Research shows almost %70 of all water consumption consists of watering. In our country, %75 of yearly usable 110 billions cubic meters of water is used in agriculture. The coming years will lead to more consumption with greater needs to feed the growing population.
Korea Boseong Greentea Garden
The ignorant and primitive watering not only wastes water but also damages the soil. Drip irrigation prevents both unnecessary use of water and soil damage while providing the plants with just enough water.
Natural Enemy of Salt
Watering done in random intervals in hot climates with little rain to improve the production, leave the salt in the field. It will also raise the sub surface water levels and the salt they contain. When the waters vaporise through the intense heat, leaves the salt in the soil. Salt prevents efficient production. Even good quality water leaves 1.1 tonnes of salt in 10 acres of land in such conditions.
See Turkey !
In these hot summer days, melons are one of the favorite fruits of the Turkish people, who produce 1.8 million tonnes of melons every year. This places Turkey at the second in the world melon production, right after China, who produces 6.6 million tonnes. All this information is leading to this: We know how to grow quality melons, and now we’ll share our secrets with you.
First thing you have to do is to decide which kind of melon to grow. There are many varieties with different flavors grown around the world and your choice should suit your purposes and climate.
Overall, melons like hot or warm climates. The long growth period requires hot and sunny weather, too much moisture might cause fungal diseases. Clayed or acidic soil isn’t good for melons and it should be able to hold water well.
Melon – Cotton – Grain Rotation
A nice melon picture
To prevent diseases, you shouldn’t produce melons repeatedly on the same field. In Turkey, usually melon – cotton – grain rotation is used.
Before planting melons, you should plow lines with 2 meters of distance between them. On one side of the plowed lines, plant 4-5 seeds in groups with 75 centimeters of distance to each other. Then cover them in 5-6 centimeters of soil. In Turkey, this is done between 20th of April and 5th of May. The seeds will take root and slowly grow and you should see them sprout in 5 to 15 days. You should pull out the weak plants in every group and leave the two strongest sprouts. Later on, you should pull one of those, leaving only one.
Melons like organic materials, so it’s best to use fertilizer made from animal manure. You should apply this fertilizer in autumn, while preparing the field.
Drip Irrigation is Preferred When Producing Melons
While growing, the melon plants won’t require too much water. Actually, very little amounts of water will suffice until the fruits appear. When the fruits start growing, watering every 12 – 15 days will be good but make sure the fruits or the plant itself doesn’t get wet. Because of this, drip irrigation is preferred when producing melons.
Melons don’t require much attention, other than pulling out the foreign plants. Harvesting melons should be done in the morning, and you should immediately take the harvested melons to the bazaar or the depot.
These are some of the tips I’ve learned from my grandfather, whose melons are growing nicely. I hope you find some use among these.
It’s important to be careful with watering of roses, as soon as they are planted. While the timing and amount of watering depends on factors such as the environment, the type of soil, the state of the plant; roses need more water in summer and while new shoots are growing. And the watering needs are low after trimming, collecting flowers and in winter.
It can be said that a decare of greenhouse needs 2000-2500 tonnes of water each year.
