only in the south, and today it is available everywhere. But even in a greenhouse, if the weather is too cool, the heads can grow smaller than usual. The best is middle ripe cauliflower. Planting on seedlings will allow you to remove the early crop, and sowing in the garden - also the second and third. Later varieties usually do not have time to ripen in a cool climate.
Sowing seeds
The first task is to grow an early harvest for summer salads, in which cauliflower fits perfectly. Planting on seedlings is carried out in compliance with the following rule. To get friendly seedlings and healthy seedlings, you need to select only large seeds. Before sowing, the following procedure is performed: seeds are wrapped in a rag and dipped in hot water. It should not be heated to a boil, the best option is 50 degrees. Now the activated seeds are cooled in cold water and soaked in a solution of potassium permanganate for 8 hours.
This preparation provides excellent germination. Ready to plant seeds are sown in special boxes. The soil can be any, but a mixture of peat and humus has proven itself best. In addition, 15 g of superphosphate and potassium sulfate must be added to a bucket of soil mixture. In almost the same way, cauliflower seeds are planted in open ground. On slightly moistened and compacted soil, grooves with a depth of 0.5 mm are marked, into which the seeds are laid. They are covered with the same mixture and lightly covered with earth.
Conditions of detention
The optimum temperature for cabbage is +20 degrees. Under such conditions, seedlings will appear in about 4-5 days. Here lies the main danger: cabbage tends to stretch quickly, so immediately after emergence, the air temperature is reduced to +6 degrees. After about 5 days, it is raised to 15 degrees - this helps to pass acclimatization. It is easiest to fulfill this condition if you have seedlings in pots, but planting cauliflower seeds in open ground leaves room for maneuver. The film covering the greenhouse is removed or slightly opened from one edge. In this way, the temperature is regulated.
Growing seedlings
If you are growing seedlings, then you have to pick the seedlings when they turn 8-10 days. Before the procedure, slightly moisten the soil. Remember that excessive moisture in the pots leads to diseases of seedlings. Immediately after the picking, seedlings must be fed. The preparation of seedlings takes about 45-50 days. Bushes ready for planting should have at least 5 true leaves and a well-developed root system. Be sure to harden the seedlings, accustom it to the sun, cold and temperature extremes. To do this, before planting, seedlings begin to be taken out into the street or left in front of an open balcony. It is advisable the last few days to fully identify the plants in the greenhouse. If it’s cool at night on the street, you can not remove the film.
Cauliflower planting pattern
To plant plants in the soil, evening or morning time is chosen. Usually seedlings are watered well the day before. In dry and hot weather, it does not take root well, so think in advance how to priten tender plants. You can refuse artificial shading only three days after landing. Cauliflower is planted in open ground in a certain order, earlier varieties can be planted closer, and later varieties farther apart, since they are more bushy. The optimal location is 70 x 40 cm, it should not be thickened, since this affects the harvest, you will not get good heads in this case.
However, the filling of the garden can serve as a radish, dill and salad. Due to the fact that these plants quickly sow and clean, they will not harm the main planting. Cauliflower seedlings are planted so as not to fall asleep on the apical kidney. The earth around the young plant is well compacted, watered and covered with a layer of soil so that a crust does not form.
Reckless way of growing: for which regions is suitable
To begin with, it is worth noting that planting cauliflower in the open ground has an undeniable advantage. Overgrown seedlings reduce the yield and worsen the quality of the products, and you do not risk anything: the plants will develop as they should, in accordance with their biological clock.
Planting cauliflower seeds is best suited for arid, southern regions. But with the advent of early ripe varieties, this method is practiced by all gardeners, up to Siberia. The root system in this case grows less branched, but penetrates deeper into the soil. Before sowing directly on the bed, markings are made with a distance between rows of 45-60 cm, depending on the characteristics of the variety or hybrid, as well as on the fertility of the soil. When the seedlings give the first true leaves, it is necessary to thin out. 15 cm are left between the plants in a row. When the seedlings produce six true leaves, thinning is repeated, and again there should be an interval of 15 cm between the plants. If the bed is well watered before the procedure, the pulled out plants retain the root system and can be transplanted to another place.
Cauliflower: planting and care
Like the closest relatives of the culture, cauliflower is very hygrophilous. The optimum soil moisture should be at least 70 percent; drying is not allowed. This is especially important during the growing of seedlings. Even a slight drying out of the soil can lead to the formation of a shallow head or even loss of yield, as it quickly begins to bloom. Compliance with the temperature regime is also very important. Gardeners emphasize that cauliflower is much more moody than other varieties. Planting and care require constant temperature control. A long decline to + 10 degrees and below leads to a rapid transition to the flowering phase without the formation of a dense head.
Nutrition
As already mentioned, cauliflower is more demanding on soil nutrition than white cabbage. This should be known even at the stage of growing seedlings. By the way, if you grow it in pots, then sowing can be done in February. Then in June you will already have cauliflower. Planting dates are much shifted if you plan to sow seeds directly into the ground. Then you need to wait until the end of April, and then if you have a greenhouse stretched. Unprotected soil can only be sown in May, when seedlings are not in danger of freezing. In case of a strong drop in temperature, cover material should be used. Planting cauliflower seeds implies regular top dressing, only in this case you can expect a good harvest.
First feeding
Ten days after the dive, it is necessary to fertilize. Planting cauliflower in the ground involves the introduction of organic matter after the first thinning. The best solution for this is mullein or a mixture of 20 g of ammonium nitrate, 20 g of superphosphate and 10 g of potassium fertilizer. Consumption is approximately 10 liters per square meter. The tasks of the first feeding are to optimize the growth and development of the plant.
The second and subsequent feeding
After about two weeks, top dressing should be repeated. Planting cauliflower seedlings in open ground is also accompanied by a second fertilizer application (the first was already done during a dive). The composition of the nutrient mixture may vary depending on the preferences of the gardener. The best is infusion of mullein or chicken droppings - 0.5 liters per 10 liters of water. In addition, you can purchase any concentrated extract of cow or horse manure from the store .
Diseases and Pests
Pests include aphids and cabbage butterflies. Get rid of them by mechanical assembly or chemical treatment. But remember that the cabbage absorbs absolutely everything that falls on it. In early spring, you need to handle planting with antifungal drugs. Phytobacteria and fungi can spoil or completely destroy your crop. Due to the susceptibility of cauliflower to various diseases, many find themselves from this useful vegetable, but in vain, because high-quality, modern drugs can solve these problems.
Harvesting Cauliflower
It begins in July - at this time the early varieties are harvested. The latest, ripen in August - September. When harvesting, one must be guided by the size and density of the head. In addition, if the head turned white, this also indicates its ripeness. Most often, as soon as the forks reaches a diameter of 8 cm, it is time to cut it off. Over-aging is bad for taste. If the head begins to crumble - this is also a signal for immediate cutting. Cabbage can be pickled, and it will be stored in the refrigerator for a long time as a ready-made cold snack. This tasty and healthy dish will provide the body with vitamins and pleasantly diversify the menu.