Growing melons in a greenhouse: shaping, planting and care with video

In the northern regions of Russia, the only way to enjoy the taste of a ripe, self-grown melon is to plant it in a greenhouse structure. Before planting pre-grown seedlings in a greenhouse, you need to know how to do it. Otherwise, if the melon is grown incorrectly in a greenhouse, it will not produce juicy, ripe, formed fruits, and may even die. This is due to the fact that such a plant culture is thermophilic, needs good lighting, ventilation. It is characterized by an extended growing season, cold intolerance. You can cope with all the capricious features of the melon by creating the right conditions in the greenhouse.

Boarding rules

There are several features of growing melons in a polycarbonate greenhouse. To get a rich harvest, before planting, the summer resident must determine the scheme for caring for this crop, forming a plan for the timely planting of seedlings, its transplantation, and ensuring optimal conditions for plant growth.

The first step is to choose a site suitable for planting. In this case, you should refuse to use the greenhouse, as its dimensions are too small. The greenhouse must have a minimum of two meters in height. This is due to the fact that melons gradually begin to curl along the trellises, and in lower structures there will be no free space for the full formation of fruits.

If the days in the region are not bright enough, the greenhouse should be equipped with special lamps. Since the melon prefers to grow in warmth, it is necessary to provide a greenhouse and devices that maintain the optimum temperature for its growth.Good ventilation should be installed in the greenhouse, since the melon does not develop with high humidity. At the same time, drafts should not be allowed.

Next, you need to form the beds. This is done taking into account the following instructions:

1. 20 centimeters of topsoil is removed.
2. Twigs, gravel, expanded clay are placed in the resulting recess.
3. Hay is laid on the laid drainage. This component can also be replaced with cut grass.
4. Following everything is sprinkled with humus.
5. Fertilizer is covered with fallen leaves, sawdust.
6. The formed layer is covered with soil, to which lime and mineral fertilizers are added. Add these components only if the soil is heavy, acidic.
7. Finish the bed by watering it with warm water and covering it with a dark material that allows the soil to warm up quickly.

With the help of such instructions, you can create a warm, nutritious environment in which the plant will develop comfortably.

Melon can only be planted in a greenhouse in seedlings. To get a strong, hardy plant, you need to follow a few rules for growing seedlings:

1. Sowing seeds is required in pots made of peat with a diameter of 14 centimeters. Since the melon does not like to be transplanted, this method will avoid damaging the seedlings.
2. Crop should be sown only when optimal temperature indicators are established: during the day 23 degrees with a deviation in both directions by 3 units, and at night 18 degrees.
3. Before planting the material, it should be hardened, reducing the night temperature to 16 degrees.
4. Seedlings are best placed on the southern windows. If the weather is cloudy, fitolamps should be installed on the windowsill. The same device should be installed if the daylight hours are less than 12 hours.
5. Watering seedlings requires warm, settled water. Watering is organized only after the topsoil dries.

To protect the sprouts from excessive moisture, it is better to use soil with the addition of sand for growing.

Growing in the greenhouse

Planting a melon in a greenhouse structure made of polycarbonate sheets is carried out in the last days of May. But at the same time, it is necessary to take into account the peculiarities of the weather of the season.

It is also necessary to pay special attention to the choice of melon variety. For greenhouse cultivation, the following varieties will be the best option:

• Collective farmer.
• Galia.
• Canaria.
• Fri.
• Sharena.

These varieties are distinguished by sweet taste, reduced ripening time, endurance to temperature changes, good harvest.

If planting is planned in a harsh climate, it is better to give preference to early ripening varieties:

• Golden.
• Siberian early ripening.
• Gribovskaya.
• Tobolin.
• Golden.

Before planting seedlings, it is necessary to prepare the soil, warm it up. Holes are made according to the scheme 40x40 or 45x45. At the bottom of the holes, humus or compost is poured. Use for this should be 0.5-1 kilogram of fertilizer. You can replace 15 grams of mineral fertilizers. Then 20 millimeters of soil is poured, watering is carried out with a weak solution of potassium permanganate.

The seedlings to be planted should be 30-35 days old. 2-4 seedlings are planted in the holes. Seedlings should be transplanted directly in peat pots. Plants are dug in, watered with warm, settled water, sprinkled with mulch made from calcined sand.

You need to plant seedlings so that they protrude 3 centimeters above the bed.

