How to plant watermelons. How to plant a watermelon to make large, sweet fruits

Watermelon is a heat-loving plant in the pumpkin family. This culture, with good care, rewards its owner with watermelons of excellent quality. When buying this gourd on the market or in the store, there is always a chance to buy a low-quality, unsweetened or even dangerous product.

Therefore, the best way to get tasty, ripe watermelons is to grow them yourself. Delicious watermelons grow only with the right selection, preparation of the place, caring for plants from the very beginning to harvest.

How to grow a watermelon in the country

Choosing a place and preparing the garden

When choosing a place for planting watermelons, it is best to immediately determine the acidity of the soil. The best indicator for this is 7. The place should be sunny, away from trees, bushes and always on the warm, south side. The earth should not be dense and clay. The best precursor is onions, cabbage, and legumes.

It is best to prepare the land in advance, in the fall. The place for planting after the predecessor needs to be dug up and scattered rotten humus. For a better harvest next year, you can make a layer cake from humus, hay, earth and sand. In spring, the beds are re-digged, leveled with a rake.
If there was no opportunity to prepare the garden in the fall, then this can be done after the snow melted in early spring. The soil is dug and sprinkled with rotted humus.

Growing through seedlings

In regions with a short summer, watermelons need to be grown from seedlings.
To get a guaranteed tasty crop, you need to choose high-quality seeds suitable for this region. In any case, you need to choose from the early hybrids.
When calculating the timing, you need to consider that the seedlings after germination should be planted after 25 days. Seed germination takes up to 10 days (usually 3-5 days). Based on these indicators, the landing time is calculated.

Seeds are sown in mid-April. By mid-May, seedlings can be planted in open ground.

It takes root rather poorly, for this reason each plant is planted individually in pots.

For sowing seeds, you need to take liter peat pots or plastic cups of the same volume.

You can make the soil yourself or buy ready-made. Humus, peat, soil, river sand (in the same ratio) and 0.5 kilograms of wood ash per 20 kilograms of the mixture are taken. Ready mixes should be suitable for growing pumpkin.

Before sowing, watermelon seeds are soaked for half a day in warm water with the addition of potassium permanganate. Or germinate about 3 days after treatment in a manganese solution.

2 cm of watermelon is buried in a pot with moistened soil at 2 centimeters.
Pots with seeds covered with a film. When shoots appear, the film is removed.

Seedlings are set on the windowsill on the south side. So that the seedlings do not stretch, the temperature in the room is kept at no more than 24 degrees. After 4 to 6 days after germination, all weak shoots are removed.

To seedlings grow faster near the lamp is installed with daylight for 12 hours a day (turns on in the morning and evening). Watering is done every other day, heated to 25 degrees with water.

A crust must not form on the surface of the soil!

Plant nutrition should be carried out a week and a half after the appearance of the first seedlings. 10 parts of warm water are taken, part of mullein, a tablespoon of superphosphate, 2 teaspoons of ammonium nitrate are added, mixed and watered. The second top dressing needs to be done a week after transplanting seedlings.

Fertilizers diluted with water during irrigation should not fall on plants, otherwise burns may form.

Before planting, seedlings are hardened. The intensity of irrigation seedlings is reduced. A gradual decrease in temperature or daily ventilation is carried out. 3 days before transplanting, watering of plants should be stopped.

When and how to plant in open ground

If 5 main leaves appeared on the plants, then the seedlings can be transplanted. The temperature of the soil when planting watermelon seedlings should be at least 12 degrees.

Seedlings are planted in prepared wells. The distance from each hole should be 50 to 70 centimeters, between rows of 2.5 meters. The lashes during growth are distributed between the rows.

Seedlings are planted in a hole from a pot with an earthen lump and are filled in a circle with earth and carefully watered. At first, for better rooting, plants can be covered with a spanbond at night.

