Gardeners have different opinions on Spaghetti's zucchini, but they agree that this is an original variety that needs to be grown at least once on its site. It is not difficult to get a fruit crop with “pasta” pulp, as this crop is grown in the same way as the other varieties of zucchini.
Zucchini Spaghetti
Zucchini Spaghetti can be eaten fresh
Zucchini Spaghetti tolerates drought well
Grade description
Gardeners who like to grow unusual cultures have recently been paying more and more attention to Spaghetti's zucchini, the characteristics of which can be found below:
Parameter | Description |
Ripening period | A variety with an average ripening period - from the emergence of seedlings to the beginning of fruiting takes 120-130 days. |
Plant features | Spaghetti refers to long-bush bush plants with a powerful root system. Each bush is covered with large emerald leaves and forms long lashes that need to be pinched periodically to stimulate the fruiting of the vegetable crop. The bush itself is compact and grows up to 40 cm. |
Appearance of fruits | Fruits have a cylindrical elongated or oval shape, which reminds elongated and "pot-bellied" melons. In length, they can reach 20-30 cm, and weighing from 700 g to 1.3 kg. The fruits are covered with a dense skin, like a pumpkin. As it matures, its color changes from green to yellow, although there are varieties of whitish ripeness. Thanks to this skin, the fruits have good keeping quality - they can be stored until spring. |
Pulp Features | The pulp is thick and dense, has a creamy orange color. In young fruits, it is no different from other zucchini - dense and uniform in consistency. When Spaghetti ripens to biological ripeness, the flesh acquires a fibrous structure and turns into “pasta”. |
Scope of application | Zucchini Spaghetti is a universal variety that can be used fresh (added to salads), canned or used to prepare warm dishes. If the whole fruit is dipped for 30 minutes in boiling water, and then halved and seeds removed, you can get vegetable "noodles." The fact is that under the pressure of high temperatures, the inside of the fruit breaks up into fibers that resemble pasta. Serve this pulp with a sweet or sour sauce. |
Representatives of zucchini spaghetti | There are several varieties of zucchini that are classified as spaghetti. All of them look like an oblong pumpkin and, when biological maturity is achieved, they are painted in different yellowish shades. The fruits are characterized by a hard peel, so they can be stored and transported for a long time. The plants themselves have long lashes, but are undemanding in care. The most delicious squash with such characteristics are:
|
Productivity | Spaghetti does not belong to the high-yielding varieties of zucchini, but it bears fruit stably. With 1 sq. m beds can average 5-7 kg of fruit. |
Resistance to environmental conditions and diseases | The variety tolerates drought and insignificant temperature differences. It has a weak immunity to powdery mildew and bacteriosis, medium - to rot fruit. Plantings need to be inspected regularly to detect the disease in a timely manner. |
At the place of cultivation, the vegetable is excellent for the middle lane and southern regions.
Agricultural technology
To successfully grow a vegetable, you need to know a number of agrotechnical rules:
- Landing time. Sowing work must be carried out after the threat of frost has passed. By this time, the daily temperature should be set at + 25 ... + 27 ° C, and the soil - warm up to + 15 ° C. If planting is done by seedlings, the seeds should be sown in April, and seedlings should be planted in a permanent place in May or June. If you plan to sow zucchini immediately into the ground, then you need to do this in the period from late May to early June.
To get an early harvest, seeds can be planted in a greenhouse, and then transplanted seedlings or open a film so that the vegetable develops in natural conditions.
- Site selection. Zucchini should be planted in areas with good lighting, which are reliably protected from winds and drafts. This can be done in the shade of the nettles. If the terrain is open, to protect the zucchini along the perimeter of the beds it is worth planting a “wall” of corn. Its best predecessors are nightshade crops, onions, garlic and cabbage. As for the land, Spaghetti prefers fertile sandy loamy and loamy soils, but zucchini can also be grown on chernozem or clay.
To make heavy soil more crumbly, sand or peat should be added to it in a ratio of 2: 1.
- Soil preparation. It is advisable in the autumn to dig the soil on the bayonet of a shovel and add organic matter (compost, humus) at the rate of 6-8 kg per 1 sq. m. Under the autumn digging, it is also worth making 0.5 l of wood ash. If the soil is prepared in the spring, then you need to do the same, but only 2 weeks before planting the zucchini.
- Seed treatment. In order to decontaminate the seed, it must be lowered for 20-30 minutes in a potassium permanganate solution. Next, the seeds need to be soaked for 2-3 days in a growth stimulator (for example, Epine). An alternative is to place the seeds in a damp cloth and keep them in a warm place for 3-4 days so that they hatch. During these days, the fabric needs to be moistened.
Sowing zucchini spaghetti
Planting technology depends on how the culture is cultivated.
Through seedlings
This method involves the cultivation of strong seedlings. It is carried out according to standard technology in compliance with the following rules:
- For sowing, use separate containers - peat cups, which can be immersed in the holes together with an earthen lump of the plant. Put 1-2 seeds in each cup with the substrate, pour well and cover with a film until the first shoots appear.
- Keep pots with seeds at a temperature of + 22-23 ° C until the first shoots appear. Then lower it by 7-10 days to + 16-17 ° C so that the seedlings do not stretch. After these days, the temperature can again be raised to + 25 ° C.
- Water the seedlings as the top layer of the substrate dries. In this case, you need warm, settled water.
- Provide seedlings with daylight for 10-14 hours. To do this, you will have to use fluorescent lamps in the morning and evening.
