Contents
Vitamin pumpkin is a variety of nutmeg gourds with a late ripening period. Butternut squash is high yielding, disease resistant, sugary fruit, but needs plenty of sun and heat, and proper care. Muscat Vitamin pumpkin fruits have excellent taste characteristics: the pulp is sweet, fibrous, with a high content of folic acid, carotene, vitamins and minerals.
Description pumpkin Nutmeg Vitamin
Pumpkin is one of the most useful gourds, originally from hot Mexico. Table nutmeg varieties are distinguished by their sweet pulp, from which a variety of national dishes are prepared. On Mexican plantations under the hot sun, yellow giants weighing more than 100 kg grow.
In the conditions of the climate, it is almost impossible to grow a pumpkin of this size. However, thanks to the work of domestic agronomists in the research center of Krasnodar in the 50s of the XX century, a nutmeg pumpkin variety Vitaminnaya was developed, in which pumpkins weighing up to 7 kg ripen in autumn. From the description of the variety, it follows that Vitaminnaya pumpkin is quite thermophilic and takes root well in the south of Our Country in its European part, as well as in the central and eastern parts of the North Caucasus.
Due to its royal size in the garden, the plant takes its place of honor. Against the background of other horticultural crops, the Vitamin pumpkin has a powerful trunk, long-branched branches more than 600 – 650 cm long and round pumpkins.
According to the photo, the Vitaminnaya pumpkin is formed by pentagonal plates resembling a heart. The leaves are evenly colored green, held on long petioles, while each of them is covered with short white hairs.
Large yellow pumpkin flowers are attached to long stalks. The bright color and aroma attract bees and insects, which are involved in the pollination process.
Description of fruits
In the beds, ripe pumpkins of the Vitaminnaya variety do not particularly stand out among other hybrids:
- fruits are round or oval;
- the peel is dense, smooth or slightly ribbed;
- in color, mature pumpkins can be completely beige, yellow, orange and even coral.
In the Vitamin variety of nutmeg pumpkins, colored spots or characteristic stripes often appear on the sides.
Butternut squash gives the most delicious and sweet fruits, the pulp of which is juicy and fibrous, of a rich yellow-orange color. In the cut, the vegetable looks very appetizing and emits a pleasant sugar aroma.
Muscat varieties make excellent vegetable smoothies. This drink contains a lot of useful substances for the body:
- vitamins A, C, group B, PP, D;
- unique vitamins T – to prevent anemia and K – for protein synthesis in the blood;
- carotene, pectin, ascorbic acid, etc.
The use of nutmeg pumpkins is useful for children and adults. Women who want to lose weight should pay close attention to this amazing vegetable. The melon culture contains plant fibers that saturate well and relieve excess weight. It’s amazing how much you can improve the body by simply adding pumpkin to your diet:
- from the high content of potassium, magnesium, manganese and vitamin groups, the condition of the skin and hair will improve;
- the water-salt balance in the body increases;
- excellent prevention of diseases of the heart and blood vessels;
- pressure, work of a gastrointestinal tract is normalized and many other things.
Pumpkin is a low-calorie product that is amazing in its properties, in which there are about 100 kcal per 22 g. You can easily grow a vegetable that serves as a storehouse of health in your own garden.
Characteristics of a variety
The variety is extremely thermophilic, therefore, with temperature changes, the leaves are the first to die, the trunk turns black, and over time, the plant dies completely. For the middle zone, the cultivation of this variety is possible only in greenhouses, where the temperature is stably maintained above 20 ° C.
To form a strong trunk, large leaves and ovaries, it is necessary to monitor the condition of the soil: water every 2 days, loosen and remove weeds.
Muscat pumpkin needs more than 4,5 months from the moment of seed germination to fully ripen the fruits. At the end of September, pumpkins weighing 5-7 kg ripen. The variety is quite productive: from 1 sq. m collect almost 4 kg of ripe vegetables.
Weighty orange vegetables tolerate long-distance transportation well. The strong skin does not crack, so pumpkins lie well in a dry place and wait for their turn to be cooked.
Pest and disease resistance
According to the description, vitamin pumpkin belongs to melon varieties that are resistant to typical diseases: powdery mildew and late blight.
For prevention, it will not be superfluous to take care of strengthening the immunity of plants. Top dressing with balanced mineral complexes during active growth, flowering and fruiting will empower the culture for a rich harvest.
Advantages and disadvantages
The variety has long become a leader among nutmeg pumpkins and continues to maintain its popularity due to a number of advantages:
- high yield;
- active flowering;
- resistance to various diseases;
- transportability;
- excellent taste for preparing various dishes (juices, smoothies, cereals, casseroles, etc.).
Despite the numerous positive characteristics, when growing a plant, it is important to take into account the characteristics of the variety:
- Thermophilicity. Vitamin pumpkin is bred under the conditions of the southern regions and dies at cold temperatures.
- Late maturity.
- Active growth. From the photo of the Vitamin pumpkin in the garden, you can see how powerful stems, spreading leaves and heavy pumpkins occupy a fairly large surface of the soil. Given this feature, it is important to respect the neighborhood and not plant plants close to each other.
By planting such a vegetable in a summer cottage, you can get not only a rich harvest, but also a source of health and youth.
Cultivation technology
Grow nutmeg pumpkins in sandy, sandy and light loamy soils. Vitamin pumpkin seeds are sown in sun-warmed soil, preferably at the end of May. If the temperature falls below 20 oC, tender pumpkin roots die off in cool soil. The first sign of wilting will be withered, dark-spotted leaves.
It is allowed to grow nutmeg pumpkins only in seedlings. Their late varieties are popularly called “winter”. Growing from seeds will additionally delay the ripening period. In this case, the warm season will not be enough for the period of active plant growth.
The seedling container should be large enough, with a diameter of at least 10 cm. This is necessary for the development of the root system.
The beds are prepared, as for all vegetables:
- dig and clean from debris and roots;
- break earthen stones;
- make furrows 10 cm deep.
Seedlings should be planted in the ground from a container, with the preservation of an earthen clod. When planting plants, observe a step of 50 – 60 cm from each other. Pumpkin loves free space to unhindered spread wide leaves.
Conclusion
Pumpkin Vitamin nutmeg is a heat-loving and late variety of gourds. The plant does not tolerate low temperatures and cold summers. That is why the warm climate of the south of Our Country is most suitable for growing this crop, gardeners agree on this, leaving their positive feedback on many years of experience in growing Vitaminnaya pumpkin, about the variety and sharing their own. Pumpkin seeds are planted in mid-April, and seedlings – in the second half of May. A young plant is vital: warmth, sunlight and warm earth.
Numerous photos and reviews of the Vitamin nutmeg pumpkin confirm that in autumn the garden plant generously endows with ripe pumpkins, which can be stored for a long time and not crack.