Open-field planting schedule for common vegetables and cultivation notes

I. Open-field planting schedule for common vegetables

1. Radish: can be planted year-round, but mainly in autumn and winter. The optimum temperature for seed germination is 20-25°C, for leaf growth 15-20°C, and for root growth 13-18°C. (Winter radish: sown in August-September, harvested in October-December; spring radish: sown in late autumn and early winter, harvested in February-March of the following year; summer-autumn radish: sown in spring and summer, harvested in summer and autumn)

2. Carrot: the optimum temperature for seed germination is 20-25°C. When cultivated in autumn, it can be sown more than 10 days earlier than white radish.

3. Cauliflower: sown in September-November

4. Napa cabbage: depending on the variety, it can be planted year-round, but generally sown in September-October. Bok choy and choy sum: depending on the variety, they can be planted year-round.

5. Mustard greens: sown in autumn, optimum growing temperature 15-20°C

6. Celery: early July-December

7. Spinach: the optimum growing temperature is 15-20°C; mainly sown in autumn, and can be sown anytime from August-December

8. Water spinach: also called tong cai or hollow vegetable; can be sown or propagated by cuttings as early as January-February

9. Amaranth: optimum growing temperature 23-27°C, sown February-October, harvested in 30-50 days

10. Garland chrysanthemum: optimum growing temperature around 20°C; can be cultivated in both spring and autumn, but mainly sown in autumn, from late August to October

11. Cilantro: optimum growing temperature 15-20°C; can be cultivated in both spring and autumn, but mainly sown in autumn, from late August to November

12. Tomato: mainly cultivated in autumn, sown from late August to early September, harvested from November to March of the following year

13. Eggplant: cultivated in all four seasons. Spring eggplant: sown September-October, transplanted in December, harvested April-June of the following year; summer eggplant: sown February-March, transplanted April-May, harvested June-August; autumn eggplant: sown March-April, transplanted April-May, harvested July-November; winter eggplant: sown in early August, transplanted in December, harvested November-December.

14. Chili pepper: seedlings raised from December to January of the following year, transplanted February-March; seedlings raised in early August, harvested from October to February of the following year

15. Cucumber: can be grown in all four seasons, but spring is most suitable; direct-sown December-January of the following year, transplanted in February

16. Melons eaten fresh: including watermelon, cantaloupe, Hami melon, etc. Optimum growing temperature 25-32°C, sown in late February.

17. Bottle gourd: optimum growing temperature 20-25°C, sown in February

18. Winter melon: direct-sown in the open field at the end of February or in March; autumn-winter melon is sown before Minor Heat

19. Pumpkin: similar to cucumber

20. Luffa and bitter gourd: planted in spring in February-March; for summer planting, sow and raise seedlings in April-May; for autumn planting, pre-sprout and direct-sow in July-August

21. Edamame: optimum germination temperature 15-20°C, optimum growing temperature 20-25°C; above 35°C or below 14°C, flowers and pods tend to drop, which is unfavorable for growth and development. Sowing depends on the variety; it can be sown as late as July-August, and harvested September-November.

22. Green beans: spring sowing in January-March, autumn sowing in September-October.

23. Peas and snow peas: mid-September-December, harvested from November to March of the following year; if the goal is to harvest tender shoots, sow in mid-to-late August

24. Broad beans: optimum growing temperature 14-16°C, sown in winter

25. Cowpeas: cultivated in spring, summer and autumn; can be sown from late February to early September

26. Potato: cultivated in winter, spring and autumn; generally spring potatoes are used as seed, sown in three batches from late September to early February of the following year.

27. Ginger: planted February-March; young ginger harvested July-September, and old ginger harvested from October to February of the following year.

28. Garlic: for harvesting garlic bulbs, sow September-November; for harvesting green garlic, sow from September to January of the following year.

