How to grow poona kheera cucumber

Poona kheera cucumbers produce large fruits which are traditionally cut into slices for use in salads and as a garnish. They are a fast growing crop under good growing conditions. The maturity is between 55 to 65 days. Poona kheera cucumber is grown in spring and summer. Usually, cucumber plants can't withstand frost at all. So, plant in hot and warm conditions. 

Cucumbers are native to the tropics and absolutely must have warm soil (70˚ F minimum) for good germination and growth. Consequently they are among the last crops to be planted out in spring. Most varieties fruit better in short days, so they tend to be more productive later in the summer. Cucumbers take 2 weeks to germinate at 60 degrees, but only 3 days at 85 degrees. Cucumbers can be grown in partial shade. I.e it needs atleast 6 hours of full sun light.

The best way to water Cucumbers is with a drip system or soaker hose, as this keeps the leaves dry and so reduces the chance of disease problems. If you must get the leaves wet, water in the morning, or early evening, so they have a chance to dry out quickly. You don't want the leaves to stay wet all night.

Be careful not to overwater germinating seeds or they may rot. It's best to soak the ground or the potting soil heavily when first planting, then avoid watering again if possible until seedlings emerge. Cucumber seeds emerge in 5+ days; very lightly water ground or potting soil around day 3 or 4 to keep soil from crusting so that seeds can emerge more easily.

Poona kheera Cucumbers grow quite well in containers and several varieties have been produced specifically for this. They will be more productive in larger containers (at least 12" in diameter). In order to prevent root rot, it is important that your container has drainage holes. Line the bottom of your container with weed cloth or newspaper and then cover with a handful of small rocks. Fill the remainder with amixture of peat moss, compost and potting soil. Cucumbers need a minimum of 6 hours of sunlight per day. In extremely hot climates, it is best to provide partial shade and keep your container away from direct sunlight. Cucumbers need lots of water, and they prefer moist soil.

Poona kheera cucumbers attracts beneficial insects. The fruit size of the cucumber is 6 inches to 11 inches. The fruits on maturing will turn to brown from green. So, harvest the fruits while it is still green.

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How to grow and harvest foxtail millet

Here is an article on how to grow foxtail millet. 

Common name: Kakun

Vernacular Names: Foxtail millet (English), Kangni (Hindi), Navane (Kannada), Thinai (Tamil), Kang (Gujarati) and Rala (Marathi).

Family: Gramineae

Introduction: Fox tail is also known as Italian millet, and German millet. It is generally grown as a rainfed crop in India. It has an erect leafy stem that grow 60-75 cm tall and bend quite a bit at maturity due to heavy weight of earhead. Foxtail grain contains 10% to 12% Protein, 4.7% fat, 60.6 % carbohydrates 2.29% to 2.7% Lysine and 0.59 (mg) Thiamin.

Climate and soil: Foxtail can be grown in tropics as well as temperate regions both under low and moderate rainfall. The crop can be grown even at an altitude of 2000 metres and 50-75 centimetre annual rainfall. Foxtail grows well on well-drained loamy soils. They will not tolerate water-logged soils or extreme drought.

Varieties:

Following are the important varieties of the crop:

Pant setaria-4, TNAU-43, HMT-100-1, SIA-326, PS-4, K-2, K-3 and Krishna devaraya.

 

Land Preparation: Kakun does not require much field preparation. Before the onset of monsoon the field should be ploughed once with mould board plough. With onset of monsoon the field should be harrowed or plough with local plough twice in northern India or with blade harrows in south India.

Sowing Time: Kharif- June to July

Rabi- September to October

Seed rate: 8-10 kg/ha (line sowing)

15 kg/ha (broadcasting)

Seed treatment: Seed treated with Ceresan @ 3 g/kg of seed. 

Method of Sowing: Broadcasting and line sowing.

Spacing: Row to row 25-30 cm, plant to plant 8-10 cm and depth 2-3 cm.

Manures and fertilisers: The crop is usually manured with 5 to 10 t/ha FYM about a month before sowing. Generally fertilizer recommendations to get a good crop are 40 kg nitrogen, 20 kg P2O5 and 20 kg K2O per hectare. All the fertilizers should be applied as a basal dose at a time of sowing.

Water management: Kakun sown during Kharif season does not require any irrigation. However, if dry spell prevails for longer period, then first irrigation at 25-30 DAYS and second irrigation at 40-45 DAYS must be given to boost the yields.

Important weeds: Among grassy  weeds, Echinochloa colonum, Enhinochloa crusgulli (sawan), Dactyloctenium aegypticum (makra), Elusine indica (kodo), Setaria glauca (banra), Cynodon dactylon (doob), Phragmites karka (narkul), Cyperus rotundus (motha), Sorghum  halepanse (banchari) are common. The broad-leaved weeds are Celosia argentia (chilimil), Commelina benghalensis (kankoua), Phylanthus niruri (hulhul), Solanum nigrum (makoi) and Amaranthus viridis (chaulai).

