2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Photo: Anna Kompaniets
The popularity of okra in Russia is growing every year. Gardeners - amateurs are happy to grow this exotic crop in their summer cottages. And on the shelves of stores you can often find an unusual plant of the malvaceous family. If you hear the name okra, gombo, bamiese or ladies' fingers, then we are talking about the same okra, because it has many names in different parts of our planet.
Little is known about the homeland of the wonderful okra, it has been established that it comes from Africa or India. This is due to the fact that it is in these places that a wide variety of cultivated and wild species and varieties of okra is spread. Arabs brought this vegetable crop to Europe.
Description
Okra belongs to herbaceous annual plants, the Abelmos genus, the Malvaceae family. It reaches a height of up to 2 m, although the average plant length is 40 - 100 cm. The plant stem is powerful, thick, woody, pubescent with sparse stiff hairs. Usually the stem branches out from the base and forms 2 to 7 stems. Okra leaves are very large, lobed, long-petiolate, green, pubescent. The fruits are represented by poly-seeded pyramidal capsules of an elongated shape, which outwardly resemble green pepper pods. Fruits can reach a length of 25 cm, however, young ovaries (3-6 days old) are eaten when they have a bright green color.
Growing
Okra is a thermophilic plant, but it is successfully cultivated in open ground not only in the southern regions of Russia, but even in temperate latitudes with a colder climate.
Seed planting in open ground
In open ground, okra is planted with seeds when the ground is warmed up to 15 degrees, the depth of seeding is 3-5 cm. Young sprouts appear in two weeks, and after two months early ripening varieties begin to bear fruit.
Leave a distance of about 70 cm between the rows of okra, and 30 cm between the plants. For seed germination, the optimum air temperature is 20 degrees, but already formed plants can tolerate slight frosts.
Seedling planting method
In harsh climatic conditions, it is recommended to grow okra by seedlings. To speed up seed germination, soak them in water for a day. Plant three seeds in one peat pot in March-April, cover with glass, and turn daily to remove condensation. In the room where the seeds are germinated, the temperature should be between 18 and 21 ° C. At the first shoots, the glass is removed, and the temperature is lowered by 5 degrees, and after a week it is raised to the initial one. At the age of 45 days, the seedlings are planted in open ground along with a peat cup. The roots of young plants are very sensitive, so when the root system is injured, the plant does not take root well and growth stops.
When choosing a place for planting, opt for soils with high fertility. Since spring, phosphorus fertilizers are introduced into the soil. The place must be absolutely sunny, you can grow okra under film shelters. Pumpkin seeds are good predecessors for okra, and legumes are acceptable.
Care consists in regular loosening, weeding, feeding. Before flowering, feed the plant with mineral fertilizer, during fruiting - with potassium nitrate.
For abundant branching, pinch the top of the main stem when it reaches a height of 40 cm. Okra is a drought-resistant plant, but moisture is essential during the period of fruit formation.
The fruits of okra are harvested many times, every 3-4 days, from August to October, until the very frost, preventing their outgrowth. Ripe fruits that have changed their color are no longer suitable for food, they become coarse, tough and tasteless. It is not recommended to store young fruits, they become fibrous.
Okra is a dietary exotic. Continuation
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