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In Our Country, cabbage has long enjoyed honor and respect, being one of the most popular vegetable crops. Therefore, when in the second half of the last century, amazing cabbage from China became famous among gardeners, it quickly aroused general curiosity. The first and only variety of Beijing cabbage in those days was the Khibinskaya variety, bred at a polar testing station in the Murmansk region.
Much later, many new varieties appeared, among which Japanese and Dutch hybrids are especially popular, mainly for their early maturity and resistance to the formation of flower arrows. Beijing cabbage is distinguished by a wide variety of forms: there are leafy (form a rosette of leaves), semi-headed (form heads with an open top) and headed varieties. Although the leaf forms contain more nutrients, the head varieties tend to have a longer shelf life and therefore are more popular. Chinese goblet cabbage is one of the most famous and widespread varieties grown today.
Variety description
The Beijing cabbage variety Bokal was bred in the 90s of the last century in the Moscow region and registered in the State Register of Our Country in 1997.
- The glass belongs to the mid-season varieties of Beijing cabbage. This means that from the appearance of the first shoots to the moment when it is already possible to collect the formed heads of cabbage, about 65-70 days pass.
- The variety belongs to the group of cabbages, the cabbages themselves, under favorable conditions, are formed quite dense, oval in shape, without voids. Heads are completely closed so that the penetration of various spores of fungi and larvae is difficult. In this regard, the Bokal variety can be stored for a long time without being spoiled.
- Despite the fact that resistance to stalk is mentioned in the description of the variety, during spring sowing, the cabbage glass very often goes into the flower arrow. Therefore, it is recommended to sow it in the second half of summer.
- Although Beijing cabbage is a light-loving plant, like all its cabbage relatives, it is the Glass variety that can endure relative darkening without a noticeable loss in yield.
- The leaves of this variety are dense, inside the head they are pale yellow, almost white. While the outer leaves are characterized by a yellow-green hue.
- Heads of cabbage grow medium in size, weighing up to 2 kg.
- The taste characteristics of the Glass variety are excellent, it is recommended to use it mainly for consumption in salads. The leaves are juicy, tasty and tender. It has a high content of minerals and vitamins.
Cultivation and care
There are two options for growing Chinese cabbage Goblet and further care for it: using seedlings and seedless method. Given the precocity of this cabbage, under favorable conditions, it can give the crop two or even three times per season.
Seedling cabbage
Beijing cabbage of any variety is quite painful for transplanting, so it is recommended to sow it directly in separate containers. A good option would be to use peat tablets. The soil must be prepared loose, with a neutral or slightly acidic reaction. It is advisable to add 1/5 sand or vermiculite to the finished purchased soil for breathability. Glasses or pots are filled with earth and spilled with phytosporin solution to prevent all kinds of fungal diseases.
Cabbage seeds are embedded in the soil shallowly, to a depth of 0,5-0,8 cm.
If everything suddenly sprouts, then the strongest one is subsequently selected, and the rest are cut off at the very surface of the earth.
Cups with sown seeds are placed in a warm place with a temperature of about + 20 ° C or even more. Beijing cabbage seeds do not need light for germination. Seedlings appear quite quickly – 3-5 days after sowing. Immediately after their appearance, the cups with seedlings are placed in a bright but cool place. It is desirable that the temperature does not exceed +16°С+18°С. Otherwise, the shoots can stretch out a lot. The same thing awaits them in low light.
Watering seedlings of Beijing cabbage should be moderate – the soil surface should dry out a little between moisturizing procedures. Plants develop in suitable conditions quite quickly and with the formation of 4-5 true leaves they are already ready for planting in a permanent place. This happens about a month after the emergence of shoots.
Ready seedlings are planted in open ground according to the scheme: 30 x 50 cm. Two weeks after planting, they are fed with any organic fertilizer.
seedless way
To choose a suitable place for growing Beijing cabbage, you need to remember where you grew carrots, cucumbers, onions or garlic last season. It is after these vegetable crops that Beijing will feel best. It is good if the soil in the garden has been filled with humus or compost since autumn. It is not necessary to soak the seeds before sowing. Cabbage is usually sown in an ordinary way, leaving a distance of about 45-50 cm between rows. If a well-formed rosette of leaves is enough for you, then plants can be planted with a distance of 10-20 cm between them. To obtain heads of cabbage, the distance is increased to 25-30 cm.
You can sow initially more often, even every 10 cm, in order to thin out the plants after emergence. Seeds are planted to the same depth – about 1 cm. It is advisable to sprinkle the top of the crops with wood ash. It will serve at the same time as top dressing for young plants and scare away pests.
