Active cultivation of cucumbers people have long been engaged in. However, our ancestors could not even imagine how people would grow them in the future. Today, gardening can be safely called science. As it developed, many elite varieties were created and many new methods of planting and caring for cucumbers were mastered. They are planted in greenhouses and greenhouses of various types. Bushes form, tie up or let on the ground in open ground. In our article, we will examine in detail the main methods of growing cucumbers.
Preparatory stage
Creating optimal conditions for the care of cucumbers from planting to harvest is what is required from an experienced gardener. Those who are just starting to grow vegetables need to get as much information as possible about this.
As always, it all starts with the choice of variety. It must necessarily correspond to the climatic conditions of your region. Each individual type of vegetable has a certain growing season and a different degree of adaptation to the soil and weather conditions. Heat-loving varieties with a long growing season are suitable for the central and southern parts of the country, and early or mid-ripening varieties are suitable for the Ural climate.
It is important to immediately determine where the vegetable crop will grow. Based on this, it is necessary to purchase the necessary materials, fertilizers, work equipment and tools for various processing of plants and greenhouses in advance. The complete process of cultivating this type of vegetable can be divided into two stages: planting cucumbers and caring for cucumbers. Before starting the discussion, let's see what seeds you can choose. The main thing is not to make a mistake with the purchase of a productive variety.
Pick the seeds
In order to carry out your plans for sure and not put yourself at risk of being left without a crop, you should choose several varieties of self-pollinated hybrids. In any case, one of them will give many fruits. If you plan to arrange planting and caring for cucumbers in a greenhouse, you can buy the following varieties:
- Masha F1. Very early variety, suitable for conservation.
- Emelya F1. Mid-ripening hybrid, lettuce.
- Emerald F1 family. One of the best types for winter harvesting, early ripe.
- Moscow evenings F1. A versatile hybrid that pleases an early harvest.
- Ekol F1. Medium early pickling grade.
- Altai gherkin F1. Great cucumber for making fresh salads, early.
Planting cucumbers and care in the open oblige oblige to buy seeds with short ripening. These are hybrids that can produce good crops in short summers. Creating elite varieties, breeders hoped that they would tolerate drought, increased dampness and cooling. We suggest paying attention to several options for resistant hybrids for growing in the Urals:
- Fontanel F1. One of the best types of pickles, with early ripening.
- Crane F1. The hybrid is widely used in cooking, more suitable for preparing fresh salads. Matures early.
- Elegant. Salad early ripe grade.
- Glowworm. It has an average ripening period; it is used for winter harvesting.
- Reliable. Designed for conservation, early ripe.
- The squad. Universal cucumber, the first fruits of which can be used for salads, the latter - for pickling.
In the southern regions, experienced gardeners recommend planting cucumbers with long branched stems. Due to the foliage, they create a kind of "roof" that protects them from direct sunlight. These include: Ant F1, Hunter F1, Grasshopper F1, First Class F1.
Types of designs for growing cucumbers
In the Urals, cucumbers are grown in glass greenhouses, film greenhouses and in the open ground. The first two methods are more rational, since they increase the likelihood of rapid growth and normal development of culture. Some farmers practice planting cucumbers and caring for them in their garden plots. However, such agriculture carries a risk of losing a significant portion of the fruit.
A properly selected greenhouse or greenhouse allows you to grow seedlings and provides the vegetable crop with optimal humidity, temperature and additional lighting. The main role of such structures is that they significantly extend the fruiting period of vegetables in regions with short summers. Greenhouses are wall-mounted, in the shape of a butterfly, arc film and polycarbonate. Such materials as wood, glass, aluminum and other metals can be used in their manufacture. Perhaps you will like one of the options, you decide to change the usual method of care and planting of cucumbers. Photos of some designs are provided in the article.
Professionals involved in agriculture for more than one year, build domed greenhouses on their plots, with the function of lifting its upper part. The basis of the design is made of durable material in the form of the letter P. The dome with height adjustment allows you to create suitable conditions for plant growth at each stage of their development. In the summer, greenhouses of this type are kept open.
