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Pumpkin is one of the most beloved melons and gourds of Russian gardeners. A tavern in common parlance or a garbuz in the Ukrainian way - it can be called in different ways, the essence does not change from this. Sweet fragrant pumpkin fruits are widely used not only in cooking, but also in medicine.
Large-fruited pumpkin Smile was bred by the All-Russian Scientific Research Institute for Selection and Seed Production of Vegetable Crops (VNIISSOK) in the Moscow Region in 1998. Quite quickly, Smile gained popularity among gardeners due to its varietal characteristics and unpretentious care.
Characteristics of the Smile variety
Description of the Smile pumpkin:
Resistant to temperature extremes
Pumpkin Smile, even with a lack of heat during the season, is capable of producing high yields, therefore the variety is grown in open ground also in areas with cold climatic conditions, for example, in the Urals and Siberia.
Available seeds
Plant parameters
Smile is a compact bushy pumpkin variety. Produces short lashes, the main one grows up to 1 m. One pumpkin bush gives no more than 6 pieces. Light green leaf plates are of medium size and a characteristic yellow pattern.
Terms of fruiting
The smile belongs to the ultra-early ripening pumpkin varieties, fully ripens on the bush even in the short Siberian summer. It takes only 85 days from the moment the shoots appear to harvest.
Bloom
During flowering, the Smile looks especially decorative: large bright yellow flowers will decorate the garden area. They also give off a strong scent. The female flowers, in which the fruits are tied, grow on lateral lashes - this is the main property of the bushy pumpkin shape.
Fruit
The shape of the fruit is spherical, slightly flattened. Hard, medium-thick crust, smooth to the touch, leathery. Pumpkin is considered portioned, since its weight usually does not exceed 1.2 kg. The main color of the fruit is bright orange with light stripes. The pulp is also orange, not juicy. The seed chamber is small. The taste characteristics of the Smile are excellent: its fruits are very sweet and fragrant, for universal use.
Bountiful harvest
Yield
One Smile bush gives 5-7 pumpkins weighing up to 1.2 kg, so the yield is considered very high. From 1 m2, you can harvest about 3 kg of the crop.
Keeping quality of fruits
Fruit rinds are hard, so they can be stored well at room temperature until the beginning of winter and can be transported without damage.
Despite the fact that Smile was bred a long time ago, many gardeners do not abandon it in favor of other varieties and hybrids of pumpkin and are grown from year to year on plots. There is nothing surprising in this - the varietal characteristics of the Smile speak for themselves.
Agricultural technology for growing pumpkin Smile
To successfully grow on the site and collect a high varietal crop of Smile, you need to plant it correctly and provide basic care.
Growing a pumpkin is easy
Features of planting bush pumpkin Smile:
Seat planning
Due to its high cold resistance, the Smile is grown most often in the open field - it would be completely irrational to occupy a place in a greenhouse for a crop. When choosing a seat, one should be guided by the same rules as for other varieties, that is, organize calm and well-lit warm beds-pillows (filled with compost and humus).
The upper fill layer of the earth should be light and loose.Often such landing sites are located behind a tank, container, greenhouse, fence, etc., providing protection from the winds. But it would be a pity to hide a decorative Smile behind any structures, so gardeners often plant it in plain sight. When choosing a landing site for Smiles, the rules of crop rotation are taken into account: you cannot plant after squash, cucumbers, zucchini.
Planting bush pumpkin technology
Pumpkin Smile can be planted in a permanent place with seeds or seedlings. Since this is an early ripening variety, sowing seeds in open ground is possible even in regions with a cold climate. The seeding depth is 5-7 cm. Seeds are planted directly into the ground in late May - early June. It is worth considering that the ground of the garden should warm up to + 120C.
If the weather conditions still do not allow sowing, it is recommended to choose the seedling method. Sowing seeds in order to obtain seedlings is carried out in early May, and seedlings are planted in the ground at the end of May. During this time, 3-4 leaves already grow on them. Pumpkin seedlings are considered ready for planting, the age of which is 20-25 days.