At the age of 25-30 days, seedlings will acquire 2-3 real leaves and will be suitable for planting in a permanent place. A week before, it is desirable to subject it to hardening, daily taking out for several hours on a fresh day and gradually increasing the duration of this procedure. Planting seedlings in the ground is necessary according to the scheme 70x70 or 70x100 cm.
Direct sowing of seeds in the ground
Wells for seeds should be done at a distance of 0.7-1 m, so that a plant with long lashes could freely develop. Dry sprouted seeds need to be planted 2-3 pieces in moistened holes to a depth of 2-6 cm, and then sprinkled with earth. On light soils (sand, loam), planting depth can be increased, and on heavy soils (clay, chernozem) - reduced.
After sowing, the garden bed must be watered again, and then covered with a film or agrofiber until the first sprouts appear. If several seeds sprout in each hole, then only the strongest sprout should be left. The remaining shoots need to be pinched above the ground, and not pulled out so as not to damage the general root system of the plant.
Landing care
Zucchini Spaghetti needs standard care, which involves a series of agricultural activities. It includes:
- Watering. Must be regular but moderate. It is best to water the bushes every 7-10 days at the rate of 5-7 liters per plant. During the ripening period, the volume of water must be reduced by 2 times, otherwise they will turn out to be excessively watery. Watering should be carried out under the root with warm water in the morning or in the evening. If you do this in the daytime, the plant may appear burns.
It is impossible to overmoisten the earth, since this will contribute to the growth of tops, and not the ripening of fruits.
- Loosening and weeding. A few hours after watering, the soil should be slightly loosened to provide better air access to the roots of the plant. At the same time, it is worth removing all weed vegetation. When the bushes grow, the need for weeding will disappear, because the weeds under them usually do not grow.
- Hilling. To strengthen the power of the root system, to prevent leaching of the roots and to support the proper growth of the fruits, during the season the bushes need to be hilled 2-3 times according to this scheme:
- with the appearance of 4-5 sheets;
- 30 days after the first;
- 20-30 days after the second.
- Topping. Bushes of zucchini Spaghetti have long lashes and grow greatly. To limit their growth and form a neat bush, with the appearance of 4-5 leaves, you need to pinch the top of the plant.
- Top dressing. The plant needs to be fed at least 2 times a season, adhering to this scheme:
- The first feeding - with the advent of young shoots (2 true leaves). Feed the plant with organics, which fermented for 4-6 days. A good option is a solution of mullein (1:10) or chicken droppings (1:10). Of mineral fertilizers, nitrofosk and urea can be used (30 g per 10 liters of water). Consumption of the composition - 1 liter per bush.
- The second top dressing - before the formation of the fruit. You can use the same organic or mineral fertilizer - 40 g of superphosphate, 20 g of potassium nitrate and ammonium sulfate per 10 l of water. The flow rate of the solution is 3-4 liters per bush.
- Disease protection. Zucchini Spaghetti can get powdery mildew. The disease often affects the leaves of the plant and is manifested by white spots (powdery coating), which gradually grow and cause the death of the plant. To protect the planting, it should be sprayed with a colloidal sulfur solution (100 g per 10 l of water) or mullein infusion (1: 3).
Harvesting and storage
Fruit harvesting occurs between August and September. Young zucchini with white pulp can be cut at different times throughout the season. Their first crop will be able to be removed 25-30 days after flowering.
If you intend to collect ripe fruits with pulp in the form of "pasta", you will have to wait 2.5-3 months. After this time, zucchini will acquire a hard crust, and when they are tapped, a dull sound will be heard. They need to be cut with a sharp knife with a long peduncle.
The fruits collected in late summer and early autumn can be stacked on shelves and stored in a dry basement for 6-9 months.
Pros and cons
The strengths of the Spaghetti variety include:
- resistance to drought;
- unpretentiousness to cultivation and care;
- the possibility of eating both young and ripe fruits;
- unusual type of pulp when the fruits reach biological ripeness;
- good keeping quality and portability.
Gardeners also note the shortcomings of Spaghetti:
- in regions with a short summer does not have time to ripen to the state of "pasta";
- the bushes are constantly growing, so you need to regularly pinch your whips or grow a vegetable on a hill;
- does not give a plentiful crop.
Reviews
Lyudmila Ivanovna, 48 years old. Grew Portion hydride. Zucchini I liked the pleasant aroma of vanilla. Dimensions are great for baking. I did not dare to store for a long time, but dried the pulp in an electric dryer and used it for making soups, vegetable stews, and meat dishes. It turns out very tasty.
Alena Igorevna, 58 years old. Disappointed with a variety of zucchini Spaghetti. The only plus is germination at the level of 90-95%. Otherwise, there are only drawbacks - young fruits are the same as ordinary zucchini. The ripe fruits did not have any fibrillation and in fact were tangled tangles, inedible to taste. I fed them goats and sheep.
Ivan Vladimirovich, 43 years old. He sowed seeds at the end of April and already on the eve of the summer season gathered the first fruits. The bush begins to bloom quickly, but to get "pasta" had to wait almost 3.5-4 months. I liked fresh fruits in salads very much because they have a sweet taste and give them piquancy.
Hide
Add your review
Feedback on this original form of vegetable production is given in the video below:
One of the most original varieties of zucchini is Spaghetti. In his “youth” he is no different from his relatives, however, in adulthood, it acquires a yellow hue, and most importantly, the original flesh in the form of long tasty “pasta”. These fruits will be an excellent ingredient for preparing an unusual dish.