5 secrets to growing delicious zucchini on the balcony or in your garden

Zucchini is one of the most popular vegetables that we plant in the spring in our garden and harvest in the summer. Zucchini belongs to the same family of plants as cucumber, melon and watermelon. Growing zucchini is considered quite easy and we highly recommend it to novice growers, as we can grow zucchini even in pots on our balcony if we do not have a garden. Zucchini is eaten boiled, roasted and fried and is a key ingredient in many favorite summer food recipes such as pumpkin pie, briam and stuffing. It is worth noting that zucchini have significant nutritional value, as they are high in fiber, potassium, calcium and folic acid. So let’s see what care is needed to grow zucchini to enjoy the most delicious and crunchy zucchini from the garden in our kitchen.

Secrets for growing eggplants in pots and in your garden

What season and how do we plant zucchini in our garden?

Early planting of zucchini is done in early spring with ready-made plants that we have procured from a nursery or that we prepare ourselves at the end of winter in a special bed. If we want to grow zucchini in late spring, we can plant the pumpkin seed directly in the ground, as during this period the soil temperature is suitable for the seed to germinate. Before planting the young zucchini plants in the ground, it is necessary to incorporate organic matter in the form of compost, digested manure and organic fertilizer at the planting sites for nutrient enrichment. When transplanting young zucchini plants, we avoid dense plantings, in order to have better ventilation and lighting of the plants, thus reducing the possibility of developing fungal and entomological diseases. The ideal planting distances of zucchini are between 70-100 cm between planting sites and 100-140 cm between planting lines.

How often do you need to water the zucchini?

Zucchini is relatively water-demanding to have good growth, significant fruiting and rich production. In particular, zucchini need watering every two days during the spring and every day during the summer, so that the soil is kept moist. Suitable irrigation system for watering zucchini is the drip irrigation system that is more efficient, more economical and more environmentally beneficial. Excessive watering, as well as wetting the zucchini foliage, when watering, contributes to fungal diseases such as powdery mildew.

What fertilizer do you need to grow zucchini?

Fertilization is an important crop for zucchini as it needs several nutrients. We add complete organic fertilizer (with nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium) every 20 days to our zucchini to help vigor, plant growth, flowering and fruit production. It should be noted that excessive nitrogen fertilization negatively contributes to the fruiting of zucchini and causes susceptibility to the development of fungal diseases.

How do we deal with diseases and insects of pumpkin cultivation?

For the ecological plant protection of zucchini, we dust with sulfur around the root, as well as on the leaves for protection against fungal diseases, such as powdery mildew, and on the quail. Dusting of zucchini leaves can also be done with thiochalcine, although some caution should be exercised when administering phytotoxicity during the flowering period, as with other zucchini (cucumber, melon, watermelon). To protect our zucchini from insects that infect them, we use an ecological preparation of potassium salts of fatty acids that we procure from agricultural stores. Alternatively, spray the plants every week with an improvised preparation that we dissolve by dissolving a tablespoon of grated green soap and a tablespoon of alcohol in a liter of water. In these ways, we prevent the aphid (aphid) and the powdery mildew that infects zucchini foliage and creates characteristic honeydew.

And one last secret about growing zucchini

The zucchini harvest usually begins 2 months after planting and lasts 2-3 months depending on the variety of the zucchini, the planting season, and its resistance to disease. The zucchini is ready to be cut when it reaches a length of 10-15 cm and must be cut with a piece of the foot, in order to keep it fresh and cool for a longer period of time. Because the fruit of the zucchini grows very quickly, especially during the summer, the harvest must be done at least every two days in the morning so that we can enjoy cool and crunchy fruits.