Beijing cabbage: cultivation and care in the open field, harvest secrets

Growing Beijing cabbage in the open field is not difficult even for beginner gardeners. But there are certain secrets that will allow you to grow a vegetable from seeds. Care also includes some features.

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Growing and caring for Beijing cabbage is based on the fact that it is a crop that tolerates low air temperatures well. Seeds can begin to germinate even at a soil temperature of 4 degrees. But further development cannot take place under such conditions. The vegetable feels great at a temperature of about 18 degrees.In summer cottages, you need to choose a place with sufficient lighting and humidity.

In order for heads of cabbage to be tied, you need to choose the right plot in the garden. It is best to plant where carrots, garlic, onions, and cucumbers used to grow. Do not plant where radishes, mustards and all cabbage species have been harvested.

How to grow Chinese cabbage in the garden depends on the planting material, but first you need to prepare the ground. Since autumn, the selected area is sprinkled with lime components. In extreme cases, a herbicide can be used. In the spring, they dig up the earth with the introduction of humus or compost.

The secrets of growing Beijing cabbage are related to planting dates. The best period is considered to be a period with a short daylight hours. When daylight is more than 13 hours, the vegetable begins to bloom and shoot arrows, and the harvest is significantly reduced.

Auspicious time is mid-April, the last decade in July and early August. During these periods, daylight hours are less than 12 hours. Most often, varieties suitable for salads are chosen for spring, and in summer you can plant a vegetable to form a head.

There are varietal and hybrid types of cabbage. The easiest hybrids to care for are those that are bred by crossing several varieties for the best performance. Hybrids tolerate fluctuations in temperature, are more resistant to diseases and resistant to flowering.

It is also recommended to choose early and medium varieties for planting. How long does Beijing cabbage grow? Early ripening will allow you to harvest a month later. Medium varieties mature in approximately two months.

Preparing seedlings

Planting Beijing cabbage in open beds can be done using seedlings or seeds. How to grow a crop, the vegetable grower decides. It is believed that if seedlings are grown at home, then development will take place at an accelerated pace.

For cultivation and care in the open field of Chinese cabbage in the form of seedlings, seeds can be planted on the 20th of March.If you intend to leave the vegetable for winter storage, then it is better to plant the seeds later. As a container, it is better to choose separate peat cups, since the vegetable does not tolerate transplanting and picking (pinching the main root).

The plant feels good in soil from humus with coconut substrate or soddy soil with peat. A depression equal to 1 cm is made in the soil. It is better to place two or even three seeds in the hole. This will increase the chances of germination. Then they fall asleep with a thin layer of soil, mulch with peat, cover with a bag and transfer to a dark place.

The first sprouts should appear in three days. As soon as most of the planted seeds appear, the film is removed and the cups with sprouts are taken out to a lighted place. Do not forget about watering, do not allow the formation of a dry crust.

When the first leaves appear, thinning is carried out. The strongest sprout is left, the rest are pinched, but not pulled out with the root. As soon as 5 leaves appear, the seedlings are ready for transplanting.

Growing options

How to grow Beijing cabbage in the open field using ready-made seedlings? In the spring, before planting seedlings, it is recommended to introduce a herbicide into the ground (Tornado, Default, Announcement, Typhoon). Herbicide is used only when weeds are heavily attacked.

Holes are made in open beds. The size depends on the purpose of the finished crop. If it is necessary to collect leaves for lettuce, then holes in the furrow are made at a distance of 13 cm with a depth equal to the size of the cup. Row spacing should be approximately 45 cm. If it is intended to harvest heads, then the distance between the recesses in the furrow is increased to 35 cm.

The specificity of planting seedlings is to apply fertilizer to each depression made. You can make a composition of superphosphate, wood ash and urea. All these components are mixed with the ground and watered. You can place young seedlings along with a peat pot in a prepared hole.

After planting, water and protect from adverse weather events for approximately 12 days with non-woven fabrics until the plant takes root.

How to grow Beijing cabbage in the country, if seeds are planted in the ground right away? In the selected area, every 25 cm, deepenings of 2 cm are made. It is useful to add humus, wood ash to them and pour abundantly. Two or three seeds are placed in each well. After about five days, shoots emerge and thin out, leaving the strongest sprout.

From the experience of gardeners who have been growing vegetables for more than one year, it can be judged that any method with proper care will give a good result. Galina, 43 years old: “For many years I have been planting cabbage immediately with seeds in open beds. I make sure to provide shade, mulch the soil, and apply fertilizer.”

Rules of care

Agricultural technology of Beijing cabbage must be carried out in accordance with all the rules.12-14 days after planting cabbage seedlings, it is recommended to carry out the mulching procedure. Straw, sawdust, peat, fresh herbs are suitable as mulch. Moisture will be retained in the soil, there will be fewer weeds. Herbicide can be used for weeds.

