What are the latest considerations for growing pumpkins?

Pumpkin is a vegetable that many people quite like; it can be used as a vegetable to eat, and can also be made into various snacks, and its sales in the market are also very good. In rural areas, basically every household grows pumpkins, some for their own consumption, some specifically for sale, and now many places also grow pumpkins on a large scale, but problems always arise. So today let us take a look at the considerations for growing pumpkins.

1. Time

Pumpkins are generally grown in spring and autumn, but the main focus is still on spring pumpkins, because autumn pumpkin cultivation and management are a bit more troublesome. Next, the timing of pumpkin planting also differs slightly by region, which is mainly related to the planting temperature. Generally, when the soil temperature can reach about fifteen degrees, you can sow. Usually, sowing is done in January and February and in August and September each year. Then the planting time also needs to take into account the pumpkin variety, as different varieties have different temperature requirements.

2. Soil

Pumpkins actually do not have great requirements for the planting soil, but it is best not to plant them in heavy clay land with a lot of standing water. Next, be careful not to carry out continuous cropping on the planting land, and also do not choose soil whose previous crop was melons or fruits. Also, do not choose fields that have not been cultivated for a long time, because this greatly increases the chance of disease, and the yield will not be very high. It is best to plant in land whose previous crop was crops such as soybeans, sweet potatoes, and corn, because the soil fertility is relatively sufficient and it also meets the needs of pumpkin growth.

3. Vine training

When pumpkins grow to forty to fifty cm, we need to arrange the vines in the field. You can use the field-crawling growth mode, but the best is still to set up trellises and let the vines climb and grow along the trellises, which can reduce pests and diseases. Next, the tips of the vines should be pinched off so that side branches grow, which can increase pumpkin yield. Then, when the pumpkin sets fruit, we should remove the excess flowers near the pumpkin, and also remove some pumpkin leaves, which can increase the survival rate of fruit setting. If this is not done, then when the pumpkin grows to a certain extent it will die and cannot grow into a large pumpkin.

4. Water and fertilizer

The growth of pumpkins requires a large amount of nutrients. After the pumpkins are planted out, one fertilization should be carried out, mainly with nitrogen fertilizer, to promote vine growth. Then fertilizer should be applied in appropriate amounts according to the growth of the vines. At this time, it is best to use less nitrogen fertilizer, otherwise it will cause the vines to grow excessively without setting fruit. Finally, when it flowers and fruits, this is the time when the whole growth period requires the most fertilizer. If nutrients are insufficient, it will directly affect the yield and quality of the pumpkins. Generally, fertilization needs to be done in multiple applications, mainly with phosphorus fertilizer and base fertilizer. When necessary, foliar fertilizer needs to be sprayed to prevent the vines from aging and affecting yield.

5. Pests and diseases

The most common pests and diseases of pumpkins include gummy stem blight, powdery mildew, leafminer, and diseases such as fruit cracking, fruit malformation, and fruit rot. Gummy stem blight and powdery mildew are basically fungal infectious diseases caused by excessive humidity in the field, and carbendazim and chlorothalonil are used respectively for treatment. Fruit cracking is mainly caused by the phenomenon of soil encountering rainwater under relatively dry conditions, so we need to strengthen the management of field moisture. Fruit malformation and fruit rot are actually also a disease caused by too much field moisture plus high temperatures, and Bordeaux mixture can be used for prevention and control. Finally, for pests such as leafminer, we can use flypaper for prevention and control, and at the same time use Lorsban emulsifiable concentrate for treatment.