Zenon cabbage: variety description, planting and care, reviews

Zenon cabbage is a hybrid with a fairly dense pulp. It can be stored for a relatively long time and easily transfers transportation over any distance without losing its appearance and mineral composition.

Description of Zenon cabbage

Zenon F1 white cabbage is a hybrid bred in Central Europe by the agronomists of Sygenta Seeds. It can be grown throughout the CIS. The only exceptions are some northern regions of Russia. The reason for this limitation is the lack of time for maturation. This variety belongs to late-ripening. Its ripening period ranges from 130 to 135 days.

The appearance of the variety is classic: the heads of cabbage have a round, almost perfect shape

The heads of cabbage are quite dense to the touch. The outer leaves are large, their slope is optimal for the suppression of almost any weeds. The pulp of Zenon cabbage is white. The color of the outer leaves is dark green. The weight of ripe heads of cabbage is 2.5-4.0 kg. The stump is short and not too thick.

Important! A distinctive feature of Zenon cabbage is the consistency of taste. Even with long-term storage, it practically does not change.

The shelf life of Zenon cabbage heads is from 5 to 7 months. And here there is one interesting property: the later the crop is harvested, the longer it retains its attractive appearance.

Advantages and disadvantages

The positive properties of Zenon cabbage include:

  • excellent taste and appearance;
  • their safety for a long time;
  • shelf life is 5-7 months without loss of presentation and concentration of all useful properties;
  • resistance to fungal diseases (in particular, fusarium and punctate necrosis);
  • high productivity.

The disadvantage of this variety is its relatively long ripening period.

In terms of the totality of characteristics, Zenon cabbage is considered one of the best varieties currently existing on the European and Russian markets.

Cabbage yield Zenon F1

According to the originator, the yield ranges from 480 to 715 centners per hectare with a standard planting scheme (planting in several rows with a row spacing of 60 cm and between heads of cabbage 40 cm). In the case of cultivation not by an industrial, but by an artisanal method, the yield indicators may be slightly lower.

Increasing the yield per unit area can be done in two ways:

  1. By increasing the planting density to 50x40 or even 40x40 cm.
  2. Intensification of agricultural techniques: increase in irrigation rates (but not their frequency), as well as the introduction of additional fertilizing.

In addition, yields can be increased by using more fertile areas.

Planting and leaving

Given the long ripening times, it is best to grow Zenon cabbage using seedlings. Sowing seeds is done in late March or early April. The seedling soil should be loose. Usually a mixture is used, consisting of earth (7 parts), expanded clay (2 parts) and peat (1 part).

Zenon cabbage seedlings can be grown in almost any container

The term for growing seedlings is 6-7 weeks. The temperature before spitting seeds should be in the range from 20 to 25 ° C, after - from 15 to 17 ° C.

Important! Seedling watering should be moderate. The soil should be kept moist, but flooding should be avoided, which will cause the seeds to burrow.

Landing in open ground is carried out in the first decade of May. The planting scheme is 40 by 60 cm. At the same time, per 1 sq. m it is not recommended to place more than 4 plants.

Watering is carried out every 5-6 days; in the heat, their frequency can be increased up to 2-3 days. Water for them should be 2-3 ° C warmer than air.

In total, agricultural technology implies 3 fertilizing per season:

  1. A solution of chicken manure at the end of May in the amount of 10 liters per 1 sq. m.
  2. Similar to the first, but it is produced at the end of June.
  3. In mid-July - complex mineral phosphorus-potassium fertilizer at a concentration of 40-50 g per 1 sq. m.
Important! It is not recommended to use nitrogen fertilizers when growing Zenon cabbage.

Since the outer leaves of the cabbage quickly cover the soil between the heads of cabbage, hilling and loosening are not performed.

Harvesting is carried out in September or early October. It is best to do it in cloudy weather.

Diseases and pests

In general, the plant has a high resistance to fungal infections, and even complete immunity to some. However, certain types of cruciferous diseases affect even the Zeno hybrid variety of cabbage. One of these diseases is black leg.

Black leg affects cabbage at the seedling stage

The reason is usually high humidity and lack of ventilation. In most cases, the lesion affects the root collar and base of the stem. Seedlings begin to lose their growth rate and often die.

In the fight against this disease, preventive procedures should be followed: treat the soil with TMTD (at a concentration of 50%) in an amount of 50 g per 1 sq. m of beds. Before planting, the seeds must be soaked for a few minutes in Granosan (concentration 0.4 g per 100 g of seed).

The main pest of Zeno cabbage is cruciferous fleas. It is very difficult to get rid of them, and it can be said that there are no varieties of this culture in the world that are not exactly resistant to these beetles, but at least had any resistance.

Cruciferous flea beetles and the holes they leave on cabbage leaves are clearly visible

There are a lot of methods of dealing with this pest: from folk methods to the use of chemicals. The most effective spraying of affected heads of cabbage with Arrivo, Decis or Aktara. Plants with repellent odors are often used: dill, cumin, coriander. They are planted between the rows of Zeno cabbage.

Application

The variety has universal application: it is used raw, thermally processed and canned. Zenon cabbage is used in salads, first and second courses, side dishes. It can be boiled, stewed or fried. Sauerkraut has an excellent taste.

Conclusion

Zenon cabbage is an excellent hybrid with long shelf life and excellent long-distance transportation. The variety is highly resistant to some fungal diseases and most pests. Zenon cabbage tastes great and is versatile in use.

Reviews about Zenon cabbage

Lychagina Svetlana, 40 years old, Kharkov
In the relatively warm climates of the area where I live, growing late-maturing varieties is nothing special. Therefore, when cultivating any vegetables, I completely do not pay attention to when they ripen. When choosing cabbage for planting in the garden, I was guided solely by its appearance and taste. And they are just excellent in Zeno cabbage. Despite almost six months of cultivation, almost all heads of cabbage ripened at the same time and were approximately the same shape, which is very convenient for transportation and storage. I was also pleased with the yield of Zenon cabbage. From the two hundred square meters allocated for this crop, we took almost a ton of the crop. A good variety, I recommend it to everyone.
Elena Butusova, 60 years old, Yaroslavl
Zenon cabbage is one of the tastiest of the many long-lasting varieties. I will say more - there are few varieties of this vegetable that can compete with it. I do not argue that sauerkraut is, of course, an excellent way of cooking, but how often in winter you want to eat something fresher, which retains the entire set of summer vitamins and minerals.And I'm not even talking about cooking borscht and cabbage soup. There is nothing better than Zeno cabbage in this matter. In stores, Slava or Belarusian varieties (flattened) are mainly found, but this is a little different. Therefore, we made a choice for ourselves a long time ago - we grow Zenon cabbage on our own. Despite the relatively cold climate, when using seedlings, we all have time.

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