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How to properly grow Chinese cabbage outdoors
Cabbage is a vegetable from which you can make a lot of excellent salads. However, it is not only famous for its amazing taste, but also provides the body with useful substances and vitamins. Today there are a huge number of different varieties of vegetables, they are all simply saturated with vitamins and differ from each other in appearance. One of the most beneficial for the body is Peking cabbage, which in recent years has become more and more popular among culinary experts around the world.
What is Chinese cabbage
Peking cabbage is a biennial plant that is grown as annuals. Depending on the variety, it has light yellow or bright green leaves. This plant is a loose head of cabbage with juicy tender leaves that have a white vein. The edges of the leaves are beautifully wavy or jagged.
The peculiarity of the variety is that it does not have a stump. The head of cabbage is thrown into soup or pickled, and the leaves are used mainly for making salads. Asia is famous for pickled Peking cabbage. They call this dish kimchi and many believe that it prolongs life.
Feature and history of origin of the vegetable
Peking cabbage appeared in China several thousand years ago, then it came to Korea and Japan, and eventually spread to Asian countries. After a while, this vegetable became popular in Europe, as well as in our country.
Beneficial features
Why is Beijing becoming more and more popular? This plant is a source of nutrients and vitamins. The main advantage of the variety is that even in winter it does not lose its vitamins and benefits the body.
The most important useful substances that are included in its composition include:
- protein;
- mineral salts;
- vitamins C, A, K, PP, as well as a group of B vitamins;
- amino acids;
- organic acids.
In addition, "Peking" also has medicinal properties. It helps:
- with cardiovascular diseases;
- stomach ulcer;
- strengthens the immune system;
- prolongs the life of a person.
The right way to plant Chinese cabbage at home
What gardener does not dream to please himself and others with new achievements and grow Chinese cabbage at home. To grow this plant from seeds, you can plant them immediately in open ground, or you can grow seedlings first. Planting Chinese cabbage at home both in Belarus and the Moscow region and in the Urals and Siberia follows the same scheme.
The only difference is when to start sowing seeds and when the vegetable begins to bloom. If you decide to use the first method, then you should punch holes in the garden at a distance of 30 cm from each other and pour humus into them. Seeds are sown to a depth of no more than 2 cm. They are sprinkled with ash on top and covered with a film. After a week, you can see the first shoots.
Seed planting scheme
What to do and how to plant seeds in the country or in the garden to get a good harvest? It is necessary to choose the right sowing time. The term for planting cabbage in the garden:
- in spring from and to April 20;
- in summer from July 19 to August 9.
Growing and caring for seedlings
If you want to get an early harvest, then "Peking" for seedlings should be sown at the end of March. And if you dream of enjoying the harvest in winter, then the seedlings should be planted in the second half of June.
Loose soil is suitable for this plant, therefore for sowing it is best to use a mixture of humus (1 kg) with coconut substrate (2 kg).
The seeds are immersed in the ground no more than 1 cm and placed in a dark and warm room. When the first shoots appear after 3 days, they should be transferred to a lighted place.
You need to take care of Chinese cabbage no more than ordinary white cabbage or cauliflower.
In general, the sprouts will be ready for planting in a month, when they have 4 leaves each.
Why is it not necessary to make a dive?
This plant does not like picking and takes root in a new place for a long time. Transplanting or planting seedlings while preserving the roots will not work. Accommodation in a new place will take a long time. Therefore, it is not recommended to dive it - it is better to initially sow it in separate containers or peat tablets.
When to plant outdoors
Before planting seedlings in open ground, it must be hardened. To do this, young sprouts are taken out into fresh air, first for a couple of hours, then the time spent outdoors is gradually increased. When they are able to spend a day on the street, then the seedlings will be ready for planting in a permanent place.
As for the soil for this vegetable, it must be well-drained and loose. Loamy soil is an excellent option. In addition, a plant of this variety should not be planted in the place where tomatoes and beets used to grow.
The soil for planting such a wonderful variety begins to be prepared in the fall. To do this, dig up the soil and add lime to it. When the soil is dug up in the spring, then humus is added to it.
How to grow and care for a Peking in a greenhouse
"Peking" feels great in the greenhouse. However, for this it is necessary to strictly adhere to 2 rules:
- Observe the temperature regime from 15 to 20 degrees - therefore, an unheated greenhouse will not work;
- Air humidity should be within 70-80%.
If these norms are not observed, then a peduncle may form, and the plant will also be subject to various diseases.
The advantage of growing Chinese cabbage in a greenhouse is that you can independently adjust the length of daylight hours and maintain the optimal temperature. A greenhouse will also help keep your crops free of frost. And if it is heated by you, then you can grow this plant even in winter.
Care rules
This plant is very fond of moisture, coolness and light. Young sprouts are especially sensitive to temperature changes and frost. Therefore, in order to protect them and allow them to bloom, it is necessary to cover them with a non-woven fabric.
In addition, the canvas will also protect the vegetable from direct sunlight on particularly hot days. It also helps to remove excess moisture and hide sprouts from the cruciferous flea that loves to profit from it. Mulching the soil can also be helpful to retain moisture and prevent weeds.
Top dressing also has a fruitful effect on it. The first feeding is carried out 14 days after planting in open ground.
Infusions from chicken manure, grass or mullein are especially useful. A liter of such fertilizer is poured under each plant. If cabbage was planted in spring, then feeding must be done 3 times, and if in summer, then 2 times.
If you want to get a good ovary, then it is worth adding 2 g of boric acid to a liter of hot water and 9 liters of cold water and treating the "Peking" with this solution.
Harvesting and storage
In order for the vegetable to lie in the cellar for as long as possible, it is better to give preference to the varieties that are harvested in September. And also the more leaves remain with the head of cabbage, the longer the plant will be stored. In addition, it will lie longer if placed in a room with high air humidity. Moreover, each head of cabbage is well wrapped in plastic wrap. You should also inspect each head of cabbage every 14 days, remove dried or rotten leaves.
You can also store cabbage in the refrigerator or on the balcony. The main thing is that condensation does not form on it, and the temperature does not drop less than 0 degrees.
In general, when storing cabbage on a balcony or refrigerator, you need to follow the same rules as when storing in a cellar.
You should also know that the vegetable will lie in such conditions from 1 to 4 months. If you want it to last longer, then you can use the following storage methods:
- leaven;
- drying;
- freezing.
The first way is leaven. It is one of the simplest storage methods. The sourdough recipe is very simple: you need to pour 10 kg of shredded cabbage with 600 ml of water and add 100 mg of vinegar, 2 tsp each. salt and sugar, as well as 2 cloves of garlic squeezed through a press. Further under the press, all this should stand in a room with room temperature for about a day, and then 14 days in the cold.
To dry the "Peking", it is cut into strips and placed in an oven heated to 100 degrees and the door is slightly opened. It will be ready in 4 hours, after which the dried vegetable is placed in cotton bags.
As you can see, Chinese cabbage is a wonderful plant that will look like decoration on any table. Do not be afraid to take up the cultivation of Peking, because it is not picky about care and is very useful. Therefore, each gardener should allocate a place in his summer cottage of Peking cabbage.
