Farmland - a place where you want to relax in the hot summer. The shoots of decorative pumpkins will decorate any garden. In early summer, bright flowers appear on them, and by the middle of July - multi-colored fruits. There are many types of ornamental pumpkin, the cultivation of which is possible from seeds - and in the form of a mushroom, a curly pear. In our article we will consider one of the unusual varieties - Turkish turban.
Table of contents
Description of the variety of ornamental pumpkin Turkish turban
Turkish turban - a plant with beautiful faceted leaves up to 2.5 meters long. Pumpkin flowers look like bells, bright yellow, rather large (10 cm in diameter).
The fruits of its shape resemble a hat from Turkey, a turban or a turban. They are miniature and colorful. One plant is able to bring up to 30 fruits.
Turkish turban is growing rapidly. Stems reach 6 m and more (if they are not pinned). They quickly climb a vertical pedestal, decorating the garden and create a cool shade on the site.
Seedling
In the southern regions of Russia pumpkin seeds in the middle of May planted in the ground. Growing decorative pumpkin fast. In one season, she has time to grow and give fruit with proper care.
At a temperature of -1 sprouts die, so in the regions north of the seeds are planted in seedlings. In addition, the seedling method of planting will accelerate growth and maturation.
Before planting, seeds are soaked for an hour in warm water or in a preparation for growth.Then the seeds are transferred to gauze and left to warm for 2 days. There they germinate. Seeds are planted in separate containers of 500 ml each.
Soil for seedlings is needed fertile, loose and weakly acidic. To do this, take the soil from the garden and mix it with:
- turf ground
- by sand
- humus
Before planting, the soil is disinfected with a weak solution of potassium permanganate to avoid the development of fungal diseases in pumpkin.
The first week and a half sprouts are actively drawn out, and after their growth slows down. Plants feed up mineral fertilizers and manure, soil loosen and water.
Two weeks before planting seedlings quenched - take out to the open air and leave for 15-20 minutes. Gradually, the time is increased to 2-3 hours.
Planting in open ground
In a month, when sprouts appear 2-3 leaves, seedlings are planted in open ground. IMPORTANT. Next to the shoots should be a solid vertical support, for example a wall or arch, along which they will grow.
Turkish turban - photophilous plant, variety it takes a lot of sunshine. Before planting, they dig up the soil and fertilize it with organic (manure or compost) fertilizer.
Under each sprout a well is prepared and poured abundantly with water. Sprouts from seedlings are planted in the hole at a distance of half a meter from each other.
Pumpkin care
Decorative pumpkin - unpretentious plant. It requires constant abundant watering and loosening soil. When the first ovaries appear, the sprouts fertilize generously.
In addition to loosening and weeding, gardeners sprinkle soil around sprouts. sawdust or humus (mulched). It helps:
- to soil the soil
- retain moisture
- preserve soil looseness
- prevent from watering the plants on the soil when watering or rain
The upper fertile soil layer is important for the pumpkin because of the structure of its root system. It has a long main root and many small roots that grow closer to the surface.
To the Turkish turban turned out "lush fence" gardeners pinch the top shootswhen they reach a length of one meter.
Fruits are cut together with the stem before the first frosts in September. Frozen pumpkins are not stored for a long time. So that their bright color does not fade, after collecting them they are kept away from direct sunlight.
Application of fruits
From mature fruits, skilled hands are able to make crafts for home decoration. Gardeners cut beautiful patterns and compositions on the pumpkin, varnish them. They make jugs, cups and lamps.
Children enjoy painting on the peel with paints. With the help of clay and old things they make funny heroes and cute little animals.
Both adults and children can do creative work and collect autumn still life from pumpkins, fir branches and fallen leaves, which will remind you of the year of harvest.
Can I eat decorative pumpkins
As long as the skin on them is not hardened, they can be eaten and given to animals. The upper part - the cap - is suitable for cooking soup or stews, it can be cooked. The lower part of the fruit is full of seeds and because of this it is not suitable for food.
Pumpkin fruit tasteless. They will rather please the gardener as a decorative decoration for the home and garden, rather than as a tasty treat on the table.
Diseases and pests
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- Bacteriosis - This is the most common pumpkin disease. Its main feature is the appearance of brown spots on the leaves. If the disease is not treated, it will hit the fruit with sores. For the prevention of bacteriosis, gardeners sprayed plants with Bordeaux mixture. At the first signs of illness, the plants are sprayed with a mixture of lime and copper sulfate. Affected and dead sprouts are removed from the beds, so as not to infect healthy ones.
- White rot. Sprouts are affected by white bloom, and then rot. This happens with excessive moisture. The source of white rot is marsupial. White rot prevention - water the plants with warm water. Dead leaves are cut, and place the cut sprinkled with activated charcoal.
vRoot rot. Affects stems and root. The cause of its occurrence is cold water and temperature drops. To avoid her care for the shoots, they are mulched. Affected plants are treated with a mixture of copper sulphate and zinc sulphate dissolved in water.
- Gourd Aphid. Small (up to 2 mm) insect, because of which leaves and flowers of pumpkin fall.Get rid of gourd aphids by spraying the affected plants with a decoction of wormwood or karbofos solution.
To grow on the site Turkish turban is simple and does not take much time. The effort spent on his landing will pay off. The variety is unpretentious. While growing, he will delight with beauty for more than one month. Its green array will make the garden shady and cool in the heat. And the fruits of the Turkish turban are a source of beautiful handicrafts that will fill the house with comfort.