Contents
Chickpea seeds: growing
Increasingly, gardeners instead of ordinary peas grow chickpea seeds on their plots. And this is not surprising, because the plant has an unpretentious character, and caring for it does not take much time and effort. In addition, the crop has excellent immunity against most diseases and pests.
Growing chickpeas: advantages and disadvantages
Despite the fact that the plant is thermophilic and most often grows in tropical and subtropical climates, many varieties have been bred that can successfully take root in our conditions. Stepnoy and Vysokorosly are very popular among Russian gardeners. They mature in a fairly short period of time and can withstand temperatures as low as –5 ° C. In addition, the crop tolerates drought well and does not need additional watering.
Chickpea seeds are large in size
Another advantage of chickpea is the ability of the culture to enrich the soil. Therefore, seeds are often planted on depleted soils to improve their condition.
Unfortunately, chickpeas have some disadvantages as well. First of all, chickpeas compete very poorly with weeds. And if you do not constantly weed the garden bed, then garden pests will simply strangle the crops. In addition, chickpeas do not tolerate any pesticides well. Therefore, it can be planted only in those areas that were cultivated at least two years ago.
Planting and caring for a chickpea plant
The culture is rather unpretentious. But to get a rich harvest of tasty and healthy beans, you will need to adhere to the basic rules of planting and care:
- The crop should be sown in April, when the soil warms up to at least + 5 ° C.
- Any type of soil is suitable for planting, the main thing is to remove all weeds from the soil.
- The plant is planted in well-moistened soil to a depth of 7-8 cm.If the land is dry, then the seeds should be deepened by 12-15 cm.
- A distance of 10 cm should be kept between each bob.The distance between the rows should be 30 cm.
- 2-3 weeks after germination, you can feed the plant with phosphorus and nitrogen fertilizer.
There is no need to water the culture. Typically, chickpeas ripen 90-120 days after planting. Harvesting is best done from completely dry bushes, but should be completed before the fall rains.
Chickpeas are a great alternative to regular peas. Its beans are richer and tastier. At the same time, there is practically no need to care for the plant.