Video about planting watermelon seedlings

Growing under the film

When growing seedlings under a film, seeds can be sown in March. If seedlings are planted from pots, the temperature of the soil under the film should not be lower than 12 degrees. The best time for this is considered to be mid - late April.

For growing under a film, the film must be two-layer. The film is pre-stretched along the pits or furrows. The first layer is laid on the ground, holes are made with a length of 8 - 10 centimeters for plant growth. The film when growing seedlings should not touch the plants. For the second layer, arcs are installed on the beds, the film lays down and is fixed on top.

The first layer of the film will warm the soil, retain moisture and prevent weeds from growing around the watermelons. For uniform watering, you can use the drip system. Instead of the first layer of film with standard watering, you can use a special moisture-permeable material.

When plants grow, the second layer of the film should rise above the surface and allow plants to grow freely.
When the warm weather is established, the shelter is removed.

Care, the formation of watermelons, top dressing

After transplanting seedlings, after a week it needs to be fertilized. Water the plants once a week and with settled water.

30 grams of ammonium sulfate, 20 grams of potassium salt, 50 grams of superphosphate are added to 10 liters of water. On one plant is no more than 2 liters of fertilizing solution.

Half a month before the fruit ripens, top dressing must be stopped.

When the fifth leaf is fully formed, the growth point on the plants needs to be removed. When the first ovaries appear on the plants, the largest berry on the lash, reaching the size of a plum tree (5 centimeters), is left, and the rest are removed.

On one plant should be no more than 6 fruits. After the berry, 4 leaves are counted, and the ends of the whip are plucked off. Scourges that grow outside the beds need to be removed.

A large crop directly depends on timely pollination, and with closed cultivation, the film for the day when flowering needs to be raised. Otherwise, pollination will have to be done independently, combining the male ovaries with the stigmas of the female ovaries.

Diseases and Pests

When watering, you can not touch the plants, otherwise pests and diseases may appear. Watering is done at the edges of the pot and directly into the ground.

Unfortunately, gourds are very much affected by both diseases and pests.

Fusarium, powdery mildew, bacteriosis, botritis, olive spotting, anthracnoh during manifestations should be treated with colloidal sulfur, Bordeaux liquid, cineb.

Spider mite, wireworm, gourd aphid and many other pests damage and even lead to their death. To control pests, you need to use Keltan, Karbofos, Phosphamide and others.

When white putrid spots (sclerotinia) appear on the plantinfected parts are removed. Rotten places are strewn with lime, ash. Plantings are sprayed with a 5 percent solution of copper sulfate.

With the manifestation of black rot, diseased parts of the plant are removed. The remaining plantings are treated with a solution of copper chloride.

With root rot, watering is reduced, plants are sprayed with 0.1 percent foundationazole.

To prevent infection of watermelons with diseases or pests, weeds must be removed during the time.

How to determine ripeness?

When harvesting, you need to choose the ripe fruits. Volumetric ripening of watermelons occurs in mid-August.

The ripe berry becomes brilliant and stops growing.
The side on which the fruit was lying should have a yellowish color.
You can squeeze the watermelon a little and hear a slight crackle of pulp.
When tapping, a clear, clear sound is heard.
Ripe watermelon is light, does not sink in the water.
The tail should be dried, without hairline.
When conducting along the cortex with a fingernail, the top layer should be easily removed.

Who grows watermelons?

Professionals who grow watermelons are called "melon growers." And they grow their watermelons on the melon.

Melon - This is an expert in melon breeding.

Melon breeding - This is the cultivation of watermelons, melons, pumpkins and it is also a branch of agriculture.

This profession has spread in the southern regions of our country, and amateur gardeners in their plots grow watermelons in the middle zone, Moscow region, the Urals, and Siberia.

Features of cultivation in the suburbs, the middle lane, in the Urals, in Siberia.

Previously, watermelons could be found only in the southern regions, but now they are also grown in the Moscow Region, the Middle Strip, the Urals, and Siberia.

