Proper planting and care for sunflower in the open field

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The cultivation of sunflower engaged more Indians who used seeds to relieve chest pain and treat fever. In the fields of our country, the culture of the Compositae family is grown mainly for the production of vegetable oil. In this review, we consider the main points of planting, care and technology of agrotechnics when growing plants in open ground.

The timing of planting a sunflower in the country in the open ground

The cultivation of sunflower provides seed method of planting. Apply seedling sowing does not make any sense, because the grains are kept spring frosts without risk to the future harvest. Some gardeners living in the northern regions, manage to grow oilseed with the help of seedlings (seedlings). The seeding is carried out in prepared pots or plastic bottles without a bottom, in order to transfer shoots to the garden of the summer cottage together with the earth clod. This allows you to save a poorly developed root system. If it is damaged, the plant may not settle down in a new place.

The term of sowing begins in late April or early May.Seeds of high-grade sorts of sunflower sprout well and germinate when the soil warms to 8-10 ° C. Sunflower unpretentious to the conditions of cultivation, the temperature up to minus 5 ° just appeared shoots can easily withstand.

The most popular varieties for the Moscow region, St. Petersburg and other regions

Variety of varieties complicates the process of selecting seeds. When buying you need to focus on the popularity of varieties and climate features. Getting a good harvest is more likely with proven varieties of sunflower. This culture is grown in suburban areas, as in the Moscow region, St. Petersburg and in the southern regions. What sort of plant, decide for yourself.

Tunka

The hybrid is characterized by high productivity, resistance to drought and disease (white rot, ash rot, fomozom, fomopsisu). Not afraid of the plant and weeds (clover). Sunflower mid-ripening period, the growing season lasts 110-120 days. The height of the stem with a basket is 140-150 cm. The variety is recommended for cultivation in the steppes and forest-steppe zones.

Jason

Three-line hybrid with a growing season of 100-110 days. The height of the stem reaches 165-170 cm. Strong immunity contributes to resistance to white and gray rot, fomopsisom. Seeds contain a high rate of oil - up to 55%. Productivity makes 39-41 c / hectare.

Sanay

The hybrid of the Dutch selection differs in resistance to herbicides. Feature of the variety is the low requirements for the cultivation of the soil. Technical ripeness comes through 100-110 days after germination on the ground surface.The content of oils in seeds is about 55%. It is not recommended to sow in the fields where there were flashes of Fomopsis.

Buzuluk

Early ripe variety with a growing season of about 85 days. 54% oil. Plant height - to 168 cm. The variety Buzuluk is stable under different climatic conditions, drought-resistant. This is a sort of intensive direction, it requires high-quality agrotechnology and the use of fertilizers.

Technology sowing sunflower at their summer cottage

For planting sunflower need to choose areas with such predecessors: corn, cereals. And from the place where tomatoes were cultivated, beets, legumes should be abandoned.

Seed preparation

Seed material must be properly prepared before planting. The process involves sorting (selecting large healthy seeds) and soaking for 14 hours in a weak solution of potassium permanganate. To accelerate germination and obtain friendly shoots, the nuclei are processed with growth biostimulants. Fungicides and insecticides can be added to the solution to increase the resistance of young shoots to diseases and pests.

Soil preparation

Before sowing a sunflower, you should seriously consider choosing a site for planting. The culture needs the sun, so the place should be well lit and ventilated. The ideal option is fertile soil with a small amount of clay. However, the plant can adapt to any environment, with the exception of acidic, saline and marshy.

It is better to study the preparation of the site at the dacha in the fall, carefully removing all plant residues from it and digging the shovels to the depth of the bayonet. Simultaneously with digging mineral fertilizers should be introduced.

Sowing patterns and embedment depth

Let's figure out how to sow a sunflower and what is the optimal embedment depth? It is necessary to plant seeds in moist soil to a depth of 6-8 cm. In each nest you need to lay on 2-3 sunflower seeds. When planting large varieties of plants, an interval of at least 1 m is observed; for medium-sized varieties, a distance of 60 cm is considered acceptable. The more space between holes, the larger will be the nuclei of the new crop.

