When is the appropriate time to plant watermelons?
Do you know these? The appropriate time for planting watermelons and related content about watermelon cultivation methods and green plant techniques will be introduced by the site editor for netizens.
Watermelons are annual vine plants of the Cucurbitaceae family and are one of the favorite fruits. Watermelons are known as the "king of summer," with sweet and refreshing flesh, and they also have high nutritional value, with a large market demand. It can be said that watermelons have become an important economic crop in China, a fruit that helps farmers increase their economic benefits. So, when is the best time to plant watermelons? The planting time and methods for watermelons are introduced below.
I. Watermelon Planting Time
The sowing period of watermelons is generally determined by the type of variety, cultivation purpose, and market period. Generally speaking, early-maturing varieties should be sown in mid-March and harvested in mid-to-late July; late-maturing watermelon varieties can be postponed to mid-to-late April, harvested from late July to early August; for autumn extension open-field cultivation, it is suitable to sow from late June to mid-July and harvest from September to October; autumn extension greenhouse cultivation is generally sown from late July to early August and available after the National Day.
II. Watermelon Planting Methods
1. Land preparation and base fertilizer: Deeply till the soil and expose it to the sun for half a month, sprinkle 50-75 kilograms of quicklime per mu, then crush the soil and make ridges with a width of 2.5 meters, including the ditch, with one side 40 cm high and the other 20 cm high; dig a planting trench 25 cm deep and 40 cm wide on the high side of the ridge, apply 1000-1500 kilograms of decomposed manure, 25 kilograms of ternary compound fertilizer, 1.5-2 kilograms of borax, and 4 kilograms of magnesium sulfate per mu in the trench, mixing the fertilizers evenly with the soil.
2. Selecting good varieties: Good varieties are the premise of high yield and quality. Reasonably arranging early, medium, and late-maturing varieties can extend the supply period of watermelons and increase economic benefits.
3. Seed treatment: Before sowing, dry the seeds in the sun for 1-2 days to increase their physiological activity. Soak the dried seeds in warm water at about 55℃ for 5-6 hours, then pour off the water and wash the seed coat with 5% lime water, gently rub the seeds until they are no longer slippery, rinse clean with water, and dry the moisture for germination.
4. Germination: Germination can be done using a greenhouse, electric blanket, quilt, or body temperature methods. For large planting areas, greenhouse germination, electric blanket germination, or simultaneous germination with corn and rice can be used. Beginners can use body temperature germination or quilt warming germination. First, body temperature germination. Spread the treated seeds on a wet towel and then wrap them in plastic film or a plastic bag and place them inside an adult's clothing. The seeds can generally germinate in 24 hours. It's best to have 50 to 100 grams of seeds per pack. Second, quilt warming germination. Mix the treated seeds with 5 to 10 times clean, moist sawdust or fine soil, put them in a small paper box, then into a plastic bag without sealing, place it in a bed with quilts, then use two high-temperature glass bottles filled with boiling water, tightly sealed, placed next to the seeds in the quilt, changing the boiling water every 4 to 5 hours, maintaining this for 36 hours, the seeds will start to germinate. Regardless of the germination method used, when the sprouts reach the length of a grain of rice, they should be planted.
5. Sowing: Place the germinated seeds, which are one grain of rice long, flat on the prepared nutrient soil in the nutrient cups, with the sprouts facing downward (since they are roots), place only one germinated seed in each nutrient cup, cover with 1 centimeter of nutrient soil, and sprinkle a little 1000-fold Toprobin water (or other fungicides). Insert bamboo stakes, cover with plastic film, and press the edges of the film with fine soil. Then insert another layer of bamboo stakes about 15 centimeters apart and cover with another layer of plastic film, pressing the edges with fine soil again. During this period, the temperature in the greenhouse should be maintained between 22-28℃, and after the first true leaf appears, the temperature can be gradually reduced. In the few days before seedlings emerge, the temperature should be lowered by 1-2℃ each day, finally matching the natural temperature to adapt to the post-planting conditions.
