What to do when the pumpkin does not bloom and why it happens
Pumpkin is an unpretentious plant that does not cause any particular difficulties in care. However, novice gardeners often have a question, what to do if sprouts have sprouted, leaves have formed, but there are still no flowers? Why isn't the pumpkin blooming? You will receive detailed answers to these questions in the article.
The content of the article
Why pumpkin doesn't bloom
To answer the question of what to do if the pumpkin does not bloom, it is worth understanding what factors influence the development of the plant.
The pumpkin begins to bloom 1.5-2 months after planting the seeds... The process of color formation is influenced by the following factors:
- air and soil temperature;
- care;
- lighting;
- pollination;
- correct feeding.
Pumpkin grows well in sunny and ventilated areas with fertilized soil.
Important! If the culture is planted in a dark and humid place, then its pollen sticks together, and pollination does not occur.
Poor pollination
Bees collect nectar and carry pollen from one flower to another. Pumpkin has two kinds of flowers: male and female. It is easy to distinguish between them: pistils in female flowers, and stamens in male flowers. Blossoming of female flowers lasts 24-48 hours, male flowers - 24 hours.
Male flowers appear first, and female flowers appear in a week. If there are no female flowers, then the male flowers fall off, since pollination does not occur and ovaries do not appear.
Reference. If low-quality seeds are planted in the ground, the plant will not bloom. For planting, 2-3-year-old seeds are chosen, and not last year's.
Excess fertilizer
If gardeners use more fertilizers than recommended in the instructions, then the pumpkin will not be able to bloom properly and set fruits.
In the early stages of growth, fertilizing the soil with a large amount of nitrogen substances negatively affects the culture. The tops grow, but the roots do not develop and do not provide the entire plant with proper nutrition.
To help the pumpkin, leave a few healthy shoots and remove the rest. The stems are buried in order to form additional roots. This method improves plant nutrition.
Important! Weak shoots are not pulled out of the ground, but cut off. This method will not damage the root system.
Fruit ugliness
With insufficient plant nutrition and improper bush formation, pumpkins have ugly fruits.
Pinching is carried out so that many lashes do not form and the ovaries do not die. The optimal number of fruits per plant is 3 or 4. Then all pumpkins ripen in the correct shape.
It can be useful:
Why do pumpkin ovaries turn yellow and fall off
Dense foliage
If the plant has received more nitrogen than the norm, then he has extra thick foliage. In this case, the culture does not set fruit and forms barren flowers.
Unnecessary leaves are removed, fertilizers containing phosphorus and potassium are used. The formed lashes are sprinkled with earth.
Important! Phosphorus and potassium are involved in the formation of flowers. Timely feeding with these substances promotes the formation of new buds.
Decay of roots
Excessive watering, sudden changes in temperature, heavy rainfall - these factors cause the pumpkin roots to rot... The plant does not have enough strength to form flowers, the buds fall off, the ovaries are not formed.
Nitrogen fertilizers can cause root rot (they reduce the frost resistance of pumpkin), which were introduced into the soil ahead of schedule. The pumpkin is fed when the soil temperature is above + 12 ° C.
If the weather is cold, reduce watering and use fertilizers that help the plant to withstand the cold - for example, urea.
How to help a pumpkin bloom
How to make a pumpkin bloom? This question worries many summer residents who are worried about the harvest.
If all the requirements for proper plant care are met, but the pumpkin has not begun to bloom, apply additional measures:
- artificial pollination;
- watering correction;
- the formation of bushes;
- high-quality feeding.
Let's consider the technology and advantages of each method in detail.
Artificial pollination of pumpkin
This method is used if insects do not pollinate the flowers.... If not pollinated in time, the flowers will fall off.
First, determine which species the flower belongs to. If the stem immediately follows the bud, it is a male flower. If there is a slight thickening (ovary) in front of the stem, it is female.
All actions are carried out carefully so as not to harm the buds... Carefully take the male flower, fold back the petals and touch the stamen of the female bud with the pistil. Some time after the procedure, the second flower will increase in size.
Artificial pollination spend in the morning... Closer to lunch, the flowers will close.
Allowed to carry out pollination with male zucchini flowers... However, in this case, future seeds will not be suitable for growing crops.
Feature. Do not water the plants before pollination. Water or dew on the flowers will interfere with the fertilization process.
Proper watering
The flowering period affects the future harvest... If at this time the pumpkin is irrigated incorrectly, then a high-quality harvest will not be obtained.
Pumpkin watered once a week. The water is defended during the day in a container in the sun. This heats up to ambient temperature. Before moistening, the soil is loosened and weeds are removed.
When watering, make sure that water does not fall on the root collar of the plant. Moistening this part will cause the culture to rot.
Plant formation
Great attention is paid to the formation of the bush.... If the variety is large-fruited, then after the formation of ovaries, about 3 lashes are left on the plant. In June, pinch the top of the shoot, leave 5 leaves.
In pumpkins of other varieties, the whips are removed, on which barren flowers have formed. Plant top pinch in early August, remove all the leaves except three.
Reference. 1-2 ovaries are left on the plant in the event that they want to get large fruits.
Top dressing
Over the season pumpkin feed 2-3 times... The first feeding is applied when 4-5 leaves appear on the pumpkin. Organic fertilizers work well at this time.
From mid-summer to August, the culture is fed every 14 days with mineral fertilizers. If the pumpkin is grown in seedlings, then fertilizers are applied 7 days before planting it in the ground. Compost is used - 5 kg per 1 m².
To prevent decay, top dressing with urea is carried out. Add 1 tsp to a bucket of water. substances. Top dressing is carried out by irrigating the leaves.
Mineral fertilizers are suitable Kemira Lux and Kemira Universal. They contain nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, copper, boron, zinc and iron.
In the first period of the growing season, the culture is fed with ammonia. 50 ml of the substance is diluted in 5 liters of water. The solution is poured strictly under the root.
Conclusion
During the flowering period, the pumpkin becomes a capricious plant. Improper care leads to the fact that the flowers of the culture fall off, and the ovaries are not formed. To prevent this from happening, the pumpkin is artificially pollinated, since insects cannot cope with this.
Correct formation of bushes and timely feeding with nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium will allow the culture to quickly form flowers that will not fall off before fertilization.
Watering the culture is carried out with warm, settled water once a week. The earth is loosened and monitored so that moisture does not get on the root collar. High humidity leads to rotting of the roots and dropping of flowers and ovaries of the plant.