Chinese cabbage pak-choi: cultivation and features of care, useful properties and recipes

Cabbage pack-choy is a popular vegetable culture. For millennia cultivated in China, this exotic product gradually and quite successfully conquers the European market. The unpretentiousness in growing, high germination and excellent nutritional properties only contribute to the strengthening of consumer demand for this kind of cabbage, outwardly reminiscent of Beijing.

Description of the Chinese guest

Cabbage Chinese pak-choi is more perceived as a salad vegetable or exotic greens, because it does not form heads. In addition, due to precocity, such a product can be consumed just a month after planting, which in the warm climate of Asia allows you to harvest several times a season. This culture is valued for its high content of vitamins, iron, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium and lysine, a powerful source of energy required by humans for normal cell growth, production of antibodies, enzymes, hormones and tissue repair. In addition, lysine prevents the development of cancer, which makes the pack-choy a very popular product on the dining table.

In food is used the aboveground part of the garden plant, which is a rosette of succulent leaves of bright green color with median, rather wide veins, joined in an elastic base of white color. Depending on the variety, the height of the plant varies from 30 to 60 cm. The leaves are collected in a rosette with a diameter of about 30 cm and are characterized by a bright green color, the petioles are white.

Beneficial features

Cabbage Chinese pak-choi, the cultivation of which is not particularly difficult, is a wonderful dietary product. It is used in salads. A Chinese wonder is good as a low-calorie garnish, an independent vegetable dish, but for salting it's not good. Has a multifaceted rich taste, giving off freshness and sharpness with light bitterness. Perfectly combined with various products, it resembles Peking cabbage, spinach, lettuce and chard, and is an excellent addition to any dish.

Cabbage pack-choy can be eaten when getting rid of extra pounds and to maintain the figure. This is an excellent tool for the prevention of constipation and cleansing of the intestines from cholesterol, slags and other harmful elements. Regular use of Chinese cabbage positively affects the elasticity and strength of blood vessels. Contained in its composition, vitamin A effectively affects the renewal of skin cells. Cabbage pak-choi, the preparation of which takes a minimum of time, is recommended for pregnant women, as it contains folic acid, which prevents the formation of various defects in the fetus.

Popular varieties

As a two-year-old plant, in the vegetable production of cabbage, pak-choi is grown as an annual crop. With a moderate climate, its seeds can be sown throughout the growing season. The following varieties of cabbage are used most in vegetable growing:

• Vesnyanka . Sheet type, characterized by superficiality: shoots appear after 3-4 days; In three weeks you can enjoy the first harvest of ripened leaves. Rosette richly leafy, slightly elevated, about 35 cm high.
• Lebedushka . A variety of medium-term maturation: 40-45 days. It has an erect rosette, which is about 40 cm in diameter. The petioles are white, about 35 cm, of the total weight of the plant, about 80%. The variety is hardy, well tolerates unfavorable weather conditions.
• Alyonushka . It has a medium-sized leaf socket, a fleshy broad petiole. Characterized by excellent taste qualities.
• Pava . It is a hybrid of Peking and Chinese cabbage, characterized by juicy crispy petioles. Resistant to stalking, therefore it is suitable for sowing at any time. Externally, the plant is decorative and well preserved after cutting.

Subtlety of cultivation

Cultivation of Chinese cabbage is somewhat different from the usual way and has its own nuances. The advantages of the product include its low demand for soil composition: cabbage pak-choi, cultivation and preparation of which is not difficult, quite well relates to medium- and low-fertilized lands. The plant likes a cool climate, high humidity, fertile land, which is recommended to prepare in advance. It is best to do this in autumn: dig through with the simultaneous application of fertilizers. It is good to add organic matter at the rate of 1 bucket per square meter; On acidic beds of the garden can be enriched with wood ash: 200 grams per square. meter. When choosing a site for planting, it is necessary to take into account predecessors, the worst of which are all types of cabbage. After all, in this case there is an increased risk of damage to common pests and diseases.