Crops are additionally covered along the entire length with a thin non-woven material. This agricultural technique will help you solve several problems at once:
- Protects tender seedlings from low temperatures;
- Shade cabbage from the hot rays of the sun, which are also harmful to it;
- It will help protect crops from the cruciferous flea – this little pest is capable of destroying all seedlings in a few hours.
Further care of the plantings
Beijing cabbage glass is most demanding on temperature. To get good and strong heads of cabbage, the minimum temperature should be about + 12 ° C, but if it exceeds + 25 ° C, then a good harvest should not be expected.
It is necessary to water Pekinka rather moderately, unlike other types of cabbage, it does not like to grow with excess moisture. Under the condition of cool weather, one good watering with not cold water once a week is enough.
After the appearance of several leaves, it is desirable to mulch the crops with organic materials (straw, rotted sawdust), which will serve as protection against weeds and additional feeding.
To improve the formation of heads of cabbage, it is recommended to spray it with a solution of boric acid. To do this, 2 grams of boric acid are dissolved in one liter of hot water, and then 9 liters of cold water are added to the resulting solution.
Problems and solutions
In general, Beijing cabbage is considered an easy-to-grow vegetable crop, although the opinions of gardeners on this matter differ dramatically. For some, everything turns out without any effort and much hassle. Others spend a lot of energy on caring for plants, and as a result, the cabbage all goes into color or is eaten by numerous pests. In fact, there are several secrets and tricks in growing Beijing cabbage, without taking into account which caring for it turns into fruitless work.
Terms of planting
Perhaps the most important factor that affects the good growth of cabbage is the choice of favorable planting dates. After all, she is a plant of a long day, which means her desire to bloom and bear fruit under conditions when daylight hours last more than 12-15 hours. But the flowering and fruiting of cabbage is not at all included in the plans of gardeners, since they need its heads of cabbage. It can form heads of cabbage only with a sufficiently short daylight hours. The conclusion is quite simple – it is necessary to time the sowing and cultivation of Beijing cabbage for a period with a short daylight hours. Thus, in the middle lane, the optimal time for planting cabbage in open ground is the end of April – the beginning of May and the end of July – August.
Unfortunately, the problems with the flowering of Beijing cabbage do not end there.
This is where most of the problems of gardeners with growing cabbage in the spring appear. Everyone tries to plant seeds in the ground or plant seedlings as early as possible in order to have time to get a crop with a short daylight hours. But even in May, and especially in April, even frosts are found in the middle lane, not to mention low temperatures. So gardeners are rushing between two fires, not being able to choose the optimal conditions. Of course, they can be arranged, but only if there is a greenhouse or greenhouse on the site in which cabbage seedlings can be grown until sufficiently stable positive temperatures are established. Not everyone has such structures available, so it would be most reasonable to postpone the cultivation of Beijing cabbage in the second half of summer.
From the end of July, the most favorable conditions for the growth of Beijing cabbage develop. Indeed, at this time it is still quite warm and the plants sprout and develop quite quickly. As a rule, there is no strong heat. At the same time, the length of daylight is also suitable for cabbage to form heads. Adult plants, on the other hand, can withstand low temperatures quite well; at the stage of head ripening, they can endure even short-term small frosts, down to -2 ° C.
Chinese cabbage pests
Another problem that does not allow you to grow a good crop of Beijing cabbage is the invasion of pests. Cruciferous fleas and slugs are especially fond of Beijing.
Against cruciferous flea beetles, the ideal solution would be to use a thin non-woven material for almost the entire development period of the cabbage, as mentioned above.
But with slugs, the fight can be long and difficult. They diverge especially in cold and rainy summers. The method of sprinkling Chinese cabbage leaves with a mixture of the following composition works well:
- 1 liter of wood ash;
- 4 tablespoons of salt;
- 2 tablespoons of dry mustard;
- 4 tablespoons ground red hot pepper.
You can try to sprinkle the beds and the passages between them with a layer of sand, on which the slugs cannot move. The most classic way to get rid of slugs is to lay out various traps: boards, bark, etc., and then collect them manually. If the pests have multiplied in too large quantities, you will have to use chemicals. But processing should be stopped 20 days before harvest.
Testimonials from truck drivers
Judging by the reviews of gardeners, Beijing cabbage is a rather capricious culture, but its taste qualities deserve it to take its rightful place among garden crops.
To summarize
Beijing cabbage is a productive, tasty and healthy crop. She, like any cabbage, has her own preferences for growth conditions. With their observance, all the difficulties in growing can be overcome quite easily.