The main feature of growing watermelons in these regions is the seedling method.

Seeds are selected in accordance with the region, this will allow you to get a rich harvest and enjoy your watermelons. The variety must necessarily be early ripe. Hybrids are chosen for better endurance.

In spring, the planted seedlings are covered with any covering material for the night, or grows under a film and is aired during the day. To protect plants from the winds, beans, corn, and spinach are planted nearby.

It is better not to water the watermelons 2 weeks before harvesting, this will accelerate ripening, and increase the sugar content of the fetus.

Very large fruits should not be expected, but 2 or even 4 kilograms can be obtained with ease.
When planting the finished seedlings, you can get watermelons almost a month earlier.

Video about growing watermelons in the middle lane

As you can see, growing watermelons is quite affordable for everyone. If you wish, you can grow excellent berries in open ground.

It can be grown elsewhere than in the south of our country. However, at the end of March 2017, the State Register of the Russian Federation registered 211 varieties and hybrids adapted for various climatic conditions; including those that can be grown in all regions.

Today we’ll talk about a table watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) - it is this species that pleases us with its delicious fruits. Watermelon belongs to the Pumpkin family. Fruit (pumpkin) is a multi-seeded berry.

Watermelon flowers are divided into female, male and bisexual. The bulk of the varieties - with bisexual, but there are those in which the flowers on the plant are strictly same-sex. Female flowers are slightly larger than male flowers. Like many plants of this family, watermelon is cross-pollinated.

Watermelon flowers are located on the main shoot in the axils of the leaves according to the ripening period: in early ripening - from 4 to 11 leaves, with an average period - from 15 to 18 leaves, later varieties have flowers in the sinuses from 20 to 25 leaves.

Growing watermelon after related crops is not recommended. But legumes and cabbage are good predecessors.

Sowing watermelon directly into the ground

You can sow watermelons right into the ground, but you need to choose the right variety or hybrid for your region, otherwise you can’t count on a good harvest. Sow a watermelon when the soil is warmed to a depth of about 10 cm and the optimum temperature for seedlings is +15 ... + 16 ° С.

After the emergence of seedlings, they are thinned out for the first time, and in the phase of 3-4 real leaves - repeatedly, leaving the strongest seedlings at a distance of about 1 m from each other. In the greenhouse, you can take a smaller distance, about 70 cm.

Planting watermelon seedlings

Using seedlings will help solve the problems of the short warm period necessary for fruit ripening, poor ovary and excess moisture in early summer. In my climatic conditions, the period when the fruit of the watermelon grows (summer) is shorter than the growing season, even in varieties and hybrids with an early ripening period.

Sow in the beginning of May,immediately in separate pots with a capacity of at least 0.3 l, because the watermelon does not tolerate transplanting.

The soil mixture is made up of turf land, sand and peat, taken in equal proportions. For 5 l of the mixture add about 50 g of dolomite flour and potassium sulfate, about 100 g of double, about 50 g of ammonium nitrate.

Before sowing, preferably 30 minutes. warm the seeds in hot water (+50 ... + 55 ° C). Then sprout them in wet sand at a temperature of about + 25 ° C. When the seeds begin to show root buds, plant them in pots, sprinkle with sand, cover with foil and place in a warm place. During the day, the temperature should be around + 25 ° C, and at night it must be reduced to + 20 ° C. Somewhere in a week shoots will appear.

Daylight hours should be at least 12 hours, otherwise the development of seedlings may stop. With a lack of light, seedlings can be extended, so on cloudy days or in a poorly lit room, seedlings need to be illuminated.

When the seedlings already have 3 real leaves, it needs to be fed with mullein and liquid.

IN mid juneyou can plant seedlings in the ground, in a constant sunny place. If you had to relocate it to the garden earlier, when the threat is still relevant, experienced gardeners will help protect the plants.

