Gourd planting management and pruning

The gourd is an annual herbaceous plant of the Cucurbitaceae family. Its fruit can not only be eaten as a vegetable when immature, but can also be processed into containers or works of art after ripening, and has a high economic value. So how to plant and prune gourds? Let’s learn more about it below.

1. Build a scaffold

Before planting gourds , a trellis should be set up first. The size of the trellis should be determined according to the planting area and the number of plants cultivated. Generally, about 600 gourds are planted per acre. You can use 2.5-meter-high stone piles and bury them at a distance of 2.5*3 meters between rows and plants, and the trellis can be about 2 meters high.

2. Water and fertilizer management

On rainy days, timely drainage is required to prevent waterlogging, and in summer and autumn, timely irrigation is required to prevent drought. In addition, after the plants are planted and survive, 15 kg of ammonium bicarbonate can be applied per mu of land, 10 kg of urea can be applied per mu of land after pinching, and high-concentration compound fertilizer can be applied during the fruit expansion period.

3. Loosening the soil and weeding

The growth rate of gourds is accelerated. But the weeds in the garden also grow relatively fast. Moreover, too much rain will cause the soil to become compacted, posing a threat to the future growth of gourds. Therefore, it is necessary to loosen the soil and weed the gourd garden regularly.

4. Artificial pollination

Gourd is a cross-pollinated plant. If you are planting it in a small area at home or if there are fewer bee sources during field planting, you must prepare for artificial pollination in advance. Artificial pollination should be carried out before 10 am or in the evening. Choose the male flowers that opened the day before, take a small amount of pollen, dip it with a brush or cotton , and sprinkle it directly into the pistil. If it rains, bag the flowers that need to be pollinated in advance.

5. Pruning tips

Pruning usually includes the selection of the main vine, the retention of the side vines, traction and fixation, pruning and tidying up, and the control of fork buds. During the gourd seedling stage, a strong main vine should be selected and the side vines should be removed in time. As the plant grows, side vines should be selected reasonably, and diseased branches, old leaves and excess side vines should be pruned in time. In addition, it is also particularly important to control forked sprouts, which should be removed in time when they just grow out to reduce nutrient consumption.

The above is a brief introduction to gourd planting management and pruning. As long as you strictly follow these management steps, I believe you can achieve efficient production of gourds. In addition, during the production process, attention should be paid to the prevention and control of diseases and pests, plants should be inspected regularly, and appropriate prevention and control measures should be taken.