Nasturtium - an ornamental plant to decorate the cottages

There nasturtium from South and Central America. There are about 50 species of this plant.

At home, it's Annual or perennial. In Russia, it is grown only as annual crops.

One of the cultivated species - Nasturtium "lobby" - is a plant with creeping, up to 3 m shoots with large, green leaves on long stalks and yellow or orange single, large, diameter of 5 cm, flowers on long stalks. This kind of nasturtiums can be widely used for decorative purposes: for landscaping slopes, rocky and decorative walls, arbors, balconies, loggias. It can be grown on beds or as single plants. Propagated nasturtium seeds that are sown directly into the ground after the threat of frost has passed, but it is preferable to grow seedling method. On seedlings sown the seeds of this plant in the middle or end of April, right in pots, because Nasturtium not tolerate transplanting. Planted in open ground with a lump of land, of course, when the frost is not afraid.

Nasturtium   - Heat-loving plant and photophilous and die even with a slight negative temperature. It prefers drained, well-fertilized, moderately moist soil. It makes no fresh manure, lime, excess moisture and nitrogen. No watering in the dry summer grows poorly and almost no blooms. With a little shade leaves grow larger and fleshy, but in such circumstances the plant may not bloom. Flowering begins in 40-50 days after emergence and lasts all summer until the first frost. Seeds ripen in 40-50 days after the beginning of flowering. Seeds are large, black. For use in the food they were harvested green.

At home, nasturtium is an important food plant. For members of the family of spicy characteristic common to all parts of the plant, the smell and taste due to the presence in the cell tropeolin. In the food consumed flowers, leaves, fruits, seeds, and even the perennial species rhizomes and tubers.

Nasturtium leaves are good in salads and sandwiches, prepared from the flowers of vinegar with a very peculiar flavor. Fresh leaves, unripe fruits and seeds have a pleasant pungent odor and taste and is often used as a salad dressing, salad, vegetable, meat and fish dishes, add them to soups. The buds and unripe fruits marinated and used instead of capers, as well as a seasoning when pickling cucumbers and tomatoes. Try these dishes - you will not regret!

Grass, leaves, flower buds and seeds of nasturtiums are used not only as a vitamin supplement to the main food, teas and tinctures to help with chronic bronchitis, cholelithiasis, hypertension, chronic coronary insufficiency, coronary artery disease, asthma, emphysema, anemia, kidney stones , skin rashes. Broth nasturtium stimulates heart rate, increases blood flow through the coronary arteries, improves the health of patients with angina pectoris. The fresh juice of the leaves is used to strengthen the hair.

Herbs, seeds, flower buds and leaves of nasturtiums are harvested throughout the summer.

Periods of harvesting and storage conditions of the tomato crop holiday

There are biological and the technological maturity of the tomato fruit. Biological maturity comes when developed seeds are covered by a hard shell, At this point, the growth of the fetus is terminated. He is still green, but lighter than usual.

In the section of the fetus can be seen that the seed does not dry the camera - they are filled with the placenta. The seeds of the fruit have a high germination rate.

Fruits collected in a phase of biological maturity, tolerate long transport and storage. By maintaining an optimum temperature (23-25 ​​° C) 4-6 days they take the bright red, crimson, yellow or other color characteristic class, ie, comes their technological maturity. During this period, it accumulates the maximum number of fruit sugars, acids and vitamins.

For the technological maturity of tomato fruit characterized by two phases: the first - the fruit is partially acquires a brown color, the second - the fruit is fully ripe. At the first stage the fetus is pink in the section and is quite suitable for consumption. To increase the total yield per plant is necessary to collect the fruits, which are precisely in this phase of maturity. Fully ripe fruits emit ethylene, which stops the growth of other fruits. Overripening leads to a drastic reduction of sugar, ascorbic acid, poor taste, and finally to a full softening and loss of marketability.

While collecting remove diseased and fallen fruits, which may cause the spread of disease.

On average, in the open field 1 m! section is collected up to 3-5 kg ​​of ripe fruit.

Ripening tomatoes

In the middle zone never fully ripen all tied to plant fruit tomato. Therefore, by the end of the growing season, usually in early September (do not wait until the autumn frosts), and in case of a threat of defeat late blight before, collect all the green fruits have reached the size typical of the class. They must be clean, dry, intact, not diseased. The fruits are laid out in a warm room on shelves or in drawers (2-3 layers). Periodically (every 2-3 days), the fruits are sorted, putting already matured, as well as patients.

For quick ripening room must be well ventilated and the relative humidity in it should be maintained at 80-85% and the temperature does not fall below 23-25 ​​° C. Under such conditions, a fully mature green fruit in 6 8 days.

Maturation can be carried out in complete darkness, but to light it is intense. At temperatures above 30 ° C painting of fruit becomes uneven, spotty. At temperatures below 20 ° C, the synthesis of lycopene (the pigment that determines the color of the red fruit) slows down the ripening process and greatly delayed. After ripening of the fruits of their chemical composition and taste a little different from those that have ripened on the plant.