Watermelon Care

Watermelons love to drink and eat)

Top dressing

When the seedlings begin to form lashes, feed the plants with a solution of mullein (1: 8) or chicken droppings (1:20). At the same time, you need to give the plant and mineral food - perfect.

Next feeding -potassium fertilizers must be given at the time of formation of the ovary.

Watering

The root system of the watermelon is rod-shaped, goes to a depth of more than 1 m, lateral additional roots can occupy a sufficient area in the upper layers of the soil. After planting, you can not water often, but abundantly: 3 buckets per 1 m², and at the time of flowering, watering is carried out at least 2 times a week. During the ripening period, watering is stopped.

The subtlety of growing watermelons is that with a sharp cooling it can become sick and die, for normal development and full fertilization of the ovaries, it needs a temperature of +25 ... + 30 ° С.

Already at + 15 ° C, plant growth slows down, so in unpredictable weather conditions in the middle band, many cover the melon with film. Abundant condensation may form on it from the inside; to remove it, pull gauze under the film or.

Another subtlety of growing watermelons is pollination: if the weather is cloudy, it is more difficult for bees to do their job, so you need to touch the stamens of one flower with two or more pistils on other flowers.

In the southern regions of our country, the tops of shoots are removed: their growth stops, they begin to branch more strongly, the fruits are larger.

Varieties and hybrids of watermelons

In order to somehow sort the varieties of watermelons belonging to one common variety, they were divided into 10 conditional groups distributed geographically:

Russian
Western European
Transcaucasian
Asia Minor
Indian
Afghan
Central Asian
Far Eastern
East Asian
American

The varieties of watermelons that are grown here, most often belong to the Russian group, less often - to the Transcaucasian and Central Asian.

When you choose a variety or hybrid for your region, pay attention to the growing season. For cool non-chernozem areas, early varieties are suitable, and for warmer regions, varieties and hybrids with medium and late ripening are good. You also need to look at drought and frost resistance. Surely many will benefit from the personal experience of our readers who successfully grow watermelons in various regions:, and regions, krai,!

"Twinkle"

This variety belongs to the early ripening, it can be grown in the Non-Black Earth region: 71-87 days pass from seedlings to ripening.

Watermelon grade "Spark". Photo from pixabay.com

The shape of the fruit is spherical, weight on average about 2.5 kg. The pulp is bright red, sweet; the peel is thin, black-green. Seeds are small. Sown in the ground from April 20 to May 10. Seedlings - from May 25 to June 10. Landing pattern - 1 mx 0.6 m.

Crimson Sweet

It can be grown under the condition of a short hot summer. From germination to harvest from 60 to 70 days.

Watermelon grade "Crimson Sweet"

Anthracnose resistance is good, powdery mildew is also almost not affected. It will weigh about 3 kg, the taste is full, very sweet.

You can on our market, where the offers of the largest online stores are collected.

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Russian vegetable garden

Growing watermelons in open ground with seeds and seedlings

Watermelons can be grown using seeds and seedlings. Of course, in order to eventually grow good and tasty fruits, the technology of planting should be carried out correctly.

In addition, subsequent plant care largely affects the quality of ripened fruits. Therefore, it is best to familiarize yourself in advance with all the secrets of growing watermelons using seeds and seedlings.

Landing place

To grow watermelon, choose sandy or sandy loamy soil. Its acidity should be 6-7 units.

Since watermelons are a heat-loving plant, the place to plant should be chosen warm, sunny, so that it constantly warms up. Planted in warm soil to indicators +12 +15 degrees.

Watermelons will grow well after the following crops:

potatoes;
cabbage;
carrot;
legumes.

In no case do not plant the plant in places where solanaceous or gourd crops have grown before, since these plants have common pests.

It's important to know: It is recommended to prepare a site for watermelons in the fall, it needs to be dug and loosened. Then on the excavated earth, the berry will grow well and give an excellent harvest.

