Planting zucchini for seedlings: sowing time and home care rules for seedlings before planting in the ground

As a rule, most gardeners grow zucchini in a seedless way, immediately planting seeds in open ground.

However, if you want to get an earlier harvest (by 1-2 weeks), then you can try first sowing zucchini seeds for seedlings to grow at home and then planting the seedlings on a garden bed in open ground.

When to plant zucchini seeds for seedlings

The optimal timing for sowing zucchini for seedlings differs in the regions of residence and will vary depending on climatic characteristics.

In open ground, you can plant 20-25 day old seedlings. Accordingly, the approximate landing dates in different regions may be as follows:

• In the middle lane (Moscow region) you need to plant zucchini for seedlings not earlier than the second half of April.
• In the Urals and Siberia - at the beginning of May (similar terms for the Leningrad region).
• In the south, the timing of planting seedlings can be shifted 1-1.5 months ago, that is, start sowing from March.

Important! Do not overdo the seedlings at home, do not plant too early!

The fact is that, like all pumpkin seedlings, the root system of marrow seedlings is very vulnerable. Therefore, you should not excessively delay the seedlings in planting containers and grow huge plants, which then will not take root well due to damage to their roots during planting.

According to the lunar calendar for 2021

The lunar calendar will always come to your aid if you want to choose a specific date for planting a crop.

So, in 2021 auspicious days for planting zucchini for seedlings are:

• in March - 2-6, 12-14, 26-29;
• in April - 1, 2, 24, 25, 27-30;
• in May - 2-4, 6, 15-17, 20, 21 25-31;
• in June - 2-4, 11-14.

If you do not manage to plant the zucchini on the above dates, do not worry! The main thing is that the landing day is not among the unfavorable ones (the days of the Full Moon and New Moon, as well as the period when the Moon is in Aquarius, since this is a barren and dry sign - italicized).

Unfavorable days on the lunar calendar in 2021:

• in March - 9-10, 13, 28;
• in April - 5-6, 12, 27;
• in May - 2-4, 11, 26, 30-31;
• in June - 10, 24, 26-27.

How to properly plant zucchini for seedlings

Seed preparation

There are several ways to prepare zucchini seeds for planting.

By the way! The site already has detailed material about how to process cucumber seeds before sowing (everything is the same for zucchini).

For example, they can be warmed up by standing in a sunny window for 7 days or by leaving the bag on a battery overnight.

Worth knowing! All pumpkin seeds (watermelons, melons, zucchini, cucumbers, squash) respond well to heat, and their developmental mechanisms start faster.

A more standard way of treating zucchini seeds before planting is to soak (literally for 2-3 hours in water) and subsequent germination in a napkin or cloth bag. As a rule, the seeds will hatch, and the first shoots will appear in 2-3 days. Root seeds can be planted directly in pots.

Important! It should be soaked in well-settled water. Zucchini, like all pumpkin seeds, do not tolerate chlorine.

On the other hand, many gardeners prefer not to carry out any preparatory procedures, but immediately plant zucchini seeds for seedlings.

By the way! In garden stores, you can find already processed (coated) squash seeds. Naturally, they must be planted dry.

The choice of soil mixture and containers for planting

As for the soil for growing squash seedlings, then, as an option, you can buy ready-made soil for seedlings of pumpkin crops.

If you decide to prepare the soil yourself, then you will need to mix peat and sand (2 to 1), and, if desired, you can add humus.

Advice! Before using any soil mixture it is necessary disinfectby steaming it in the oven or microwave, or spilling it with a fungicide solution, for example, Fitosporin.

As far as suitable containers are concerned, marrow seedlings can be grown both in small 200 ml cups and in large 0.5 liter cups.

By the way! Don't forget to make in cups drain holesso that excess moisture can flow out unhindered.

Sowing seeds for seedlings

Step-by-step instructions for planting zucchini seeds for seedlings:

• Prepare in advance or just take the seeds out of the bag (as you wish).
• Choose suitable planting containers and fill them with soil mixture almost to the top (leaving 1-1.5 cm for easy watering).
• Deepen the seeds 2-3 centimeters.

If you have a lot of seeds, then you can carry out artificial selection - put 2 seeds in one container in order to later leave one stronger plant.

• Then pour abundantly with warm water.
• Cover with plastic wrap or a bag to create a greenhouse environment (humid and warm).
• Place the container in a warm place where the temperature is around + 23-25 ​​degrees.

Video: sowing zucchini seeds for seedlings

Care for zucchini seedlings after germination: rules for growing at home

As a rule, the first friendly shoots of zucchini appear in 3-7 days (if you germinated, then earlier, and if not, then later).

After the shoots appear, the containers need to be quickly rearranged to the lightest window sill in your apartment, where the temperature is stable around + 18 ... + 23 degrees. As a rule, in April the daylight hours are already sufficient, and you will not need any additional lighting.

It is very simple to care for young zucchini seedlings at home. All you have to do is to water as the top layer of the soil dries up, doing this approximately every 3-5 days.

If you see that the plant does not develop quickly enough, although the basic growing conditions are met (daylight hours and temperature conditions), the seedlings should be feed... For this, any complex fertilizer is suitable, for example, Fertika Lux or the same nitroammofoska.

When and how to plant marrow seedlings in open ground

You can determine the readiness of the seedlings for planting on the garden by the appearance of 2-4 true leaves... This should just get away from 20 to 25 days.

A week before disembarkation, you must definitely start harden squash seedlings, gradually taking it out to a greenhouse or loggia (on the 1st day - for 1 hour, on the 2nd - for 2 hours, on the 3rd - for 4 hours, and so on). This must be done due to the fact that any seedlings grown at home in a warm place must adapt to more severe external conditions.

Remember! Zucchini love loose soil rich in humus = organic matter.

In other words, the main thing that needs to be done when planting zucchini seedlings in open ground is right prepare a landing holewhich must be filled out carefully semi-matured manure or humus, add wood ash and top with a layer of ordinary garden soil.

By the way! In preparing the garden for planting seedlings of zucchini will help you material of this article.

After you prepare the place (hole), all you have to do is make a small depression according to the size of the container, carefully remove the squash seedling, put it together with an earthen clod in this hole, sprinkle it with earth and gently squeeze the soil around the stem. The final touch is to spill abundantly with water and sprinkle with dry earth again (so that a dry crust does not form).

Advice! After planting, it is recommended to cover the landing site sawdust, humus or peat. Mulch will prevent the soil from drying out quickly and will protect the still fragile roots of the seedling from the summer heat.

To protect the young seedling from the wind and possible return frost, you can take a 5-liter bottle, with the bottom cut out and wrapped with masking tape, and place it directly on the zucchini. If the weather is consistently warm and sunny, then, of course, this is not necessary. Another thing is that it would be nice to somehow shade the zucchini ...

Further care of zucchini in the open field

note! About, how to grow zucchini in the open field, read more in this article about their planting and care.

It is quite simple to grow zucchini seedlings at home. And since all pumpkin crops develop very quickly, you just need to water regularly. In addition, it is imperative to plant seedlings in the ground in a timely manner so that they do not overgrow and stretch.

Video: growing zucchini through seedlings