Storing tomatoes

Small, malokamernye ripe fruits placed in one or two coats on the shelves and in boxes so that they do not hurt each other peduncles. They can be stored in a dark, occasionally ventilated areas (ventilation is necessary because the fruit on his breath oxygen consumption). The optimum temperature for storage of mature fruit 4-6 ° C, relative humidity 80-90%. The latter allows to reduce the evaporation of water to a minimum the fruits, thus preventing them from desiccation.

Under such conditions, the fruits are kept 15-30 days. At lower temperatures (13 ° C) the shelf life is extended to 40-50 days, but the quality of the fruit at the same time sharply reduced: they become watery and tasteless. Green, reached biological maturity of the fruit can be stored for 50-60 days if the storage temperature does not fall below 8-10 ° C. If it drops to 4-6 ° C, even under optimum conditions in the rest of the green fruit is not blush.

It is best stored (2-3 months), fruit, pour sawdust or peat. They plucked periodically by removing mature and sick.

You can store the fruit directly to the plants if the tomato bushes hung in the room where the temperature is maintained in the range 12-14 ° C. In this case, the weight of the fruit may even increase due to the outflow of nutrients from the stems and leaves.

Periods of harvesting and storage conditions of the tomato crop holiday

There are biological and the technological maturity of the tomato fruit. Biological maturity comes when developed seeds are covered by a hard shell, At this point, the growth of the fetus is terminated. He is still green, but lighter than usual.

In the section of the fetus can be seen that the seed does not dry the camera - they are filled with the placenta. The seeds of the fruit have a high germination rate.

Fruits collected in a phase of biological maturity, tolerate long transport and storage. By maintaining an optimum temperature (23-25 ​​° C) 4-6 days they take the bright red, crimson, yellow or other color characteristic class, ie, comes their technological maturity. During this period, it accumulates the maximum number of fruit sugars, acids and vitamins.

For the technological maturity of tomato fruit characterized by two phases: the first - the fruit is partially acquires a brown color, the second - the fruit is fully ripe. At the first stage the fetus is pink in the section and is quite suitable for consumption. To increase the total yield per plant is necessary to collect the fruits, which are precisely in this phase of maturity. Fully ripe fruits emit ethylene, which stops the growth of other fruits. Overripening leads to a drastic reduction of sugar, ascorbic acid, poor taste, and finally to a full softening and loss of marketability.

While collecting remove diseased and fallen fruits, which may cause the spread of disease.

On average, in the open field 1 m! section is collected up to 3-5 kg ​​of ripe fruit.

Ripening tomatoes

In the middle zone never fully ripen all tied to plant fruit tomato. Therefore, by the end of the growing season, usually in early September (do not wait until the autumn frosts), and in case of a threat of defeat late blight before, collect all the green fruits have reached the size typical of the class. They must be clean, dry, intact, not diseased. The fruits are laid out in a warm room on shelves or in drawers (2-3 layers). Periodically (every 2-3 days), the fruits are sorted, putting already matured, as well as patients.

For quick ripening room must be well ventilated and the relative humidity in it should be maintained at 80-85% and the temperature does not fall below 23-25 ​​° C. Under such conditions, a fully mature green fruit in 6 8 days.

Maturation can be carried out in complete darkness, but to light it is intense. At temperatures above 30 ° C painting of fruit becomes uneven, spotty. At temperatures below 20 ° C, the synthesis of lycopene (the pigment that determines the color of the red fruit) slows down the ripening process and greatly delayed. After ripening of the fruits of their chemical composition and taste a little different from those that have ripened on the plant.

Storing tomatoes

Small, malokamernye ripe fruits placed in one or two coats on the shelves and in boxes so that they do not hurt each other peduncles. They can be stored in a dark, occasionally ventilated areas (ventilation is necessary because the fruit on his breath oxygen consumption). The optimum temperature for storage of mature fruit 4-6 ° C, relative humidity 80-90%. The latter allows to reduce the evaporation of water to a minimum the fruits, thus preventing them from desiccation.

Under such conditions, the fruits are kept 15-30 days. At lower temperatures (13 ° C) the shelf life is extended to 40-50 days, but the quality of the fruit at the same time sharply reduced: they become watery and tasteless. Green, reached biological maturity of the fruit can be stored for 50-60 days if the storage temperature does not fall below 8-10 ° C. If it drops to 4-6 ° C, even under optimum conditions in the rest of the green fruit is not blush.

It is best stored (2-3 months), fruit, pour sawdust or peat. They plucked periodically by removing mature and sick.

You can store the fruit directly to the plants if the tomato bushes hung in the room where the temperature is maintained in the range 12-14 ° C. In this case, the weight of the fruit may even increase due to the outflow of nutrients from the stems and leaves.