Squash is a promising crop, which is frequently attributed to vegetables as it is a broad term
encompassing a number of different food types , including pumpkins, courgettes , and zucchini. It has a
number of overlapping characteristics and belongs to the genus Cucurbita. The individual species include
dozens of cultivars such as buttercup, hubbard, cushaw, summer, autumn, and winter squashes. Other
cultivars are referred to pumpkin and zucchini. The squash is a commonly cultivated vegetable crop to be in
different areas of Kazakhstan in winter and summer seasons. It bears beautiful flowers possessing usually
orange colour. Squash plant extracts contain a range of phytochemicals including saponins, flavonoids,
alkaloids, and steroids. Carotenoids are known for their diverse biological effects functioning as antioxidants
preserving eye tissues from damaging by free radicals. Main source of carotenoids is plant food, and the
carotenoid abundance in plasma is essential for maintenaining tissue viability in the long run. Pumpkin,
zucchini squash, and yellow squash combined with some other plant and egg sources may be regarded as
major sources of carotenoids and the vitamin A. Modern reviews outline some of the basic growth-analysing
techniques to describe different benefits as attempts to summarize investigations on genetical, morphological
and ecological impacts of productivity and the relationships of these factors to the nutrition quality of the
ten most important species of squash.
The aim of this study was to propagate the seeds, evaluate cultivar’s development and health of the
plant population, predict the input of cultivar’s growth and yield, according to the plant growth
characteristics. Samples were investigated over the whole vegetation season. This experiment was performed
at the research plot in Almaty region apart from the plot at the al-farabi Kazakh National University`s
Agrobiocenter in 2017. In order to determine major plant growth characteristics related to the leaf area index
in squash varieties, present study has been carried out by using a randomized complete block design with
two replications, and two planting dates ( May, 21 and June, 21). Leaf area (LA), leaf number per plant, leaf
length, width and some other parameters were estimated.
Our data have shown that the linear model would predict significant relationships between leaf
parameters including LA and leaf length, leaf length and leaf number per plant, leaf length, leaf width, and
leaf area. These relationships can be used for the squash simulation models to clarify the leaf growth
dynamics for every squash cultivar under cropping.
Research adviser: Prof. Z.G. Aytasheva