Broccoli: cultivation and care in the open field and greenhouse at home photo and video

For those who have already planted cauliflower in their garden, growing broccoli outdoors is not a very difficult task. Exactly according to the same principle, you should choose a well-lit area, during daylight hours, with low soil acidity, and planting and care will please you with the absence of a large number of nuances and secrets. In order to grow broccoli in central Russia, it is not necessary to pile up greenhouses in autumn - harvesting, without losing its quality, can take place at temperatures down to -5 ^С.

Features of growing broccoli and in the length of the vegetative process - the yield of the plant does not end with the removal of the main fruit inflorescence. Before the time comes for the final maturity of the cabbage, small but fully formed inflorescences have time to form on the stepchildren.

Growing broccoli in a greenhouse is not much different from growing broccoli in the open field, so this article will not cover this topic separately. Let's discuss agricultural techniques for growing broccoli from the moment of choosing the right seeds to the conditions for proper storage of broccoli at home.

How to choose seeds for planting

The rules for growing this cruciferous allow you to use both purchased seed material and harvested from your garden during the harvest of the last broccoli crop. Growing from store-bought seeds does not rule out the possibility of seedling diseases later, so you need to treat them in the same way as seeds from your own garden.

In total, about two hundred species of broccoli are called by breeders, the cultivation and care of which is possible in the middle zone of our country. In other words, in order to optimize the choice and stop at one or two suitable varieties, you need to clearly understand what planting dates suit you, whether broccoli will be planted in open ground or indoors, sown with seeds or after it reaches a certain maturity with seedlings.

The first stage of systematization is the division of cruciferous varieties into ripening periods:

• Early ripe vegetable grows until the head is fully ripe from 65 to 90 days. Sowing seeds in seedling boxes is carried out on March 7-15, and transplanted into the ground 40-45 days later. Early ripe broccoli from the garden is not recommended for canning and complex processing - it is ideal for eating raw. Among the best varieties are called Tonus, Lord, Monaco;
• The characteristics of mid-ripening cabbage, compared to early-ripening ones, are more optimistic - this variety is already fermentable, but from the moment of sowing to harvesting, you will have to wait 110-130 days. It is not uncommon to harvest mid-season broccoli at the first frost on the soil. There are varieties Gnome and Fortune;
• Late ripening cabbage is planted in the second half of May, on thoroughly warmed soils. Grown cabbage is usually removed for 145-150 days, and the keeping quality of this species is simply incredible - about six months. Varieties that fall under this description - Marathon, Agassi.

In addition to the simplest division by the ripening period of broccoli, cultivation features also depend on whether the seeds were processed in the factory before going on sale. Among the inscriptions on the packaging indicating this fact, one can read three types of clarification:

• Regular - that is, requiring processing;
• Instructed - protected by a special polymer layer;
• Drajated - large, artificially rounded and as if encapsulated seeds.

The last variety of seeds makes it much easier to care for broccoli during the germination period.

Regular seeds can rarely be introduced into the hole one by one due to their small size, and subsequently, broccoli in the garden or in the seedling box has to be thinned out. Coated granules eliminate this inconvenience due to their convenient shape, and they do not require a transplanting stage, as they are introduced immediately into open ground. Growing and caring for broccoli does not depend on the type of seed, as long as all the instructions for planting broccoli are followed.

How to prepare seeds

How to grow broccoli from ordinary planting material? It is dangerous to plant untreated seeds immediately - most likely, the grains will die from fungus or pest activity, and besides, they need to be hardened and stimulated.The actions of a competent gardener can be built according to the following algorithm:

• Initial sorting, soaking in pale pink potassium permanganate and washing twice - after bathing in a solution of manganese, the seeds may turn red - this is not a problem;
• Contrast bathing: first, the seeds are dipped in hot (50 ^{C) water for 20 minutes, then in very cold water for 5 minutes. After that, the seeds in a saucer with water are put in the refrigerator, where they are kept for 8-12 hours;}
• After hardening, prevent future broccoli from pests. Seeds are soaked in one of the solutions, the dilution of which must comply with the instructions attached to the preparation. These are: Epin, Albit, Agat-25.

Gardeners who deny chemistry in growing vegetables prevent possible cabbage diseases without the use of purchased products - for example, by soaking the seeds for 24 hours in the juice of a medicinal three-year-old aloe.

How to grow seedlings

How to grow broccoli from seedlings? There are two options - at home and in a greenhouse. The second option (greenhouse planting) is more optimal, since you can get much more plants, and they will be much better prepared for environmental factors than "home" kids. Seeds are planted in the soil from the 20th of April to the first half of May, and after a month most of the seedlings have 6 leaves, which means they are ready to be transplanted to a permanent place. Most often, this method is used for mid-season varieties.