Digging the earth should be done in conjunction with rotted manure or humus. The following amount of fertilizers is applied per 1 square meter - 5-6 kg of humus or rotted manure, superphosphate 50 grams, potassium salt 35 grams and ammonium sulfate 40 grams.

Sand is poured into heavier soil - 2 buckets per 1 m2. For fertilizer, it is not advisable to use fresh manure. When digging, all weeds and roots are removed, because the watermelon does not like these unpleasant "neighbors".

If further planting will be done under the film, then you should also purchase the necessary material and cover it with soil.

Planting watermelon

There are two ways to plant watermelons:

1. In a reckless way.

For planting watermelons in open ground, you should choose cold-resistant seeds with a ripening period of 90 days. Great varieties - "Twinkle", "Gift to the North", "Chill."

Before planting the seeds should be soaked in water. The temperature regime of water should be at least 50 degrees. Soak is necessary until the seeds are bent.

Then they are planted in the soil. The soil should be heated to +12 +15 degrees. Usually planted in early May, by the time the seeds germinate, it will become warmer, and the soil will be warmed up by the sun.

After 8-10 days, the first sprouts should appear. If the earth is cold, then the germination will be delayed for a long period, and as a result, the seeds may die.

It is worth noting: before landing, be sure to pay attention to weather conditions. If it is cool in early May, the landing should be postponed to the end of the month.

In order to grow a good crop, the following planting technology should be observed:

each hole is filled with a mixture of ash, earth, humus and nitroammophos (1 teaspoon). 1 tbsp of the mixture should be poured into the hole. This will help increase crop yields in the future;
then lay the seeds in the soil to a depth of 6-9 cm;
sprinkle with humus so that a crust does not form on top. This crust can harm the sprouts when they come to the surface, and they will die.

Below, we suggest you watch a video on how to transplant watermelon seedlings in open ground:

2. Growing seedlings.

Plant seeds for seedlings in late April - early May. It is desirable that the temperature range of +25 +30 degrees is maintained in the room.

Seed germination begins at a temperature of + 17 degrees, but so that they grow and develop fruitfully, it is recommended to maintain at least 25 degrees in the daytime, and from +18 degrees at night. Pickling seedlings is not necessary.

Soil in which seedlings grow, fertilizers should be added. This will ensure rapid growth of sprouts. For all the time the soil needs to be fertilized twice, mineral fertilizers are used as top dressing.

Important to remember:when planting seedlings can not be completely covered with soil. On the surface, leave sprouts 3-4 cm.

Sprouts should not touch each other, otherwise when planted they can be severely damaged. Therefore, it is necessary to observe the sprouts, and as they grow, the glasses should be moved aside. Ready for planting shoots must have at least 3 leaves.

Seedlings are planted in the soil in late May or early June. Be sure to follow the landing technology. Germinated seedlings are planted in prepared beds to a depth of 9-11 cm.

One or two processes are planted in the hole. If 2 processes are planted in the hole, then they are bred on different sides so that their lashes do not intertwine.

Before planting, up to two kilograms of compost or humus are poured into the hole and poured with water. It should be planted in the pulp from the soil and fertilizers, sprinkled with dry soil.

Care

In addition to landing, you must follow the rules of care. It is on the proper care that the future harvest depends.

Care consists of the following:

1. Shelter. In order to accelerate plant growth, covering materials can be used. An elevated temperature remains under the film and due to this, the plant begins to grow faster.

In addition, the fruits will appear 2-3 weeks earlier. Also, the covering material will provide protection from various pests. For shelter with a film, you can make not high racks on the sides and already put covering material on them. It should be removed in early June and preferably on a cloudy day, otherwise the plants may burn out under the scorching sun.

2. Irrigation procedures. Since the watermelon has a very powerful root system, which can go to a depth of more than 1 meter, it should not be watered very often. Once a week is enough. He will receive the missing moisture from the earth.

