Winter melon cultivation points, practical winter melon planting techniques

What issues do we need to pay attention to when cultivating winter melon? Let me tell you about it today:

Soil selection

When planting winter melon, you should choose sandy loam or clay loam with good drainage, deep soil and fertility. The previous crop should be a field where no melon crops have been planted for more than three years, and it is better if the previous crop was rice.

Sowing at the right time

Winter melon cultivation in Guangzhou is divided into spring and autumn planting seasons, with spring planting being more common, and sowing is generally done in January and February. Under the premise of taking cold prevention measures, early sowing is better than late sowing. Sowing in early and mid-January can extend the growth period, especially the vegetative growth period, so that the winter melon can set fruit around the rainy season when the air humidity is high and the temperature is above 20℃. Autumn-planted winter melons are generally sown around the beginning of the Lesser Heat (early and mid-July).

Cultivate strong seedlings

(1) To cultivate disease-free and strong seedlings, the seeds must be disinfected and germinated: soak the seeds in 500 times diluted 50% carbendazim for 1 hour, then wash with clean water, and then soak the seeds in 50℃ warm water for 3 hours. After washing with clean water to remove the odor, wrap them with clean gauze or a thin towel and place them at 30℃ for germination. When the seeds sprout 3 to 5 mm, they can be sown.

(2) To cultivate disease-free and strong seedlings, nutrient cups (bags) are often used to keep the seedlings warm: nutrient cups (bags) with a diameter of 10 cm × 10 cm or more are used, and after planting, the seedlings are kept warm in a small arch shed or greenhouse.

In addition to keeping the seedbed moist during the seedling raising period, you can also spray Prolec water and Avermectin to prevent damping-off and spot latent pests and diseases. When the temperature in the greenhouse exceeds 30°C, ventilation and cooling should be carried out in time. Winter melons planted in autumn are mostly soaked and germinated before direct seeding in the field.

Colonization

Winter melon uses nutrient cups (bags) to keep warm and grow seedlings. The seedling period can be longer. The seedlings have 3 to 5 true leaves.

Planting. The planting time is determined according to the temperature. In Guangzhou, planting can be done from the end of February to early March. After the planting land is plowed and harrowed, the ridges are made according to 1.7 meters (including the furrows), with a height of 0.5 meters and a width of 1.2 meters. 50 to 75 kg of phosphorus fertilizer is spread on the entire surface of each mu of the ridge, and a deep furrow is dug in the center of the ridge to bury 1000 to 1500 kg of fermented poultry manure. Before planting, 1:100 times carbendazim is applied to the soil to prevent diseases. Plant in single rows with a spacing of 0.65 meters. About 600 plants are planted per mu.

Build a trellis, prune vines, and keep melons

Erection of trellises and vine trimming are important links in winter melon cultivation. The trellis is generally a three-star drum frame dragon root. When the vine grows to 60 cm, let the main vine coil around its own drum frame close to the ground, and combine it with vine pressing to fix the growth direction. When the vine grows to 18 nodes, it can be led to the trellis, and all side vines are removed before and after fruit setting. After the melon is left, the main vine is topped with 10 to 12 leaves. The node position of the melon left in the winter melon has a certain relationship with the fruit size. The node position of the melon left should be between 23 and 25 nodes, among which the melon at 25 to 30 nodes is the largest. In order to go to market earlier, the melon can also be left at 19 to 20 nodes, but the yield is lower. In order to increase the fruit setting rate and reduce "empty vines", it is necessary to carry out artificial assisted pollination and timely prevent and control the melon fruit fly (needle bee) and thrips that affect fruit setting.

Fertilizer and water management

Winter melon has a long growth period, high yield, and requires a large amount of fertilizer and water.

There is little fertilizer, and not much during the vine pulling period, but sufficient fertilizer and water are needed during flowering and fruiting, especially after fruiting. In terms of the amount of topdressing, 30% to 40% of the total fertilizer is applied before the vines are put on the shelves, and 60% to 70% is applied from pollination to hanging melons. Fertilization should be stopped 20 days before harvest. Generally, thin water and fertilizer are used to promote seedling growth during the seedling stage. Fertilizer and water should not be too much from vine pulling to fruit setting, and should be properly controlled to facilitate fruit setting. After selecting the melon, fertilizer and water should be sufficient to promote fruit expansion. Heavy fertilizer should be applied 2 to 3 times in a row within 15 to 25 days, and 15 to 25 kilograms of imported compound fertilizer should be applied each time, and watering should be combined. Half of the ditch water can be added on sunny days. Avoid fertilization and partial nitrogen fertilizer before and after heavy rain to avoid causing diseases.

Harvest at the right time

Old winter melons are more durable in storage and transportation and have a better taste. About 45 days after fruit setting, the melon skin turns shiny dark green, and most of the leaves on the plant remain green and not yellow. They are harvested in the morning on a sunny day. However, they can also be harvested earlier according to the supply and demand of the market.