Many gardeners are puzzled how to arrange the planting of sunflower.Some have adapted to plant the plant along the fence (leave 65-75 cm between the holes, at least 30 cm from the fence). However, it is necessary to clarify that the fence should be in the form of a grid, so as not to create shading. As an option plant a sunflower between the beds of cucumbers or other vegetable crops that get along well with each other (square-cluster method of 50x70 cm will do). Landing along the path is considered to be no less interesting (the distance between the holes is 70 cm)

Proper care of seedlings and agricultural technology

For the seeds in the baskets to be large, you need to make some efforts: provide with watering, in a timely manner to make additional feeding, to loosen the soil and remove weeds, to carry out inter-row cultivation. Periodic treatments of the plantation to prevent diseases and pests will be a good addition.

Watering rules

Irrigation of fields or beds with sunflower should be regularly before forming 4 pairs of leaves on a young sprout. Further watering is carried out as needed. Increase water consumption or increase the frequency of its introduction into the soil should be in the period of development of inflorescences and seed filling.

The soil is soaked with moisture to the depth of the roots. In hot weather, irrigation is carried out daily. If a prolonged high temperature is established with a low level of air humidity, then watering the beds or fields should be several times a day. This will help form large nuclei.

Top dressing

To grow and get a good harvest, sunflower needs regular feeding. The first is made after the formation of the third pair of sheets. Superphosphate is used as a fertilizer (20-40 g per 1 m2). It is scattered on the ground, after which they are buried to a depth of 10 cm and watered.

The second feed is made after the formation of the basket. At this stage, potash-nitrogen fertilizers are more suitable (a tablespoon of potassium sulfate is added to a bucket of solution of mullein). When ripe seeds use the same composition.

Pests and Prevention

Failure to comply with the rules of agricultural technology threatens the harvest. The greatest problems arise in case of detection of the disease. Among the most dangerous are the following fungal infections.

• Downy mildew (perinospora) characterized by the following features: wilting leaves, thinning of the stem, white bloom on the underside of the foliage. If the culture is infected twice in one season, another symptom is added - small oily spots on the leaves. With the development of the fungus in the active phase, the basket is damaged, as a result of which it ceases to develop.
• Often the plants are affected by black spot, which is recognized by dark necrotic spots, expanding over time to 4-5 cm in size. Other signs indicate infection: numerous cracks in the place of attachment of the stem to the stem, dark spots on the petioles of an elongated shape.
• Gray spot affects almost the entire plant, forming dark spots of angular shape with a gray contour on the leaves, petioles, stalks. Over time, parts of the plant dry up and fall off.
• With bacteriosis plant tissues rot, become covered with mucus. If you do not process the culture, it will wither and dry.

Insect parasites can also harm crops:

• steppe crickets - attack the plant at the stage of forming the first leaflets, destroy the growth point;
• weevil - parasites bite the stem of young shoots, eat seed-colored leaves, feed on sprouts that have not yet appeared on the ground surface;
• meadow moths - larvae differ in gluttony, eat almost completely the leafy part of the culture, destroy the epidermis in baskets and stems;
• gnawing scoops - insects at the caterpillar stage eat up the stem near the root zone;
• Chafer - parasite larvae damage the plant root system.

Harvesting

Sunflower crops begin to be harvested when the plant reaches full maturity. Basket and leaves dry up, become brown (brown) color. Mature sunflower seeds accumulate a sufficient amount of oil, the kernels become solid, and the peel acquires a shade corresponding to the variety. Estimated and all planted field as a whole. If the indicator of the remaining plants with yellow petals does not exceed 15%, the harvest time begins.

The culture contains minerals and vitamins that are beneficial for the body, and essential oils. It is possible to use sunflower seeds both in the culinary purposes, and medical. When landing on large areas, you can replenish stocks of vegetable oil for the winter. It is absolutely not difficult to master the agrotechnology of growing sunflower.