Watering Beijing cabbage is enough once every seven days, early in the morning or in the evening, with warm, settled water. Irrigation is carried out under the root, moisture should not be allowed to get on the leaves.

The peculiarities of growing Chinese cabbage also include the obligatory loosening procedure. So that a crust does not form on the soil over the entire growing season, you need to carry out 3-4 loosening with a depth of 3 cm. After rain, you can carry out deeper loosening.

Beijing cabbage is cared for with mineral and organic fertilizers. As a top dressing for Beijing cabbage, which is applied 12 days after transplantation, manure, bird droppings or herbal infusions are widely used.They allow you to enrich the soil with nutrients and protect plants from diseases. If the planting material was originally planted in well-fertilized beds, then additional feeding is not required.

Whether it is necessary to pick off the leaves of Beijing cabbage depends on the appearance. If they have changed color and become deformed, then it is better to carefully cut off so that other leaves do not become infected.

Do I need to spud Chinese cabbage? Some gardeners bypass this procedure, believing that it is useless and even harmful to this plant. Those who spud the plant leave only positive feedback. The head of cabbage ripens faster and is protected from pests. Hilling should be carried out three weeks after planting seedlings. Then the hilled bush needs to be loosened around. At this stage, the plant is fed with nitrogen components. Be sure to get rid of weeds.

Gentle conditions

How to care for a vegetable in a polycarbonate greenhouse? Growing Beijing cabbage in a greenhouse can also take place as a seedling option, or you can immediately sow the seeds. If there are a lot of weeds in the greenhouse, then a herbicide can be used.

Greenhouse harvest can be harvested in 26 days. Harvesting is recommended early in the morning or before consumption, as it will wither quickly.

In the greenhouse, cultivation is carried out at a temperature of 17 degrees. If seeds are planted, then until sprouts appear, the temperature rises to 20 degrees. As it strengthens and develops, it can be reduced to 10 degrees.

Growing rules include an item that takes into account the regulation of the flow of light to the beds. If this is not done, the arrows will go quickly. Therefore, a shaded frame is set.

Beijing cabbage is not resistant to diseases and pests.Therefore, Beijing cabbage should be grown in a greenhouse, observing preventive measures. For this purpose, it is better to use natural ingredients. For example, wood ash. Since cabbage has a short ripening period, when chemicals are used, toxins will accumulate in the head.

In the event of a massive invasion of pests that spread disease, pesticides may be used (Fury, Bankol). The cultivated crop is watered or sprayed with a preparation diluted according to the instructions.

How to grow Chinese cabbage at home? One of the conditions is the selection of high-quality and suitable soil. It should be light, fertile, not sour or greasy. A mixture of peat, sand and turf is ideal. You can use coconut substrate.

How to grow Chinese cabbage at home? Growing should take place on the windowsill in large pots so that the roots feel free. The container is disinfected, for example, with a solution of potassium permanganate and holes are made so that water does not stagnate.

The landing date is approximately mid-April, when daylight hours are still short. If at this time it was not possible to land, then they leave until mid-August.

Growing at home involves placing 3 seeds in the shape of a triangle in one 3-liter pot. If the volume of the pot is 1-1.5 liters, then one seed is planted. The soil is preliminarily moistened and holes are made 1 cm deep. After that, the containers are covered with foil and placed in a dark place. After 6 days, the first shoots should appear. The film is removed and moved to the windowsill. Culture does not require additional lighting.

FAQ

Knowing why Beijing cabbage is not tied up, you can decide what to do to correct the situation. There are several reasons:

• warm climate or too bright sunny day (if the days are too long and hot, it is recommended to additionally shade the beds to start a head of cabbage);
• cabbage loves watering, but not frequent, otherwise it can lead to rotting of the core;
• heads may not be tied due to the fatty composition of the soil;
• besides, you can not thicken the beds and carry out thinning in a timely manner.

Many, especially beginners, are concerned about the question of why Beijing cabbage blooms? Heads of cabbage are tied only with a certain amount of daylight. Therefore, it is planted in early spring or late summer. At the sprout, a rosette of leaves is first formed, and only then does the head begin to form. As soon as its weight exceeds 2 kg, the risk of flowering and the appearance of an arrow increases. A lot of light and an air temperature of more than 22 degrees can provoke flowering.

Do I need to cut off the lower leaves of the plant? Heads are formed quickly and they are not too dense. Leaves need to be cut off only when they have undergone rotting or disease, which is extremely rare.Therefore, answering the question of whether it is possible to cut off the leaves, the answer is yes. But it's not necessary.

When to harvest ripened heads of cabbage? The first crop can be harvested when the size of the leaves is about 10 cm. You can pull the plant along with the roots or cut only the leaves. You can wait for the head to form (about two months), it should weigh about 1 kg.

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