Weed Control: Two to three weedings with hand hoe are sufficient to keep the weeds in control.Post-emergence application of 2, 4-D sodium salt (80%) @ 1.0 kg a.i./ha at 20-25 DAS. Isoproturon @ 1.0 kg a.i. /ha as pre-emergence spray is also effective in weeds control.

Diseases:

Downy mildew (Sclerospora graminicola): Diseased plants are dwarfed with excessive development of tillers. Lengthwise yellow- green streaks are seen on the leaves.

Control: Spray of 0.2% solution of Mancozeb 75 WP may help to control the disease and seed treatment is also helps in controlling the disease.

Kernel smut (Ustilago crameri) : The smut affected plants usually are stunted and the affected earheads convert into black masses.

Control: Seed treated with thiram or ceresan @ 2.5 g/kg of seed and soaking seeds in hot water at 55 oC for 7-12 minutes and the crop rotation is also helps in controlling the disease.

Insect-pests management:

Shoot fly: Apply Phorate @15 kg/ha (10% granules) in the soil at the time of field preparation or Carbofuran (Furadan) 3% granules @ 30 kg/ha in furrows or as broadcast before sowing.

Harvesting Time: The crop matures in 80-100 days. The crop is harvested when the earheads are dry, either by cutting the whole plant by sickle or the ears separately. The crop is usually harvested during Kharif season from September to October and Rabi season from January to February.

Yield: Grain-15-18 qtl/ha, Straw-20-40 qtl/ha.

Courtesy: DACFW

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How to create Indian food forest part IV vegetables

This article is a continued from How to create Indian Food forests. Here is a list of vegetables you can add for your food forest.

Pigeon pea

The pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan, family fabaceae) is thought to have originated in India, where it is still widely grown as a food crop. It is also used extensively as a cover crop, green manure, inter crop etc. in many sustainable farming systems in the tropics and subtropics, and in many home gardens in warm climates.

Brinjal

Eggplant is a high-fiber, low- calorie fruit that's used  as they grow from a flowering plant and contain seeds. Egg plants grows well in warm weather. Usually you will see flowers coming in the plant in about 40 days after the planting. There are many varieties of brinjal where you can choose according to shape at taste.

Okra

Okra, also known as gumbo or ladies fingers, is a warm-season vegetable. It is a good source of minerals, vitamins,. antioxidants. Additionally, okra is low in calories and carbs and contains some protein and fiber. There are many varieties of okra; the most commonly found are green and white. Green okra is shorter and slightly stubby when compared to white okra.

Cherry tomatoes

The cherry tomato is a type of small round tomato believed to be an intermediate genetic admixture between wild currant-type tomatoes and domesticated garden tomatoes. Cherry tomatoes range in size from a thumbtip up to the size of a golf ball, and can range from spherical to slightly oblong in shape. Cherry tomatoes are bite-sized tomatoes that grow quickly, ripen early, and are good for you. The cherry tomato plant is one of the most popular plants to grow because it is easy to grow and produces a harvest quickly.

Bottle gourd

Bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria) is an annual, vigorous, climbing vine with large leaves and white flowers. Bottle gourds come in various shapes and sizes. The plant grows quite quickly and vigorously, spreading over large areas. There are so many varieties of bottle gourd where you can choose them accordingly.

Pumpkin

Pumpkin belongs to the family Cucurbitaceae and is grown primarily as a vegetable or ornamental plant. Pumpkin plants are short lived annual or perennial vines with branching tendrils and broad lobed leaves. The plant produces large yellow or orange flowers and a pepo fruit (berry with a thick rind) known as a pumpkin.

Ridge gourd

Ridge gourd is a very important Indian vegetable crop and it can be grown throughout the year. Ridge gourd plants need a lot of water. And because they grow in full sunlight the soil can dry out very fast. Sandy loam rich in organic matter with good drainage and pH range from 6.5-7.5. Season Planting spreads during July and January. You can also grow them in balconies and terrace.

Cow pea

It grows best in hot areas and can produce a yield of one ton seed and five tons hay per hectare with as little as 300 mm of rainfall. Cowpea is a food and animal feed crop grown in the semi-arid tropics covering Africa, Asia, Europe, the United States, etc.. Forage cowpeas are herbaceous annual legumes, with spreading to fairly erect habit, growing 50 to 100 cm high. There are few varieties of cow pea to choose from. Even you choose climber variety of cow pea.

Indian beans

There are so many varieties of Indian beans you can choose from perrineals to annuals. Choose accordingly to your climate conditions.  Happy farming :)

Not only this you can choose other veggies such as chilli, sponge gourd, gherkins, cucumbers, etc ... Which are suitable for your location.