3. Fertilizing the soil. The first top dressing is done 7 days after planting seedlings or seeds. The next two do at intervals of 2-3 weeks. For the first feeding as fertilizers, you can use the following - a solution of ammonium nitrate, 20 grams per 10 liters of water. For subsequent feeding, it is best to use mineral fertilizers.

4. Work on the formation of bushes. Fruits are formed on the main stem. In order for them to mature quickly, it is best to leave no more than 6 ovaries on the stem of the plant, the rest is recommended to be removed.

Also, do not forget about loosening the soil. Beds with watermelons should be periodically loosened. It is advisable to do this after rain or watering.

Overgrown lashes can be tied to special racks or lightly sprinkled with earth. This will protect them from the wind and accelerate fruit growth.

Harvesting

Around August, the harvest begins. Before you cut a watermelon, check it for maturity. Usually a ripe fruit has a glossy peel and its tail is dried.

There are no hairs on the stalks. Usually, when you knock on a fetus, a dull sound is heard. All these signs are conditional, therefore it is recommended to use them in combination.

Growing watermelons is a rather time-consuming process, so you should approach it responsibly. Be sure to prepare the landing site well, pre-dig the soil and fertilize with fertilizing.

Do not forget about further care for the plant. The future crop depends on all the correct growing technology.

We suggest watching a video on how to plant watermelon seeds for seedlings:

Do you have a lot of free land in your garden? Try planting the biggest berry - watermelons. They are unpretentious and they do not require much trouble.

Pick the seeds

First you need to determine the seeds. It is better to select such varieties of watermelons that do not ripen for a long time, but it is also better not to purchase varieties that spit very quickly. For the garden, the best option would be such varieties as Sugar Baby or Spark. When purchasing, also specify where the seeds were brought from. If from the south, then it’s not a fact that they will be adapted to the natural conditions of your strip. Watermelons can be grown in spring. The first step is to grow seedlings. After all, planting watermelons in the garden is dangerous because of the risk of sudden frost. They can ruin a landing. Pots for seedlings of watermelons need to choose a medium diameter. Do not make any cuts on the seeds, supposedly for an earlier shoot! Before planting the seeds in a pot, they must be kept for 10 minutes in warm water. Then deepen into the ground by 3-4 centimeters. It is necessary to monitor the temperature in the room where the pots with seeds are. It should be between 18 and 23 degrees. And when shoots appear, try to adhere to a temperature of 18 degrees.

Watermelon Seedling: Care

In late May - early June, seedlings can begin to be planted in the ground. It will be better after the planting to cover the watermelons with some material. A few days before planting watermelons in the ground, seedlings should begin to temper. During the week, you need to gradually extend the time the plant stays without shelter. If the temperature does not fall below 8 degrees at night, you can try to leave the seedlings open at night.

How to plant watermelons: choosing a place

The place must be sunny and warm. The best option is for it to be accessible from the south to the sun and closed from the north and west from cold winds. Wells are best done from north to south in a row. The distance between them should be at least 60 centimeters. Pits are made about 50 cm deep, they need to add 2-3 buckets of compost or humus, one third of a bucket of sand and a little superphosphate, better than double. Mix all contents thoroughly. You can mulch the soil, as a result, there will be no need to constantly weed, and almost ideal conditions will be created for the root system due to mulching. On the covering material, holes are cut into which seedlings should be planted. Watering can be done on top of the material, it passes water well.

Top dressing

Watermelon seedlings took root and began to grow, which means that you need to start feeding them. For the first feeding, chicken litter or mullein is well suited. Then after 12 days, feed again, but with mineral fertilizers, watering watermelons must be strictly warm water, especially if the weather is hot. Watering should be frequent, but watering can be stopped from the beginning of August.

