Two factors are of great importance for good zucchini growth - heat and sun. Both can be used even better if the zucchini is sown in the cold frame. A positive side effect is the earlier zucchini harvest.

Prepare the cold frame

If the cold frame is set up in a sunny location, the floor must be well insulated. To do this, spread manure on a layer of leaves and cover the whole thing with leaves and about 20 cm of soil. This creates a fermentation process that heats up the soil in the cold frame.

The sowing

Zucchini sowing can begin as early as the beginning of April. Plant 3 - 4 seeds about 3 cm deep in each planting hole and cover them with soil. Don't forget to pour. After about a week, the first seedlings will appear.

If several seeds have sprouted in one place, the plants must be pricked out. To do this, you pull the weaker ones out of the ground so that only the strongest plant remains in each place.

Nursing in the cold frame

If the sun shines through the glass or the foil of the cold frame, it is heated like a greenhouse. At the same time, the covers act as a windbreak. To ensure that the cold frame is well ventilated, you should open the lid regularly.

Other maintenance measures are:

  • in warm temperatures leave the lid open for a long time
  • However, be sure to close in the evening
  • Cover with bubble wrap to protect against frost
  • Shade with dark foil if the sun is too strong
  • water regularly
  • Protect plants from snails

Does the zucchini stay in the cold frame or is it better to plant it out?

If you do not need the cold frame to grow other plants, you can leave your zucchini plant. It is important that the plants can also spread well in the cold frame. After all, they have a space requirement of one to two square meters per plant.

If you can no longer use the cold frame, the young plants are planted in a sunny spot in the vegetable or flower bed. Time to plant out is from mid-May. With garden fleece or a cone you protect the plants from possible night frosts.

tips and tricks

You can build a cold frame yourself from a wooden construction that is slanted forward and transparent foil. It is important to have a transparent lid that lets in sunlight and provides fresh air when open.

Category:

Vegetable garden