Peking cabbage until the 70s of the last century was common in Asian countries. Now, after the breeding of precocious and productive hybrids, its cultivation is experiencing an unprecedented rise. Peking is actively grown, both on an industrial scale and in personal gardens. This unpretentious plant grows well, quickly. Given the characteristics of the culture, two crops can be obtained per season. It is important to know the small secrets and problems of the vegetable, and keep them in mind when planting and growing.
Features of Beijing cabbage and the main ways of sowing it
Peking cabbage, like other representatives of the cabbage family, is a long day plant. This means that for fruiting (seed ripening) the culture needs a sunshine longer than 13 hours. If its duration is 12 hours or less, then the plant will not be concentrated on reproduction, but at the same time the growth of leaves and ovaries will be active.
If, when growing Beijing cabbage, all the work was done according to the rules, then the harvest will be early and rich.
Since Beijing cabbage is primarily grown for leaves and heads of cabbage, this feature of the culture should be taken into account when choosing a method of growing and sowing. There are two main ways to grow Beijing:
- by seeds;
- seedlings.
Note! Not everyone knows that having bought a head of Beijing cabbage in a store, you can not only eat it, but also grow a new plant from it.
Seeds, seedlings and stalks of cabbage can be planted both in open ground and in protected. Let's look at all the methods and rules for sowing culture, and talk about their features and advantages.
What kind of soil does Beijing cabbage love?
When preparing the soil for growing vegetables, one must take into account the following preferences:
- neutral soil acidity. Therefore, during the autumn digging of the site, the earth needs to be farmed out, to add dolomite flour or fluffy lime into it;
- good breathability and friability;
- fertility. When preparing the soil for each square. meter is necessary to make a bucket of humus. Immediately before planting, wood ash is recommended.
Important! Fertilizers for plant nutrition must be applied before planting. Beijing cabbage has the ability to accumulate nitrates, so the use of mineral fertilizers for its cultivation is not recommended.
The application of humus significantly improves the quality of the soil cover on the site
If we talk about the type of soil, the loam is the most suitable for growing Peking. When choosing a site, be sure to consider the height of the groundwater. With a lot of moisture, the roots of the plant can rot. In addition, the soil under the influence of moisture will be intensely supercooling or overheating, which is very undesirable for the crop.
For growing seedlings, loose soil is used. Preference can be given to a coconut substrate, in which selected and healthy seedlings of Beijing cabbage grow. It is desirable to mix the substrate with humus in a ratio of 2: 1. To improve the nutritional value of the mixture and its liming, a glass of ash is added to the soil bucket.
The composition of the coconut substrate includes dried and crushed remains of the surface of the coconut, which give a mixture of friability, breathability, have a drainage effect
Note! Comfortable soil can be obtained by mixing turf land with peat (1: 1). The mixture will turn out friable and nutritious.
Landing time
To get high-quality greens and heads of Chinese cabbage, you need a short daylight, so the best time to plant a crop is early spring (second decade of April) and the last months of summer. Sowing the crop at the indicated time will help to avoid the main problem - shootings of plants.
Peking cabbage belongs to early ripening vegetables, but it also has varieties with early (40-55 days), medium (55-60 days) and late (60-80 days) ripening. When determining the planting time of a crop, it is necessary to take into account the features of the selected variety: early varieties are preferred for spring sowing, and late ones for autumn sowing.
Helpful information! New varieties of Chinese cabbage Dutch selection resistant to shooting.
To get an early harvest, you need to choose a seedling method of cultivation. Seeds for seedlings are planted 25-30 days before the possible planting dates in open ground or in a greenhouse, that is, in mid-March for early heads of cabbage or after June 15 for autumn harvesting in open ground. For the subsequent planting of seedlings in the greenhouse, sowing seeds for seedlings can be arranged even earlier - in mid-February, so that in the second half of March seedlings can be planted in the ground.
With a seedlingless method of cultivation, the first sowing of seeds can be carried out in well-heated soil. For the middle lane, this is the end of April or the beginning of May, and the second sowing is organized from July 20 to August 10.
Video: on the timing of planting Beijing cabbage
Seed preparation
Peking cabbage seeds do not need special presowing treatment. They can be immediately planted in the ground. In the event that you are unsure of the quality of the seeds, they can be checked for germination. To do this, spread the seeds between the layers of moistened tissue, gauze and place in a warm place. If the seed is of high quality, then after 3-4 days sprouts will begin to appear. Such seeds can be immediately planted in prepared containers.
