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Decorative pumpkin Red Riding Hood is an annual melon crop. It has unique characteristics, is resistant to diseases, pests and drought, and does not require special cultivation techniques. Its fruits are used for culinary or decorative purposes.
Description of the variety
The Red Riding Hood variety was bred by the American breeder L. Burbank from the seeds of a Chilean pumpkin, shaped like an oak acorn. After many years of hard work, an unpretentious plant was obtained, resistant to droughts, diseases and pests. Due to the visual similarity of the fruits to the eastern headdress, the derived subgroup was called turban-shaped.
The most striking representative of the subspecies is a mushroom-shaped pumpkin, called Little Red Riding Hood. The variety is considered decorative: its bush is compact, the vines are thin, grow up to 2.5 - 4 m, weave well and cling to the proposed support. The crown of the plant is dense, rich, dark green in color. The leaf blade is small, rounded. The culture forms a large number of thin side shoots.
The variety is classified as early ripening. The growing season begins in June.The pumpkin bears large funnel-shaped yellow flowers on thin stems. By the end of June, fruits begin to form.
Description of fruits
The shape and color of the pumpkin are distinctive features of the Red Riding Hood variety. In appearance, the fruits resemble a large mushroom with a red, orange, brownish rounded cap and a thick white, milky or white-green base.
The weight of a ripe pumpkin ranges from 200 g to 2 kg. Large turban-shaped varieties are rarely found, with fruits with a diameter of 10 - 20 cm, growing up to 4 kg.
The pulp of young pumpkins is crumbly, its thickness can reach 7–10 cm. The variety has a pleasant melon aroma and sweetness. After ripening, its peel hardens, the pulp becomes watery and bitter. Such fruits are used for decoration.
Characteristics of the variety
Decorative pumpkin Red Riding Hood has a high yield. Subject to the rules of agricultural technology and favorable growth conditions, up to 20 fruits can be harvested from one bush per season.
The Red Riding Hood variety is cold-resistant. Sprouted seeds can be sown in early spring, immediately after frost, without waiting for the soil to warm up deeply. If there is mulch and covering material, young shoots are not afraid of return frosts.
The varietal feature of Red Riding Hood is the high germination of seeds and their long shelf life. Pumpkin seeds remain viable for 7 years.
Another advantage of the variety is its drought resistance. The plant easily tolerates dry periods with high air temperatures without needing additional watering.
Resistance to pests and diseases
Decorative pumpkin is susceptible to the same diseases as large table varieties. However, a feature of Little Red Riding Hood is increased immunity. There are practically no aphids, slugs and spider mites on plants. Pumpkin is not afraid of powdery mildew either.
If seeds are stored correctly and preventative measures are taken before planting, insecticide treatment will not be required.
Advantages and disadvantages
Gardeners note that, in addition to its unique appearance, the mushroom-shaped variety of decorative pumpkin has significant advantages:
- unpretentiousness;
- frost resistance;
- high immunity to diseases and pests;
- drought resistance;
- high productivity;
- fast growth;
- early ripeness;
- long shelf life of ripe fruits.
In addition, the plant is suitable for vertical growing. The lashes easily climb to a height of up to 2.5 m and form dense thickets. Decorative pumpkins are planted to decorate verandas, gazebos, and arched walkways.
The disadvantages include the bitter taste of ripe pumpkin, as well as watery pulp and a dense peel. Young fruits of the Red Riding Hood variety have no defects in taste.
Is it possible to eat Little Red Riding Hood pumpkin?
Only unripe, “milky” fruits are suitable for cooking. Decorative pumpkin mushroom is consumed both raw and boiled, baked or steamed. The young pulp tastes tender, with a sweet, melon aroma.
A variety of salads are prepared from the fruits of the Red Riding Hood variety; they can be boiled, fried, salted, stewed, added to porridge or puree.
Nutritionists say that the orange pulp of pumpkin is rich in keratin and enriches the body with beneficial vitamins and microelements.
Use of decorative pumpkin
From mature pumpkin of the Red Riding Hood variety, collected in a timely manner and properly dried, craftsmen make unusual decorative items, household utensils, and use them to create autumn compositions and children's creativity.
Boxes, pots, cups, candlesticks, and holiday lanterns are cut out of unusually shaped fruits.
Varnish and acrylic paints work well on hard, dried peels.
Growing technology
The variety of decorative pumpkin Red Riding Hood is one of the most unpretentious to care for. For planting, you should choose light, unshaded areas with loose, fertile soil. It is desirable that the soil environment is neutral or slightly acidic.
Red Riding Hood can be sown in open ground at the end of April. The variety is not afraid of frost and sudden drops in temperature. The seeds are first germinated by placing them in gauze for 2 days, periodically moistened with warm water. It is possible to plant with non-sprouted material, but seedlings will appear much later.
The Red Riding Hood pumpkin variety is grown in seedlings:
- At the end of February - beginning of May, the seeds are immersed in a nutrient composition for 2 - 3 days. You can buy it at any gardening store.
- The hatched seeds are placed in peat pots with fertile substrate.
- Then cover with polyethylene and place in a warm place with diffused light.
- When the first shoots appear, the covering material is removed.
- 2 weeks before planting in open ground, young shoots begin to harden: they are left on the veranda with an open window, and taken outside for 15 - 30 minutes.
- Before planting, comprehensive organic approvals must be added to the prepared hole.
- The distance between neighboring plants planted in open ground should be at least half a meter to leave room for the growth and development of side shoots.
- If the average daily temperature is below 15 degrees, the seedlings are protected with covering material.
Despite the fact that the variety is unpretentious, pumpkin responds well to the application of complex fertilizers. The shoots, foliage and fruits of the plant develop best on a “cushion of manure”: 10 square meters. m of soil add 50 kg of mullein. The application of organic fertilizer during the flowering period is mandatory.
For the Red Riding Hood variety, timely, high-quality watering is desirable as the soil dries out. It is preferable to use warm, settled water. With a lack of moisture, the crop's vines become thinner, the leaves turn yellow, the ovaries dry out and fall off, and the fruits turn out to be bitter, too small, and pale.
If you want to create a hedge or a green wall for the Red Riding Hood pumpkin, you need to provide stable support. For this purpose, wooden, metal, and plastic trellises are used. In addition, whips are thrown along fences, walls or trellises on the veranda.
To stimulate the growth of lateral shoots, the main vine is pinched when its length reaches 1 m. This procedure is mandatory to obtain a decorative appearance of the pumpkin bush.
Ripe fruits are harvested at the end of August - September, when the stalk becomes woody, brown and hard.
To store for decorative purposes, the pumpkin is washed in a solution of baking soda or wiped with alcohol, and placed in a warm, well-ventilated room. The seeds are not removed.After about 1 - 2 months, Little Red Riding Hood will be suitable for creating compositions.
Conclusion
The decorative pumpkin variety Red Riding Hood is an unusual decoration for a personal plot. Curly vines with dense foliage and miniature mushroom fruits will decorate a veranda, arch or gazebo, and disguise an unsightly wall or fence. Pumpkin is considered an unpretentious crop; it grows quickly and is not susceptible to drought and frost. In addition, the young fruits of the Little Red Riding Hood pumpkin will help diversify your diet and get a portion of essential vitamins, and the ripe ones will help decorate your home.
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