How to grow watermelons in the greenhouse
Often the question is how to grow watermelons, because this fruit is not so easy to get at home. Therefore, in order to grow the watermelons the same as on the packaging of seeds, you should first plant them properly, and then provide proper care.
Growing tricks
Watermelons have always been appreciated, as they are not only tasty, but also useful. These juicy fruits contain readily soluble iron, potassium, folic acid, as well as many other valuable substances and are a source of magnesium. Moreover, with regular use of watermelons, it is possible to optimize the intestinal microflora without flatulence.
So, before growing watermelons correctly, you should know that this plant loves light very much, but it does not tolerate shading. This must be taken into account when choosing a site for planting a fetus.
Landing watermelons should be carried out on sandy soil, while it is better if it will be the southern and southwestern slopes, because they are very well warmed by the sun. As for the soil, which is unsuitable for planting a watermelon, these are soils with a heavy texture, as they are excessively moistened. Negatively reflected and the close occurrence of groundwater.
Neutral or alkaline soil is perfect, so watermelons should be planted in it.
It often happens that on the seed packaging there are watermelons of large sizes, and very small fruits grow that begin to crack while being green. As a rule, this occurs when planting seeds or seedlings in acidic, uncultivated soil. This soil can also be prepared to plant watermelons in it. It should cultivate this land, make lime, humus, mineral fertilizers and introduce a crop rotation with perennial plants. Only in this case, you can get an excellent result. Here you can start planting such varieties as the Montenegrin, beer factory, Borschansky and many others.
At the same time, it is important to understand that in order to grow early melon, agrotechnology is necessary, namely a number of special techniques.
The choice of varieties, as well as the choice of soil, should be approached very seriously. So, the best option would be seeds called “Sugar Baby”, “Spark”, “Gift to the North”, “Pink Champagne”. To seed quickly sprouted, you should first soak them and wait until they germinate. To make it all right the first time, we grow watermelons according to the above rules.
How to grow watermelon in a greenhouse
Growing watermelons in a greenhouse also needs to follow certain rules. Prepare a greenhouse, as well as the bed is very important in advance. In early April, it is cleaned, removing snow, after which the soil should be dug up. Watermelons are especially positive for sandy ground.
Before planting seedlings, for a couple of days it is necessary to dig a trench, which should have a width and depth of 30 cm. Then, manure should be laid on the bottom, covered with soil. To the earth warmed up well, it can be covered with a film. After that, in the garden should install the arc and stretch the transparent film.
Before growing watermelons need to cook. When the sprouts appear from three leaves, it is ready for transplanting into the greenhouse.
The technology of growing watermelons is as follows:
- transplanting should take place no earlier than May 20;
- in the greenhouse, it is planted at a distance of 60 cm;
- before planting seedlings, water the plant and the wells, it should be done with warm water;
- in no case it is impossible to deepen sprouts, as they will begin to rot;
- Upon completion of planting, it is important not to forget to close the greenhouse tightly.
To grow watermelons in the greenhouse, be patient and diligent, because this work does not end there. So, do not forget about the constant watering, which should be carried out regularly. In the first week should be watered after a day, for this is enough 500 ml of water for each plant. When it takes up to 10 days, it is necessary to feed with nitrogen fertilizer. During this period, plants are tied up in the same way, for example, like cucumbers. The greenhouse must be ventilated, in which case insects will pollinate the plants freely.
Much depends here on the greenhouse. So, watermelons in a greenhouse made of polycarbonate develop perfectly. Here you can plant not only melon, but also solanaceous crops.
In order to properly grow watermelons, it is necessary to know that after up to three fruits appear on the seedlings, the extra ovaries should be cut off, since they will not have time to ripen. It is important to ensure that watering is moderate, namely 1 time in 7 days. When the fruit begins to ripen, then it should be done even less. Every 2 weeks should be made supplements with complex fertilizers.
Watermelons in the greenhouse should not be in a hurry to clean, because even the biggest fruits may end up immature.
One should learn to determine how mature the crop is. So, ripe melon pattern is clearer and brighter. If you gently knock on the watermelon, then a ripe one will make a dull sound. As a rule, on average, watermelons in greenhouses reach ripeness after 70 days from the moment of disembarkation. It should be remembered that the cultivation and care is a very complex set of procedures, so do not be upset if you did not manage to grow ripe and juicy fruits from the first time.
Growing watermelon in the middle lane (video)
Secrets of growing juicy watermelons
If it is decided to grow watermelon from the seed, the seeds should be sown in open ground, when the first decade of May ends, and the soil temperature should reach 120 ° C. When the bones begin to germinate, the earth should warm up to 180C. If these conditions are met, the seedlings will appear after 8 days. It is important to note that the shorter the period that implies the formation of a plant, the more healthy it will be.
Plant watermelons should be in a warm earth, otherwise the seeds in the cold soil will last a long time, the period of their germination will increase, as a result, the seedlings may die.
Watermelon culture has its own subtleties: growing fruits at low ground temperatures can cause pathogenic microflora, which in turn can destroy sprouts, it will also have a negative effect on plants during the growing season. Therefore, not only the care of watermelons should be correct, but the landing should be carried out according to the scheme. If you plant watermelons correctly, the seedlings will quickly bear fruit.
The scheme of sowing watermelons directly depends on the selected variety, soil type, climatic conditions, agricultural technology plays a significant role in the care of fruits.
The following scheme will help to grow melon correctly:
- with early varieties: 140 × 70; 180 × 60; 210 × 50 cm;
- when mid-season: 140x 140; 180x 110; 210 × 100 cm
In any case, be sure to grow watermelons in the warm ground. If adverse weather conditions are delayed, it is better to postpone landing.
Growing watermelon seedlings, of course, will speed up the process, but there are some tricks that will help to quickly grow fruits from seed. So, it is possible to optimize conditions at the expense of any shelters, which can be both individual and group film. If you use film cover, it will help raise the temperature to 150C, so that the fruit will ripen much faster. In addition, watermelons and seedlings will be protected from pests. The best is considered a tunnel shelter.
Therefore, before planting the fruit, you should deal with the question of how to properly plant watermelons. With the above recommendations, you should not have a question about how to grow a watermelon in a greenhouse. Good luck!
We plant watermelon seedlings in open ground (video)
Gallery: watermelon growing (15 photos)