Note! If necessary, you can conduct antifungal preventive treatment of seeds. To do this, they are kept for 15 minutes in hot water (+ 48-50 degrees), and then for 2 minutes they are placed in cold water. Seeds so treated should be dried before planting.
When using self-collected seeds, they should be carefully sorted and sorted
Seeding for seedlings
When choosing a seedling method of cultivation, it must be borne in mind that Beijing cabbage does not like transplants, therefore, choosing containers, it is recommended to stay on peat pots or cassettes. This container can be planted together with the plant in the ground, thus avoiding the slightest damage to the root system, and the plant will go into active growth faster.
Step-by-step process of sowing seeds for seedlings:
- The selected landing packaging is filled with prepared soil.
- In the center, make a small depression in which from one to three seeds are lowered.
- Seeds are sprinkled with a soil mixture from 0.5 to 1 cm.
In each pot with nutritious and loose soil mixture, 2-3 seeds are closed
- Produce watering.
- Pots are placed in a warm, darkened place. Under the condition of high-quality seeds, seedlings will appear quickly - in 2-3 days.
- After the emergence of the sprouts, the containers must be placed in a bright, cool (with a temperature of about + 10 degrees) indoors.
Beijing cabbage seedlings demanding light
- Watering is carried out with settled water at room temperature as the soil dries.
- After each watering, the soil must be carefully loosened.
- As soon as the real leaves appear, in each pot they pluck out (pulling out from the ground can cause injury to the root system of the main seedling) weak plants and leave one strong seedling.
When 2-3 real leaves appear in the pot, one of the strongest sprout is left, the rest must be plucked
Sowing seeds in the ground
Spring sowing of seeds directly into the ground can be carried out in the southern regions. In the middle climatic zone, favorable weather for sowing will come only by May, and at this time the vegetation period will fall on a long daylight, and it will be difficult to avoid the shootings of the plants. If possible, a seedlingless method of growing is preferably prepared in narrow ridges and planted seeds in them in the following ways:
- Ribbon-lowercase, which provides for wide distances between the tapes (about 50 cm) and narrower between the lines (about 30 cm). Sowing seeds is carried out densely, since later thinning will be carried out.
- By group planting in holes that are made at a distance of 25-30 cm from each other. 2-3 seeds are lowered into each well.
Before sowing, it is recommended to mix the seeds of Beijing cabbage with sand, and moisten the ground in the grooves
Peking seeds are recommended to be buried no more than 2 cm. After falling asleep, the soil of the ridge should be pollinated with wood ash. This is an effective way to protect future shoots from the cruciferous flea. Shoots will appear 4-7 days after sowing.
As soon as 1-2 real leaflets are formed on them, the first thinning is carried out. When choosing a ribbon-line method of growing, first between the plants leave about 10 cm, and when closed, a second thinning is carried out and the plants are left at a distance of 25-30 cm from each other. When planting in the holes immediately after the appearance of the true leaves in each well, one seedling is left, and the rest are plucked.
Thin sprouts need to be thrown after the second leaf grows, removing the weakest plants from the group
Planting seedlings in open ground
Peking cabbage seedlings can be planted in open ground at the age of 3 weeks, provided that by this time the seedlings will have at least 5 true leaves. Before planting, seedlings are recommended to harden. About a week before planting, they begin to take it out into the fresh air: first, for several hours, gradually increasing the time spent. 2-3 days before planting, watering the seedlings is stopped and the plants are watered only at the time of transplantation into the ground.
Wells are prepared for seedlings at a distance of 25-30 cm from each other, fertilized with humus and ash, moistened. If necessary, the seedlings are carefully removed from the planting container and placed in the hole so that all the leaves are above the ground.
Seedlings of Beijing cabbage are very delicate and fragile, so it should be planted carefully
After transplanting, it is advisable to cover the seedlings with a film or spanbond in order to:
- protect seedlings from lower night temperatures;
- shade from the sun;
- protect the roots from excessive moisture in the rainy period;
- protect seedlings from pests.
Sheltering the beds with film or agrofibre will create additional protection for seedlings from pests and weather disasters
Video: planting seedlings of Beijing cabbage in the open ground
Features planting cabbage in protected ground
A vegetable will feel great in a greenhouse if you can create a comfortable temperature for it (no higher than +20 degrees) and humidity (in the region of 70-80%). The process of planting seeds or seedlings of Peking in a greenhouse does not differ from the process of planting in open ground. The only difference is the landing dates, which we talked about above.
