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In recent years, city residents have developed a fashionable hobby - growing various green crops on their windowsills. We must frankly admit that this activity can cause a lot of unnecessary trouble, but at the same time it brings incomparable pleasure from contemplating the appearance of new life in the form of green sprouts before your eyes. In addition, adding fresh food to your daily diet greenery, grown with your own hands at home, without unknown additives, not only adds strength and energy, but can also solve some health problems.
Cabbage has been one of the most popular crops in Russia since ancient times. And if growing white cabbage at home is difficult due to some of its biological characteristics, then there are varieties of cabbage for which, if desired, it is quite possible to create relatively favorable conditions for growth. One of these crops is Chinese cabbage. It has appeared on the Russian market quite a long time ago and has managed to become one of the most popular vegetables for year-round consumption.
Beijing cabbage - what is it?
Among the wide diversity of the cabbage family, there are two species whose homeland is East Asia, and more precisely, China. These are Beijing and Chinese cabbage.These varieties are sometimes confused with each other, although even in appearance they are very different. Chinese cabbage (“pak choy”) does not form a head of cabbage - it is a purely leafy type. And those dense, oval-elongated heads of cabbage, which in recent years can be found on the shelves of almost any vegetable department in stores, are representatives of Chinese cabbage or “petsai”, as the Chinese themselves call it.
Chinese cabbage is consumed mainly in the form of salads, although it is also tasty boiled and stewed.
Its leaves contain twice as much protein as its white cabbage relative. It is also rich in calcium, potassium, iron salts and various vitamins. Regular consumption is especially useful for stomach ulcers and cardiovascular diseases.
Technology of growing from stalks
Interestingly, Chinese cabbage is such a life-loving plant that it can delight you with an additional harvest from a ready-made head of cabbage. How can you grow Chinese cabbage from a stalk? The technology of this process is quite simple. If you take the matter seriously, you need to prepare the following:
- A fairly deep conical container. Any bowl is ideal. Its dimensions should be such that the bottom of a head of cabbage fits in its wide upper part.
- Light but nutritious soil mixture with sand or vermiculite.
- A pot with a volume of at least one liter, the dimensions of its upper circumference must exceed the dimensions of the bottom of a head of cabbage.
- Black package.
- The head of Chinese cabbage itself.
- Sharp knife.
Almost any head of Chinese cabbage is suitable for growing green leaf mass.
It is imperative to check the condition of the head of cabbage - there should be no dark or gray spots or specks on it, as well as other signs of future rotting. Nothing good will grow from such planting material.
At the next stage, you need to measure about 6 cm from the bottom of the head of Chinese cabbage and use a sharp knife to separate the bottom from the rest of the head with a transverse cut. It is advisable to rinse it additionally under running water to remove possible contamination. The upper cut part can be crumbled into salads and used in preparing other dishes. And the lower part with the bottom will serve as the initial planting material for growing green leaves, and, perhaps, getting a whole head of Chinese cabbage.
Then fill the prepared cone-shaped container with water to about one third and place the bottom of the head of cabbage in it with the bottom. Only the bottom of the stalk should be immersed in water.
The germinating stalk does not need a lot of light at this stage, but the heat will have a depressing effect on it. One of the best places is the window sill of a window facing north. If the temperature outside is already above zero, then it is best to place the vessel with Chinese cabbage on the balcony.
The first roots may begin to appear in the bottom area the very next day.Sometimes, simultaneously with them, leaves begin to form from the upper part. Throughout the first week, you can simply observe the interesting process of the appearance of new roots and leaves on the stalk. You just need to occasionally add water to the vessel as it is absorbed by the emerging roots.
If you do not plan to grow a head of cabbage from the stalk, but are ready to be content with only fresh vitamin leaves, then there is no need to replant into the ground. A stalk of any size will have enough water to grow a sufficient number of leaves.
Growing cabbage
If you are interested in growing a head of Chinese cabbage from a stalk, then you can try, but this process is more troublesome and no one will give you a 100% guarantee of success when growing at home. This works best when transplanting the stalk into open ground. Nevertheless, you can try.
After about a week, when a sufficient number of roots have formed, the stalk can be planted in the prepared soil mixture. You must act very carefully, since the roots of Chinese cabbage are very tender and brittle. It is better to place the very bottom part of the stalk in a pot and sprinkle the roots with soil on top. The upper part of the stalk must be above the ground. The soil should be sufficiently moist.
For the first few days, it is better not to water the planted stalk, and only when new leaves open, watering is resumed. The leaves will grow quickly enough and can already be used for food. But if you are planning to grow a head of cabbage, then it is better to wait a little.You need to water Chinese cabbage sparingly, waiting until the surface of the soil in which it is planted dries out.
The fact is that Chinese cabbage is a long-day plant. This means that if the daylight hours are more than 12-15 hours, the plant will bloom quite easily, but there will be problems with the formation of a head of cabbage. That is why it is always grown in the garden either in spring or at the end of summer.
At home, if you grow Chinese cabbage in the warm season, you can use a trick - cover the plant with a cap made of black film for 10-12 hours. It is also important to maintain the temperature between +12°C and +20°C. Watering should be moderate. Often in warm conditions the plant quickly forms a flower arrow. If you plan to grow a head of cabbage, then it must be removed.
If all the above conditions are met, in a month or a month and a half you will be able to get from the stalk a slightly loose, but quite weighty head of cabbage, weighing up to one kilogram.
Another option is also possible. If you don’t do anything special with the cabbage, it will soon produce a flower shoot. After some time, seeds are formed. They can be collected and, if the weather permits, sown in open ground, thereby obtaining a harvest of Chinese cabbage from seeds grown independently.
Conclusion
As you can see, there is nothing particularly difficult about growing Chinese cabbage from stalks. This process is quite fascinating - it will help brighten up the dull dark days in autumn and winter, and at the same time get tasty and vitamin-rich greens.