Growing cucumbers in a polycarbonate greenhouse, planting and care is a rather laborious process, but it justifies itself. The use of miniature wooden structures does not provide a sufficient amount of yield. If you want to increase the volume of fruits grown, it is better to take small greenhouses for seedlings, and for the main vegetable growing, get a room with a large area.
You can build a polycarbonate greenhouse with your own hands or purchase it in a specialized store. The second option is more convenient, because it is equipped with all types of equipment necessary for growing plants. Prefabricated structures are supplied by manufacturers in various versions. Sizes and configurations can be very different. Many of them have irrigation, heating and lighting systems. In polycarbonate greenhouses, a suitable microclimate is created that provides normal humidity, which is important for a good fruit setting.
Priming
Preparing the right soil for cucumbers. Planting and care cannot be successful without the presence of the necessary trace elements for plant nutrition. To create fertile soil, it would be good to collect a certain amount of organic matter. It can be folded into a recess, and then evenly scattered throughout the greenhouse. Organic fertilizers include vegetable waste, grass, and other plant debris. If this kind of harvest is collected in the fall, then in winter they need to be covered with a layer of foliage or humus. The challenge is to create loose, light soil in which about 40% will be accounted for by organic additives.
To increase the permeability of the soil, the following components can be added to it: peat, compost, chopped straw, last year's sawdust, rotted leaves, humus.
Sowing seeds
First of all, you need to take care of sowing the seeds of cucumbers. Planting and care of seedlings are carried out in different ways, depending on where it will develop. In greenhouses, she is looked after the same way as when landing in the ground, because here she is in a constant place. If the seeds are planted in peat cups and are in a separate room, then they need to create optimal conditions. Additional lighting, spraying or fertilizing may be required. It is important to monitor the growth of seedlings in order to transplant it in time to the greenhouse.
In heated greenhouses, the seeds are immediately immersed in soil at 4-5 cm. A two-line method is used, with a distance of 0.5 m. The width of the path is 80 cm, and between future bushes - 25. Sowing starts at the end of March. During seed germination, the temperature should be at least 27 ° C. As soon as the seedlings rise, the daylight hours in the room are increased to 15 hours.
If the greenhouse is not heated, then the seedlings are grown in peat cups. They are used in order not to injure plants during transplantation. When the shoots produce 4 true leaves, it can be planted in a greenhouse. Usually this time falls on the beginning of May. Seedlings are planted according to the scheme described above.
Greenhouse preparation
To plant and leave cucumbers in the greenhouse less trouble, it is necessary to carry out disinfection. It includes a number of the following manipulations:
- Film covers and glass must be washed with concentrated soapy water.
- Metal elements are cleaned with a solution of vinegar.
- Polycarbonate is washed with weak dilution manganese.
- After preparatory work, the room must be properly ventilated and dried.
Such processing is carried out without fail, even when the greenhouse has been well cleaned since the fall. Usually the roots are carefully removed from the soil and the tops and leaves are removed. Also inspect the ventilation system and remove the moss formed in it. To destroy harmful insects and avoid further problems with plant diseases, all parts of the greenhouse are disinfected with a chlorine solution (400 grams per bucket of water).
To process the walls, lime and copper sulfate are used. It is important that the mixture falls well into the cracks. Most often, they serve as sources of infection. The same means spray the soil from the spray gun.
Growing cucumbers in a greenhouse
It is impossible to get a rich harvest of vegetables in an equipped room without a competent approach. At each stage of plant development, certain rules must be followed. The main methods for planting, pruning and leaving greenhouse cucumbers for the Urals are as follows:
- garter bushes and their formation;
- timely pinching;
- watering;
- soil loosening;
- protection against drafts and freezing;
- fertilizing the soil and fertilizing plants;
- airing the room.
One of the most important components in greenhouse farming is temperature control. During the growing season, it should not fall below 18 ° C, and during fruiting - 27.