Note! Planting Beijing cabbage in protected ground will allow you to get a vegetable crop several weeks earlier than in open ground.
Video: Autumn sowing of Beijing cabbage in a greenhouse
How to plant Chinese stalk cabbage
Peking cabbage is so vigorous that it can please a crop even from its stump. Moreover, the technology for obtaining such a crop is very simple. To plant the stump, you must prepare:
- a deep container in which the bottom of a head of Beijing cabbage will fit;
- nutritious, loose soil. It can be a mixture of turf land with peat or sand in equal proportions;
- a pot for planting, which in size will slightly exceed the bottom of the head of cabbage;
- dark package;
- sharp knife;
- the head of Beijing cabbage itself.
For growing green mass of leaves, the bottom of almost any dense head of Beijing cabbage is suitable
Note! There should be no signs of disease on the selected head of Beijing: spots, specks, and other symptoms of future decay.
The landing process consists of the following steps:
- Separate the bottom of the head of cabbage. The cut piece should be at least 6 cm. This is the starting material for growing greens and future heads of cabbage.
- We fill the tank with water and place the lower part of the stalk in it.
Only the bottom of the stump should be immersed in water
- We place the vessel in a cool room. High temperature will inhibit stump growth. The best place for her is a windowsill facing the north side or a closed balcony, if it maintains positive temperature.
In just a day or two, roots will appear at the bottom of the bottom, followed by green leaves. They can be plucked almost immediately and eaten.
Important! A planted stump quickly releases a flower arrow. It must be removed. If you allow it to develop, then the greens will become rough and tasteless.
To grow greens, the stump can be left in a container of water. If you want to grow a head of cabbage, then the bottom with the appeared roots is transplanted into a container with soil. Do this carefully, as the roots of Beijing cabbage are tender and brittle. Therefore, the stump with roots is first placed in a container, and then sprinkled with earth so that only the roots are covered with soil mixture, and the entire upper part of the stump is above the ground.
About a week later, after the appearance of a sufficient number of roots, the stalk can be planted in the prepared soil mixture
Note! When grown in a pot, it is not always possible to achieve a good result. A greater percentage of guarantee of getting a head is given by transplanting the stump into the open ground.
For some time, the planted plant is not watered and watering is resumed after it begins to produce new green leaves. A growing stalk can artificially reduce daylight hours. For this, it is recommended to close the plant with a dark bag for 12-13 hours a day.
Important! Providing a short daylight hours and observing the temperature regime (not higher than +18 degrees) after 40-45 days, you can get a head of Beijing cabbage. Most likely it will not be very dense, but by weight it can reach 1 kg.
You can plant Beijing cabbage from the stump with the aim of obtaining seeds. For this, the flower arrow that the plant will release is not broken off, but allowed to mature. After some time, it will be possible to collect seeds and use them for planting in the garden.
Seeds can be allowed to mature and then sown in open ground or in a greenhouse.
Video: growing Chinese cabbage from a stump on a windowsill
Peking cabbage compatibility with other garden crops
Experienced gardeners know that with permanent cultivation or a quick return of garden crops to an old place, the soil is depleted, pathogenic pathogens and pests accumulate in it. Therefore, when planting all vegetables, including Beijing cabbage, it is important to follow crop rotation rules and take into account good predecessors for the crop. For Beijing, they are siderates, legumes, grains, carrots. It is not recommended to plant a crop after any cruciferous, beet and tomato.
When planting Beijing cabbage, it is useful to take into account the favorable proximity of crops. Next to this vegetable all kinds of salads, onions, garden sage will feel good. Mutually beneficial are the joint plantings of Beijing cabbage and dill. The latter can be used as a sealant for cabbage plantings. According to reviews, it improves the taste of cabbage.
Dill is a great neighbor for Beijing cabbage
Helpful information! Joint plantings of Beijing cabbage and potatoes also have a positive effect on the yield and quality of the vegetable.
The attractiveness of Beijing cabbage is obvious: it is not difficult to plant and grow it, it quickly builds up mass and is fruitful. So choose a variety, and let the cabbage crop be plentiful, and the planting and cultivation process informative and positive!