6. Fertilization and water management: Water management, watermelons require at least 2-3 waterings during the entire growing period. After the vines extend, the leaves increase and the daylight hours are long, requiring more water, so a "stretching water" should be浇ed. When the young fruit is the size of a fist,浇 good fruit expansion water to ensure the yield and quality of watermelons and normal growth and development. Subsequently, decide whether to water based on the local climate and soil moisture conditions, stopping watering one week before harvest; topdressing, watermelons are fertilizer-loving crops, and reasonable fertilization is one of the important measures to ensure high-quality and high-yield watermelons. The general principle is: be cautious with seedling fertilizer, skillful with stretching fertilizer, and generous with fruit expansion fertilizer. Topdressing should focus on fast-acting fertilizers. With sufficient base fertilizer, non-sandy soils generally do not require seedling fertilizers. Under normal conditions, two topdressings are carried out, with the stretching fertilizer mainly composed of nitrogen fertilizer supplemented by fast-acting potassium fertilizers to promote the nutritional growth of watermelons, ensuring the formation of a developed root system and sufficient leaf area required for high yield. Generally, apply 8 kilograms of urea and 5 kilograms of potassium sulfate per mu. The second is to apply fast-acting chemical fertilizers before the fruit expansion period, with potassium and nitrogen fertilizers as the main components, which is beneficial for the formation of fruit yield and quality improvement. Generally, apply 20-25 kilograms of urea and 10-15 kilograms of potassium sulfate per mu. Water and fertilizer management should be controlled reasonably based on local soil and climate conditions and the growth of the vines, achieving a combination of application and control, and irrigation and drainage.
7. Pruning and pressing vines: Watermelons generally adopt double or triple vine pruning. Double vine pruning involves selecting a strong lateral vine in addition to the main vine and removing all other lateral vines. This ensures reasonable vine distribution, good leaf ventilation and light, enhancing photosynthesis and disease resistance, thus increasing yield and improving quality. Pressing vines can fix the vines, prevent them from being blown over by strong winds, and control vine growth. When the main vine is about 30 cm long, lay the vine flat to force it to grow in the specified direction. Pressing vines can be done in two ways: open pressing, which involves using soil blocks or branches to fix the vines on the ground; and closed pressing, which involves loosening and leveling the soil, then burying the vines underground. Generally, press the main vine for the first time when it is 40-50 cm long, and then every 4-6 internodes, pressing 2-3 times.
8. Artificial pollination: To ensure that female flowers at the right node produce fruit, artificial pollination must be carried out. The best quality and yield come from the third female flower on the main vine or the second on the lateral vine. Pollination is done every morning from 7 to 10 o'clock. When the watermelon flowers open in the morning, collect the newly opened male flowers from the pollination variety, fold the petals backward to expose the stamens, and then gently wipe them on the stigma of the seedless watermelon female flowers of the day to ensure even pollination. When the young fruit is the size of a steamed bun, the fruit begins to expand rapidly, and at this time, there is generally no fruit drop. It is necessary to select fruits in good positions and with good shapes, leaving one fruit per plant for double or triple vine pruning.
9. Harvesting in time: Depending on the variety and ripeness, calculate the number of days after pollination based on the fruit marking to accurately determine the maturity and harvest in time; mature watermelons also have clear patterns on the fruit surface, a shiny appearance, a contracted navel and stem end, dried tendrils at the fruiting node, sparse or fallen hairs on the fruit stalk, and a dull sound when tapped with a finger. In production, the harvest standard is determined based on the distance of transportation, with local sales at 90-100% maturity and distant transportation at 80-90% maturity.
The above content about when to plant watermelons and related watermelon cultivation methods and techniques introduced by the Green Plant Enthusiast Network [www.lvzhimi.com] is for reference by green plant enthusiasts, hoping to solve your problems in green plant and flower management.