When growing in a greenhouse and in open ground in the middle lane, you need to know how to pinch a melon and when. Getting sweet and juicy fruits depends not only on the fertility of the soil, strong seedlings and the necessary nutrition, but also on the knowledge of the agrotechnics of forming a climbing plant.
The principles of pinching: why is it necessary
In the conditions of a fairly cold summer (by the standards of melon - a heat-loving Asian plant) in summer, when cold nights begin in August, not only fruits should form on the plants, but also have time to ripen.
Acceptance of primary pinching of the plant in the right place allows the plant to focus on the main thing - to form fruits, secondary pinching does not allow the melon to waste its strength on excessive fruiting.
How to pinch a melon in a greenhouse
After the melon seedlings have taken root, new leaves began to grow, you need to monitor when the main stem appears. In conditions of good illumination, warm night temperatures and fertile land, this should happen in mid-June.
A thick stem with dense leaves, it is advisable to immediately tie to the trellis (or to the rope support). As long as there are no four or five leaves on it, you should not pinch it.
As soon as the fifth or sixth sheet appears, you need to arm yourself with a tool. Garden scissors (clean), secateurs are suitable, in extreme cases, you can just pinch the plant. Since it is necessary to pinch a melon, it is impossible to do without this process.
The very top of the stem must be cut off (pinched), thereby stopping the growth of the main shoot. If there are more leaves, you need to count from the bottom five to six and, without regret, cut off the apical part.
Over the next week, the plant will release shoots (you can call stepsons) of the first order from the lateral sinuses of the remaining five leaves. Usually these are two on one side and two or three on the other.
Side shoots need to be tied to stimulate them to grow up. Mostly female flowers will bloom on them, from which the fruits will develop.
Until mid-July, work with melon will consist of fertilizing and watering; measures can be taken to prevent diseases.
Pinching lateral shoots
In mid-July (if the summer is hot, then in early July) you need to check the availability and quality of the ovaries on the melon. Since pinching a melon during this period is much more difficult (it has already grown), you need to stock up on tools (scissors or secateurs) and patience.
By this moment, the melon had shoots of not only the first, but also the second order. All of them are crawling upwards; many ovaries have already formed on them. In conditions of the middle band, the melon will be able to “feed” only five to six fruits, unfortunately.
It is necessary to find out on which lashes the biggest melons are poured. With them, the plant should remain until the end of the growing period.
Usually the first to begin to pour (become larger) fruits on the shoots of the first order, although there are exceptions. It is necessary to count five or six leaves over the ovary, cut off the rest of the shoot (it is already quite dense, it’s difficult to pinch it with fingers). You do not need to feel sorry if you leave the extra parts, the melons simply will not ripen. You need to check all the lashes, leaving six with the fruits.
If the melon does not have six good ovaries (only three or four), then you need to cut off the ones on which they are, and check the rest for the presence of female flowers. Leave these lashes un trimmed and return to them after a week. If the fruits (at least two more) are tied, you need to cut off these shoots, leaving five or six sheets over the ovaries.
While pinching the lateral shoots, you need to see how the fruits develop. If they lie on the ground, under them urgently need to put pieces of linoleum or tile. This is necessary so that the fruit does not lie on damp ground, as it can rot.
Fruits that formed high on the shoot must be put into the net, tied up.
How to pinch melons in the open ground
In the middle strip under open ground for melons, it should be understood that the plants are under film shelters. The cold nights of late May and early June, and most importantly, lowering the temperatures in August at night to 7-8 degrees, will prevent the melon from growing strong without disease.
In these conditions, the plants simply lie on the ground, so it is important to know when and how to pinch melons under film shelters.
If the shelter is well organized, the melons feel very comfortable there (subject to fertile soil). During the day, the shelter removed provides an excellent opportunity for pollination by bees and bumblebees, which is sometimes insufficient in greenhouses.
Mid-end of June (depending on weather conditions) - the time of the first pinch. It is carried out in the same way as for greenhouses: the main shoot is shortened to five to six leaves.
A week or two after flowering of the lateral shoots, you need to monitor the formation of the ovaries. You need to choose the five or six largest fruits, cutting the lashes through five to six leaves above them. Pieces of plastic or tile must be placed under the melons.