Important! The planting scheme of the Smile variety provides for the observance of a distance between adjacent bushes of 75 cm. When planting thickened, the fruits become smaller.
Care features
The Smile variety is considered unpretentious, but this does not mean at all that its bushes do not require maintenance. There are several aspects to consider when growing such a pumpkin.
- Watering. Despite the fact that the Smile pumpkin is particularly drought-resistant, the irrigation regime should be as close as possible to that recommended for other varieties of this melon crop. Only in this case, the ovaries will not fall off, and the fruits will ripen to the maximum size.
- Formation of bushes. Smile seedlings are neat shrubs that also need shaping. After the first pumpkin appears on the main lash, it must be pinched. During the period of active plant growth, all stepchildren and side shoots must be removed. The last pinching is carried out at the beginning of August so that all the forces of the bushes are directed to the ripening of the pumpkins, and is to limit the growth of lashes. All parts of the plant are easily formed with your fingers, so you don't need to use any equipment for this operation.
- Control of the number of ovaries. In order for the Smile to be able to reveal its full potential, it is necessary to wait until the first two fruits appear, and remove the remaining ovaries. This method is used to grow pumpkins to the maximum size. It should be noted that the Smile will throw out female flowers regularly, therefore, the number of ovaries is monitored periodically.
- Mulching. Bush pumpkins, which Smile belongs to, have one interesting feature - their fruits sit amicably near the bases of the plants, the leaf plates of which cover them. To ensure better passage of sunlight to the fruits in order to accelerate their ripening, you need to thin out the leaves. Removing excess foliage can activate weed growth and dry out the soil quickly after watering. In this case, it is recommended to mulch the pumpkin beds. This will reduce the number of waterings, limit weed growth and neglect loosening.
- Top dressing. If the Smile was originally planted in nutrient soil, there is no need to feed it during the season. If necessary, you can add complex fertilizers for melons and gourds. From organic matter, ash and herbal dressings are preferred.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Pumpkin Smile
This variety has many more advantages than disadvantages, which is why it is so loved by gardeners. For clarity, the advantages of Smile are discussed below in comparison with other varieties of bush pumpkin - Gribovskaya bush and Kroshka, since their cold resistance and high yield indicators are close to Smile.
- The neatness and compactness of the bushes, which save space in the garden. All three varieties have this advantage.
- Decorativeness.Only Smile can boast of a beautiful yellow mosaic on the leaves. This variety was originally bred as an ornamental variety.
- High cold resistance, thanks to which this pumpkin can be grown in any corner of the country.
- Early maturity. The well-known variety Kroshka cannot boast of this indicator. It belongs to the mid-season, the fruits ripen 115 days after planting.
- Good yield even with inept care.
- Excellent taste characteristics of pumpkins, as well as their small size (the fruit is consumed at one time, it does not need to be stored cut). Gribovskaya bush produces large fruits weighing 3 ... 5 kg, and Crumbs' pumpkins are not miniature at all - up to 3 kg. Such sizes of fruits can hardly be called portioned.
The disadvantage of the Smile is considered to be an average resistance to certain diseases. But with the observance of agricultural technology and official care, serious problems, as a rule, do not arise.
Pumpkin is always delicious
Important! To avoid rotting pumpkins on the bushes, it is recommended to place tiles or other non-wooden substrates under them.
Another disadvantage is the short storage period of the crop, about three months. This indicator can be slightly increased if, when collecting, a long tail of 5 cm is left on the fruits.
Once having planted a Smile on the site, it will be quite difficult to refuse it: it is difficult to find a pumpkin variety that combines so many positive qualities. Shelf life (no more than 3 months) in this case, the disadvantage is insignificant - its fragrant sweet fruits will be eaten much earlier.
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