Time to harvest

So, how to plant watermelons, figured out. Now let's see when you can harvest. If summer pleases with warm days, then the first watermelon can be ready for use as early as the twentieth of July. But the main crop is usually harvested from mid-August. If the weather is still hot at this time, then do not rush to harvest, watermelons can still grow until September. So grow and enjoy the sweet results of your efforts. Now you know what you can plant in the garden. Everyone can do this, since planting watermelons, and even more so growing and caring for them is not difficult at all.

Today it has become popular to grow quite exotic plant species in a country house or garden, even if you live in Central Russia. This opportunity is provided by numerous varieties of watermelons and melons, adapted to the conditions of capricious weather, sudden changes in temperature, in a word to all the surprises of the risky farming zone.

Growing watermelons is quite an exciting activity, gaining more and more fans lately. To get a full-fledged watermelon in the suburbs or in the Vologda region today is not a problem, you just need to know some of the rules of agricultural technology and adhere to them strictly. Let's take a step-by-step look at the whole simple planting scheme for watermelons and find out what can hinder getting a full-fledged crop of this gourd.

The watermelon varieties offered in stores do not always meet the necessary standards for planting them in the Midlands. Here you need to be guided by the early ripening of the berry, and watermelon is considered a berry, you should choose varieties that give small fruits and are resistant to various diseases.

These criteria are met by numerous hybrids. Pay attention to the ultra-ripe varieties, they will be able to ripen long before the onset of the first autumn frosts, and you will get the degree of sugariness of the fruit that you dreamed about. One can also recommend the “Spark” variety, which is considered to be early among the avid gardeners. It gives very small fruits, but they are characterized by a high sugar content, can be stored for some time and very fruitful.

Preparing seeds for sowing

In order for the seeds to sprout quickly and together, it is necessary to carry out several preparatory measures: calibrate the seed material, then carry out a scarification, warm the seeds and disinfect them in a special biostimulator or a weak solution of potassium permanganate. Despite the apparent difficulties, the processes are not complicated and even inexperienced gardeners can afford. We will analyze each of their stages separately.

What is calibration? This is sorting the seed material by size, and therefore by germination. Why sort seeds? The secret is that if in one bowl there is a strong and large seed next to a small one, the first will not allow the second to develop normally, taking the lion's share of the food onto itself. Therefore, strong watermelon seeds are planted separately from weaker or smaller seeds. In this case, the seedlings will be smooth and friendly.
Scarification is a procedure that not all gardeners do. It implies damage to the shell of a seed, its filing or opening. These actions are explained by faster germination of seedlings. Scarification can be done this way: take a grain and rub it “nose” on sandpaper, so the hard layer of the skin will be erased and the sprout will be able to “jump out” faster.
Warming up is a mandatory step for watermelon seeds, it not only accelerates the biochemical reactions inside the seed, but also helps the fastest germination of seedlings. In order for the procedure to be performed correctly, water with a temperature of about + 50 degrees is required. It is advisable that this mode lasts for half an hour. Seeds are immersed in water and kept in it for the required time.
Disinfection is a must, it is necessary for the disinfection of seeds. They should be placed in a container with water, in which a small amount of potassium permanganate is diluted. 20 minutes are enough for the harmful bacteria located on the surface of the seeds to die. After this procedure, watermelon seeds are dried on a battery and can be sown in separate pots or boxes.

Note! Before planting, you can germinate the seeds by wrapping them in gauze or cloth, moistening it with water. It is desirable that the temperature during germination is quite high, above room temperature. To do this, batteries are used, but be sure to ensure that the fabric does not dry out. After the appearance of small white sprouts from the peels, you can safely plant seeds in the soil.

Soil and tank selection

It is advisable to place each future watermelon in a separate pot, the size of which should not be less than 10-12 cm in volume and height. It is advisable to fill the tanks not to the very edge, but to leave 3 cm, this is necessary so that it is possible to subsequently fill up the soil.