Garter plants should be considered before planting cucumbers in a greenhouse. Care and formation of branches is an important process that significantly affects the volume of the crop. For these purposes, horizontal supports are attached above the beds, with ropes hanging down. When shoots with 6-7 leaves reach a length of about 35 cm, they are tied. On the bushes leave one main branch. As a rule, hybrids with the marking F1 are formed in this way.
In varieties such as Courage and Zozulya, 3 stems are left. These are cucumbers with female-type flowers, which are located on the side branches. You just need to pinch the top over the fourth leaf.
Drop watering is ideal for growing greenhouses. If the greenhouse is not equipped with such a device, only warm, standing water should be used. Watering should be carried out regularly, at regular intervals. Excessive moisture, like drought, will adversely affect plant development. Do not pour water on the leaves.
It is important to monitor the permeability of the soil. Timely weeding promotes normal breathing of the root system.
Well-prepared soil does not exempt the gardener from additional fertilizing. In closed ground conditions, the same fertilizers are used as in the garden: chicken droppings, infusion of herbs and complex mixtures.
Due to the increased humidity, greenhouse vegetables often get sick. To avoid such a nuisance, you need to ventilate the greenhouse in time, starting from the moment of transplanting the seedlings.
Organization of warm beds
In warm regions, it is better to sow the seeds immediately in open soil. In this case, the time that plants usually spend on adaptation will be reduced. This method allows you to avoid various injuries of young bushes and roots. For territories with a cold climate, the seed material of cold-resistant crops can be used.
In the last few years, such a method of farming as organic beds appeared and quickly gained popularity. Thanks to this, many have the opportunity to grow vegetables in open climates in regions with a cold climate. Planting cucumbers and leaving according to new techniques attracted many gardeners.
To organize a warm bed, you need to choose a well-lit place. A trench 30-30 cm deep is dug, it is filled with last year's manure and sprinkled with a small layer of earth (10-15 cm) on top. The length of the bed can be arbitrary, and the width is preferably 80 cm. Do this two weeks before transplanting, so that the soil is slightly compacted and warmed up. Along the entire length of the trench, arcs for film shelter are installed.
You can sow seeds in a warm bed. To do this, it must be warmed up 2-4 days before sowing. It is poured with warm water and covered with a film. Planting of seed material is carried out in a staggered manner, with an interval of 10 cm. The grooves are shallow (3-4 cm), because the organics is a well-structured soil. At the end of work, the bed is watered and immediately cover material is thrown. In early summer, film is removed and cultivated in the open air.
Experienced farmers recommend to everyone the above method of growing cucumbers in the ground. Planting and caring for plants growing in the organic layer is a pleasure.
Outdoor cucumber care
The task of the gardener is to water, fertilize and weed the plants. Since this culture is very hygroscopic, the moisturizing procedure must be carried out up to three times a week. Watering must be done carefully, under the root.
Mullein solution is the most suitable fertilizer. In a bucket of water, you need to dilute 2 liters of organic matter and leave until fermented. Add 1 liter of thick solution to a bucket of clean water, and 2 liters of diluted are poured under each bush.
You always need to keep track of how cucumbers develop. Planting and care, the formation of a bush - all these processes have their place in time. If at least one of these is missed and not performed at the appointed time, this will affect the entire process of growing vegetables. For example, the first pinching of plants should be carried out before the formation of the 10th leaf.
In order to achieve good shoot growth and friendly fruiting, you need to know how to properly form a plant. Performing the necessary manipulations, one must take into account the varietal characteristics of the culture. Care and planting of cucumbers on the street gives more freedom for the development of certain species. In large areas, plant shoots can be let on the ground. Hybrids and varieties pollinated by insects are tied to the trellis, leaving one main shoot. When he reaches the top of the support in growth, pinch his top. In the sinuses of the first three leaves, flowers are rolled out and all lateral processes are torn off. In long-fruited varieties, the main stem is pinched at the 4th leaf.
Conclusion
With all the necessary activities, you can get a good crop of cucumbers. Planting and care contain several secrets that were revealed in our article. Beginning gardeners need to realize that vegetable crops respond by rapid fruiting only to the right approach.