29. Chinese chives: sown November-December, transplanted March-April of the following year

II. Notes:

(1) Acid-loving or alkali-loving:

Some vegetables like to grow in acidic soil, while others like alkaline soil. Most vegetables prefer a pH of 6.5-6.8, that is, slightly acidic soil.

If vegetables that like acidic soil are planted in alkaline soil, it often leads to the occurrence of pests and diseases. The reverse is also true.

When planting vegetables that like alkaline soil, sprinkle some plant ash or lime powder into the soil, but when planting vegetables that like acidic soil, do not sprinkle plant ash or lime powder.

Vegetables that like acidic soil (pH below 6) include: potato, turnip, sweet potato, watermelon, and berry plants (such as strawberry, etc.)

Vegetables that like alkaline soil (pH above 7): broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, carrot, celery, spinach, Welsh onion, onion, lettuce, Chinese chives, asparagus, beet, Swiss chard, melon, papaya, okra, etc.

Vegetables that like slightly acidic and neutral soil (pH 6-7): rapeseed, cucurbit vegetables, tomato, white radish, legumes, kale, corn, cotton, eggplant, etc.

(2) Shade-loving or sun-loving:

Most vegetables are sun-loving, so be sure to choose a sunny spot.

The most sun-loving vegetables are the melon and fruit vegetables: such as corn, green pepper, watermelon, pumpkin, tomato, eggplant, sesame, sunflower and the like, because the fruits need full sunlight to ripen, and they need at least 8 hours of sunlight per day.

Next are the root vegetables, such as: potato, beet, carrot, white radish, sweet potato, yam and the like. They need at least half a day of sunlight. They need sunlight to produce sugars and starch, which are stored in the roots. Although taro also likes sunlight, it tolerates shade better than other vegetables.

Leafy vegetables have lower sunlight requirements. Among them, celery, lettuce, garland chrysanthemum and mint are relatively shade-loving.

(3) Moisture-loving or drought-tolerant:

The most moisture-loving are those vegetables that were originally aquatic plants, such as lotus root, wild rice stem, taro, water spinach, celery, etc.

Next are the melon and fruit vegetables, such as cucumber, luffa, bottle gourd, tomato, etc. Because they have many branches and leaves and the fruits contain a large amount of water, their water consumption is high, and they need a great deal of water when flowering and fruiting, so they should be watered more. But unlike aquatic plants, although they like moist soil, they cannot tolerate their roots being soaked in water. Therefore, they should be planted in soil with good drainage, and attention should be paid to mulching. Among the melon and fruit vegetables, pumpkin and watermelon, because their roots go very deep (up to 2 m), can be considered relatively drought-tolerant; it is enough to water them a little during flowering and fruiting.

Next are the leafy vegetables. Leafy vegetables are not drought-tolerant; if they are too dry, they become tough and unpalatable.

Root vegetables such as white radish and carrot should be neither too wet nor too dry.

Legumes are relatively drought-tolerant, but they need more water when flowering and fruiting. Short-growing legumes such as peanut, soybean and mung bean are all very drought-tolerant. Vining legumes, because they have more branches and leaves, are not as drought-tolerant as short-growing legumes.

The particularly drought-tolerant vegetables are sweet potato, yam, sesame, sunflower, etc. Among them, sweet potato is the most drought-tolerant. Once the vines start to spread, there is no need to water them anymore.

(4) Companion planting:

When legumes, pumpkin and corn are planted together, the legumes can use rhizobia to increase the nitrogen fertilizer in the soil, the pumpkin can provide good cover for the corn, and the corn can in turn provide support for the vining legumes.

Marigold can release a chemical substance that kills nematodes, so it is a good companion for vegetables easily attacked by nematodes, such as tomato and green pepper. The sweet small flowers of dill can attract parasitic wasps, and parasitic wasps are natural enemies of cabbage caterpillars, aphids and beetles, so dill can be interplanted with bok choy, cabbage and cucumber.

In addition, alliums cannot be planted together with legumes, but can be planted with carrot. Tomato and potato are not suitable to be planted together.