For watermelons, it is advisable to make soil from humus or peat with humus in equal quantities. Soddy ground (1 part) with humus (3 parts) is also suitable. To any of the compositions should add one small spoon of superphosphate or two large tablespoons of wood ash. This amount is applied per 1 kilogram of soil mixture.

How to sow watermelon seeds

Planting watermelons in open areas is possible only at the end of May, not earlier. By this time, seedlings are already 30-35 days from the moment of sowing, and it usually has 4 leaves. From these dates, and guided by these indicators, it is worthwhile to approximately calculate the time of landing, that is, these days fall in mid or late April.

Plant two seeds in each container, the depth of planting is about 3 cm. After emergence, the weakest is removed. Make sure that the place is not blown by a draft, for this the southern window is suitable.

Seedling care

For germination of watermelons, a temperature of 25-30 degrees is needed, if it is observed, then you can wait for the appearance of "loops" in six days. After the shoots appear, you can limit the temperature to +18 degrees, this is necessary for the adaptation of young shoots. Further, it is advisable to put each container in a place where again the air heat will be at least +22 degrees. This mode is necessary for three weeks, until the seedlings are planted in a permanent place in open beds.

A very important point in the care of seedlings is lighting. Young growth is very susceptible to light, and if it is missed, the shoots will stretch and become long and weak. Additional illumination with special lamps will help to avoid this. Watermelons are extremely light-loving plants, so make sure that there is enough light.

After about two weeks, the seedlings can be fed with fertilizer, which is prepared from mullein and water in proportions of 1:10. The manure should be fermented, it is not worth taking fresh, you can burn young plants. The second portion of nutrients is introduced after another couple of weeks. This time the nutrient mixture is prepared from mullein, to which 50 g of superphosphate, 30 g of potassium sulfate, 15 g of ammonium sulfate are added. These components are added per 1 liter of ready-mixed water with manure.

This is all that watermelons need as additional nutrition before planting in open ground.

Landing

You can not do without hardening plants, until the moment of planting, seedlings are taken out in a cool room, started for an hour, then for a longer period. What you need to know about the rules for growing gourds in a personal plot for each gardener:

Planting is done in the morning, along with ground from peas, watermelons are planted in a permanent place with a distance of about 80 cm from each other. Plants are buried to the level of cotyledon leaves. Then you need to water them and cover with a film.
The film can only be removed at the end of June, when the difference between night and day temperatures will decrease markedly.
Watermelons should be watered abundantly and often when female flowers appear on plants, watering is reduced, and when ovaries appear, it practically stops.
Pollination is an important link for the full harvest. It is possible, without waiting for the appearance of bees and other pollinating insects, to independently pollinate. To do this, you need to touch the rest with one flower. The fruit ripening period after pollination will come in 40-45 days.
The formation of lashes is a necessary measure. If you grow watermelons on special supports or trellises, you should leave one stalk to form 4-5 fruits. After the required number of ovaries is formed, pinch the stem, limiting its growth.
Watermelons need protection against diseases, especially if summer does not spoil the weather. Preparations: Hom, Ordan, Abiga - Peak will help prevent the development of peronosporosis, powdery mildew, ashotitosis, anthracnose. But from harmful insects it is worth stocking up with such means as: Fufanol, Fitoverm, Decis, Tantrek. They reliably protect plants from the attack of aphids, scoops, wireworms, meadow moths.

Sowing watermelon seeds in open ground is done exclusively under a film or a greenhouse, in previously prepared ridges. In this case, the crop can be expected much later, and the film cover is removed depending on weather conditions.

Growing a watermelon is a fascinating task, because not everyone succeeds in achieving the desired result, especially when it comes to risky farming zones. But, to satisfy their own ambitions, sometimes gardeners undertake the most daring project. Just imagine that on your table at the end of the season a ripe, juicy watermelon suddenly grown with your own hands suddenly appears, which, with its aroma, gathers a whole crowd of curious people around it. And, of course, it turns out to be ripe, red, sweet!