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How to create Indian Food forests Part III Perennials

Perennials plays major role in food forests. Perennials are plants which lives more than two years. In this article we are covering few easy to grow Perennials which don't require much maintenance.

Agathi spinach or August tree

August tree is the English name and agathi keerai is the Tamil name. The August tree Leaves, stem, root and flower of August tree leaves are used for medicinal purposes. The agathi leaves can be consumed in the form of juice, cooked spinach or medicine. The thin stem is used as a ingredient for good health medicines in siddha and ayurveda. You can also grow them in grow bags.

Moringa tree

Moringa is a genus of shrubs and trees with multi-purpose uses. Its leaves roots and immature pods are consumed as a vegetable. All parts of the moringa tree such as bark, pods, leaves, nuts, seeds, tubers, roots, and flowers are edible. The leaves are used fresh or dried and ground into powder.

Malabar spinach

Malabar spinach is an edible perennial vine in the family Basellaceae. It is found in tropical Asia and Africa where it is widely used as a leaf vegetable. It is native to the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia and New Guinea. It is a vine, where leaves are used for cooking. The cooking procedure is same as that of regular spinach. Stem cuttings about the length of 20 cm preferred over seeds for natural propagation, and faster growth. Being a vine, it requires trellising for its spread. It bears white or white-pink color tiny flowers depending upon the species and purple to black color berries.

Cluster beans

Cluster beans plant prefers tropical environment. It is a short lived perennial and live up to only 2-3 years. In India and Pakistan it is planted after summer in monsoon, during rain when humidity level increases.

Lablab beans / Indian field beans

Lablab beans are good sources of the amino acid, lysine, and as such complement the generally low lysine content. Lablab is a multipurpose legume. Its immature seeds and pods, and young leaves are edible and cooked as vegetables.

Mint / Pudhina

Mint is also know as mentha or Pudhina. Mint is one of the herbs that has it all. It grows like a weed, is perfectly safe for use, and is an excellent remedy for reducing symptoms related to digestion. And it tastes good going down.

Are some of the few Perennials you can have in your food forest. And the next posts vegetables for your food forest. Be tuned 😊
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How to create Indian food forests (fruit trees) part1

Here is an article on how to create your own food forests in India. The list of fruit trees for food forests listed below are native to India. Food forests are one which provides you food throughout the year. The food forests includes fruit trees, nut trees, fire resistent trees, live fencing, perrineals, vegetables, bushes, shrubs, medicinal plants, green manure crops, etc.. In this article we cover only fruit trees. Here are the selective list of fruit trees native to India to create your food forest.

Drumstick or Morning tree

Moringa tree or drumstick tree is a fast growing tree and a drought resistant tree as well. Young leaves are used for herbal medicine and India is the largest producer of moringa. They are planted with fruit trees for pest management.

Gauva

Gauva tree is a drought resistant tree. It takes minimum three to five years to yield good amount of fruits. It's fruits are oval in shape with light green and yellow in colour. The seeds of the fruit are edible, which are good anti oxidents. The leaves are sometimes used as a herbal tea.

Papaya

Papaya is a small branched plant, cultivated in most tropical countries. Papaya fruit and pulp contains water, vitamin C and carbohydrates and the leaves are used for treatment for dengu and malaria.

Banana

Banana also used for the plants that produce the Banana fruit. The banana plant inner stem is also edible. The outer stem are used to make temporary plates for food serving in olden days. The banana plant is the largest herbaceous flowering plant.

Chiku/Manilkara zapota/ sapota

Manilkara zapota is known as sapota and Chiku in India and the fruit has an exceptionally sweet flavor. Sapota fruits contains high amounts of saponin, cultivated in many some parts of India.
This sapota tree is must in every food forest as it is drought resistant.

Custard Apple/Annona squamosa

The custard apple is one of the most cultivated fruit varieties in India. This Custard apple tree it the most widely cultivated species of family Annonaceae. In traditional Indian medicine leaves of Custard apple tree are used to heal wounds and to treat dysentery. Few people grow them in containers too as shown in the figure below.

Jackfruit Tree/Artocarpus heterophyllus

Jackfruit Tree is native to southwest India and the fruit is largest tree borne fruit. The jackfruit is the state fruit of the Tamil Nadu and Kerala, Kerala is the largest producer of jackfruit in the world.

Mango Tree/Mangifera indica

Mango is the national fruit of India and have been cultivated in South Asia too. Mangoes are very popular in India and in Tamil Nadu mango is one of the three royal fruits with banana and jackfruit. Mango tree is a drought resistant and you can dig trenches to harvest rainwater for mango trees as given below.

These are some of the Indian origin fruit trees for creating your food forest. Can't able to cover all the fruit trees in one post. So, be tuned - How to create Indian food forests part II ... For updates visit our sitemap in the below link.

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