Sowing Chinese cabbage

Seeding of the Pak-Cho seed is from April to August, although most gardeners prefer to plant cabbage in the middle of summer - it is the July product that pleases the greatest yields. In addition, during this period, the risk of tying flower arrows is minimal. When sowing in the open ground, the Pak-cho seeds are laid in prepared lunches to a depth of 2-3 cm in accordance with the following scheme: 20-30 cm between sprouts of cabbage with interrow spacing of 25-35 cm. The feeding area of one unit is 30 * 30 cm. Small specimens will be 20 * 20 cm long enough.

Factors of proper care

In the care of Chinese cabbage pak-choi, cultivation of which is able even inexperienced gardener, undemanding. It is desirable to periodically loosen the soil, making it very carefully, because the Chinese cabbage root system is located close to the soil surface. It is important to water the plants in good time, without excess: do not fill the ground, but do not allow it to dry out. The average watering rate in August-September is 15-20 liters per square meter. A little more water should be used in the process of tying out the outlets.

Like any plant, cabbage pack-choy, the reviews about which are positive, requires periodic feeding, aimed at activating growth and increasing the expected yield. In the process of vegetation, it is recommended to feed the plant once or twice with a liquid herbal solution or infusion of mullein. It is important to provide additional fertilizing after long rains.

Harvesting

It is recommended that the harvest of the Chinese curiosity be collected at each stage of plant development: from the appearance of sprouts to the moment of the formation of the flower arrows. Adult cabbage must be cut at a height of 2-3 cm above the ground, adult specimens are cut somewhat higher. Juicy greens are desirable to use immediately, since it is not adapted to long-term storage.

Pests and diseases

From pests to cabbage pack-choy cruciferous fleas are not indifferent , which are especially dangerous for young shoots, and are capable of destroying the plant at the initial stage. Larvae gnaw through large through holes in leaf plates, which significantly reduces the growth of vegetative mass and the quality of the product itself. To get rid of such pests it is possible by frequent loosening of soil and regular watering. If this method is ineffective, every morning cabbage beds should be sprayed with tobacco infusion or treated with wood ash. From chemical agents, it is recommended to use the effective preparation "Kinmiks" (on a bucket of water - 2.5 ml).

The cabbage whiting is not indifferent to the overseas product , the presence of oviposition of which can be determined by the yellowish furrows. To avoid mass invasion of voracious caterpillars, eggs must be removed from the plant. Remove the unwanted pest will help the processing of cabbage chemicals.

Cabbage pack-choy is also loved by slugs and rain snails. Therefore, in order to prevent the appearance on the leaves of the wide winding paths punctured by such pests, the latter is recommended to be removed from the leaves.

Cabbage pack-choy: recipes

Fried pak-choi

- Young cabbage pak-choi - 350 grams.

- Soy sauce - ½ tbsp. Spoons.

- Corn flour - ½ tsp.

- Vegetable oil - 1 tbsp. a spoon.

Cabbage should be washed, cut into two pieces and fried for 5 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally. In parallel, mix the corn flour with soy sauce, gradually adding 50 ml of water during the stirring. Fried cabbage to lay out on a serving dish, and put the sauce in the pan, where pack-choy was prepared, and bring to a boil with constant stirring. Thick sauce to pour the Chinese cabbage. Add to the taste of ground pepper.

Pak-choi in oyster sauce

- Broth chicken - 200 ml.

- Pak-choi - 4-5 pieces (about 400 grams).

- Brown sugar - 1 tbsp. a spoon.

- Peanut (or any vegetable) oil - 3 tbsp. Spoons.

- Crushed peanuts - 2 tbsp. Spoons.

- Oyster sauce - 2 tbsp. Spoons.

- Seeds of sesame seeds - ½ tsp.

- Green onions - 3 feathers.

- Salt - 1 tbsp. a spoon.

Cabbage kochanchiki wash and cut into two halves. In a saucepan, boil water, add a tablespoon of peanut butter and salt, which will allow the leaves to preserve the natural bright green color, and directly cabbage kopecks themselves. For a few seconds, blanch and take out as soon as the leaves are soft. Put the cabbage in cold water. In the wok (round deep Chinese frying pan), heat up the remains of peanut butter, add cabbage, oyster sauce, chicken broth and brown sugar. Stir gently, bring to a boil and cook for about 2 minutes. Ready cabbage kochanchiki put on a serving plate, pour the prepared broth, sprinkle with rings of spring onions, sesame seeds and crushed peanuts.