Before planting broccoli at home, you need to prepare a box, the depth of which will be filled with soil at least 25 cm. The soil must be loose, breathable, poured on a thick layer of drainage. How to plant seeds? - into grooves spilled with water or individual wells, also moistened. The main thing is that the distance between the grains should be at least 3 cm.

The temperature until the moment of germination is kept within 18-21 С, after the appearance of greenery 10-13 С. Humidity should be constant, at least 60%.

Should I do a pick? - necessarily, and in disposable cups or pots of peat. After the procedure, the plants are allowed to get used to the new state for several days and then fed with gentle liquid fertilizers, which include boron.

The vegetable is transplanted into the ground when the leaves get stronger, and there are at least five of them. This happens approximately 37-43 days from planting the seeds.

Planting broccoli in open ground

The preparation of the beds for seedlings is taken care of in advance and, first of all, by measuring the acidity of the soil and reducing it as much as possible if the test result is positive. The optimal pH level for cabbage to grow without pathologies is from 6.7 to 7.4 units.Acidified soils are one of the main reasons cabbages stop growing and turn red or yellow leaves.

It is desirable that the seedlings be planted in open ground in the evening, maintaining a distance of 30 cm between shoots and 50 cm between rows. Fertilizer with minerals is applied to each hole before the seedling is there; then the plant is sprinkled with earth, without touching the lower leaves. It is necessary to prepare a film so that in case of frost, immediately cover the beds.

In the first two weeks after planting, broccoli becomes more sensitive to cold and even at -1 temperature C the plant suffers and dies.

If planting is done by seeds, then special microclimatic conditions should be created in which the sprout will be comfortable. An optimal microclimate is achieved using a plastic bottle with a cut off bottom, which is immersed with a cut into the soil, thus enclosing each seed. Further watering and, if necessary, treatment of plants, as well as top dressing of broccoli, occur through the bottle neck. Remove protection after the formation of the third leaf on the seedling.

If more than one sprout happens to be in one hole, the extra stems will have to be removed. It is impossible to pull the plant out of the ground, since the root system of the “extra” seedling will pull the desired sprout along with it - we pinch off the weak sprouts, leaving the strongest one.

Caring for seedlings in the open field

How to grow broccoli? No new procedures are provided for the task of how to grow this crop - cabbage will need to be spud several times, periodically loosen the ground 6-8 cm deep, water and, which is not necessary for color and white crops and is important for broccoli - often irrigate in the heat leaves and inflorescences of a vegetable from a spray bottle.

Actually, abundant spraying can replace 70% of all irrigation - with this method of moistening the soil, loosening will be needed much less often, and water consumption will be less. You can do this daily, in cloudy rainless days - once every 36 hours.

Feeding a vegetable with manure is possible only after diluting the latter to a state of slurry. If you do not observe the dilution concentration of at least 1: 4, then almost immediately on the cabbage leaf you will notice the symptoms of a burn. The first two top dressings are best done with a solution of mullein (on the 13-14th day from planting) and nitrophosphate (4 teaspoons), diluted with 2 grams of boron in a bucket of water - this is done already when a head of cabbage is formed. The indicated amount of liquid is distributed into 5 bushes.

The last fertilizer is applied in August, and the largest bushes are given fertilizing watering exactly as much as the weakened ones. Dilute in a bucket of water: 0.04 kg of superphosphate, 0.02 kg of s altpeter, 0.01 kg of potassium sulfate.

How often you need to spud cabbage depends on the evenness of the beds, the looseness of the soil and the method of watering. The lower leaves can be removed altogether before the first procedure in order to prevent their rotting, otherwise the owner independently determines the need and frequency of strengthening the stem.With drip irrigation, for example, the earth collected around the stem does not erode for a very long time, but when watering from a hose, the roots are quickly exposed and cabbage often has to be treated for pests that quickly settle in the base of the plant.

And finally, it is very important - is it necessary to remove stepsons, to carry out the so-called "stepping" procedure at the vegetable? We explain - the third top dressing is carried out at the time when it is planned to harvest broccoli in just a couple of days. This is done in order to activate the growth of small cabbage inflorescences on the lateral processes, and therefore, it is simply illogical to cut off stepchildren from broccoli.

Of course, harvesting the same crop a second time will not work, but why not let the vegetable grow further if the taste of small inflorescences is no worse than the main ones?

When to harvest broccoli depends on the choice of variety and, accordingly, the planting period. The latest varieties are removed already by frost.They are also the most durable. Early species are completely unsuitable for these purposes - after 10-15 days, the inflorescences will begin to rot, so it is better to sprinkle them with water and freeze immediately after harvest.

Heads of cabbage collected in the intermediate autumn period - in late September, early October, may well lie in the refrigerator until the New Year. For gardeners who love to grow this easy-to-care vegetable, it is better to master different types of preservation - and then tasty and he althy broccoli will delight you all year round.

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