To speed up the adaptation of seedlings, a film shelter should be formed over the bed. It is attached to arcs and pegs. The film should be removed when the plant begins to actively develop. Also, the quality of the crop is affected by compliance with the rules for the formation of melons in the greenhouse. When the fifth leaf appears, the plant must be pinched, eliminating the growth point for the formation of adnexal lashes. The weakest ones are cut off.

Mulching soil

Proper care of melons in a polycarbonate greenhouse also includes the need for mulch. Immediately after planting, the soil should be covered with mulch. To do this, it is recommended to use stone mulch, protecting plantings with stones. Also, bottles filled with water and made of dark glass should be placed near the plants.The bottles are stacked to form a triangle, surrounding each plant.

Such a coating is necessary so that the water poured into the bottles warms up under the influence of solar heat, protects the sprouts from the cold. If this is not done, the fruit will form incompletely, as the plant will be weakened.

Tie up and pinch up

On the 4th day after planting, they begin to tie the melon to the polycarbonate greenhouse trellis. Tied bushes in a checkerboard pattern. The twine is tied around the first leaf, fixed with a sliding knot on the wire. As the plant grows, the whip is wound onto the twine in the direction from left to right.

Greenhouse melons should be formed into 2 fences, fixed on the trellis. The rest of the melon shoots need to be pinched off. Pinching the lateral stems of the melon in the greenhouse is carried out after the formation of 4 leaves, and the main lash - when it reaches the level of the wire.

To get a rich harvest, no more than 6 ovaries are left on one lash of small-fruited varieties, and no more than 2 for large-fruited varieties. . If the melon lies on the ground, plywood should be placed under it, which will protect the crop from rotting.

Rules for watering melons

Melon is a plant crop that tolerates drought well, excessive watering is detrimental to it. Therefore, when growing in a greenhouse, you must follow the rules for watering melons:

• use only warm water, its temperature should be between 33-35 degrees;
• in the active phase of fruit formation, watering is increased, as the culture begins to need enhanced nutrition;
• when watering, water should not fall on the leaves, stems, root collar area, otherwise root rot will form;
• during the formation of flowers, ripening of fruits, it is necessary to lower the humidity in the greenhouse, ensuring regular ventilation.

When growing melons in a greenhouse, it is necessary to ensure that condensation does not form on its walls, as it will adversely affect planting.

Fertilizer use

Growing southern fruit in a greenhouse needs fertilizing the soil. This must be done taking into account several nuances:

1. During the period of fruit formation, complex fertilizers are required to be applied 1 time in 2 weeks. The best option for this is Kemira fertilizer. It is also recommended to make mixtures prepared from potassium sulfate or ash.Such top dressing will help ensure that the melon needs an increased amount of potassium nutrition. If the question arose why the ovaries of a melon growing in a greenhouse turn yellow, you need to pay attention to the amount of potassium in the soil.
2. The plant needs to be fertilized more frequently when its fruits begin to swell. At this time, the soil should be fertilized once every 7 days. Zircon, Epin, as well as huminates are suitable for processing. These substances are excellent growth stimulants, their use should be alternated with each other.

The use of these fertilizers makes the plant strong, which is why it is less affected by pests and diseases when growing.

Hand pollination and melon shaping

When grown in a greenhouse, melons are pollinated by hand. To do this, it is necessary to spray with fruit formation stimulants, for example: Bud, Ovary. Under the influence of these products, pollen is actively formed.

After spraying, the male flower is inserted into the female flower. Next, a few light rotational manipulations are done. In this case, the flowers cannot be damaged. You can also apply pollen to a female flower with a brush. Pollination should be done early in the morning.

To get a rich harvest, you should not only pollinate flowers, but also form a melon in a greenhouse. You need to do this according to the instructions presented above.

Harvesting a delicious harvest

With proper care, the melon ripens in early August You can tell when a fruit is ripe by its appearance. Annular cracks form in the tail area, and a sweet aroma emanates from the fruit itself. If the fruit springs in the hands when squeezed, then it can already be consumed. If you plan to transport the melon crop, you need to prepare boxes and wax paper for this. Each fruit is wrapped in paper to prevent rot.

If fruit ripening has not ended in August, melons can be harvested until October. Ripe melons are easily separated from the stalk, if they grow in limbo, they often fall off on their own. Such fruits should be harvested immediately to eliminate the risk of damage to the crop. Fruit should be stored in a dark, cool place. Leaving ripe melons in the sun is prohibited, as this will spoil them.

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