Garden crop zucchini - planting and care

Zucchini is a native of South and Central America. The plant leaves are large, with five pointed lobes. Flowers are dioecious (male and female), both types are on the same plant. They are bell-shaped and yellow in color. Pollinated by bees, bumblebees and other insects. The fruits of zucchini are long, cylindrical in shape. In technical ripeness, one fruit weighs about 700-900 g, in physiological maturity - up to 2 kg. Peel of young zucchini is soft, can have light, green or yellow color. In mature fruits, it is coarse, the color is light green, white or cream. Seeds are white. A lot of gardeners and truck farmers successfully grow a vegetable marrow. Planting and caring for the plant are not too burdensome. Various dishes are prepared from fruits.

Zucchini: planting and care of seedlings

This plant can be propagated by seeds. They are pre-soaked in a solution of mineral fertilizers or kept before swelling in warm water. You can plant plants and with the help of seedlings. Prepared zucchini seeds are planted on 1 piece in peat pots. Then wait until there is a small escape-zucchini. Planting and caring for the seedlings begin about a month before the transfer to the open ground. The earth is bought for this purpose by a special one, with a high content of humus. Before the appearance of the first leaves, the temperature in the room should be 20-22 degrees. To ensure that the seedling is not stretched, the night temperature is lowered to 16 degrees, and in the daytime it is again raised to 22 degrees. Shoots are strong, like the fruit itself zucchini. Planting and caring for seedlings provides fertilizing with mineral fertilizers. In early May, young plants are transferred to the open ground directly with pots. They will then dissolve in the soil and serve as an additional fertilizer. In zones with more severe climatic conditions, courgettes are first placed in a greenhouse, and open in the early June. This plant can be sown directly by seeds - immediately into the ground. But such a crop should be carried out after the frost has passed and the earth warms up. Zucchini grows well on a fertile, humus-rich land and prefers sunny places. Plant plants according to the scheme 70x50. Seeds are sown to a depth of 5-7 cm.

Care of the plant in the open ground

Care for zucchini includes weeding, loosening the soil, timely watering and top dressing. In the phase of five leaves the plant is hilled. If everything is done correctly, then the harvest will be good. When growing in greenhouses care is the same as on the open ground. The only thing you need to do is often to ventilate the greenhouse. Lack of oxygen can cause fungal diseases. Growing zucchini in the greenhouse is relevant for areas with harsh climatic conditions.

Composition and benefits of zucchini

In the pulp of plants contain proteins, carbohydrates, ascorbic acid, carotene, pectin, B vitamins, as well as minerals: magnesium, calcium, potassium, iron. Due to the low caloric content of courgettes, they are used in dietary nutrition. Zucchini is useful for people with kidney, liver, heart and GI.