Every year, gardeners look forward to the beginning of the summer season to go to the countryside and begin to grow healthy and tasty vegetables. For many people, this is not just a hobby, but a lifetime. Experienced gardeners invest all their love in growing vegetables and other crops and spend all their free time working. Therefore, it is very disappointing when trouble occurs with plants, and they do not give the expected yield.
When growing cucumbers, many gardeners face a lot of problems. It is necessary to prepare the soil, grow seedlings and care for it in anticipation of a long-awaited crop. However, in the process of growth, unexpected metamorphoses can occur with vegetables. Sometimes the fruits are ugly and look the most unpresentable way. Therefore, it is worthwhile to understand why cucumbers are crooked or grow crocheted in a greenhouse or in open ground.
It’s worth starting with the fact that the problem is not only that the fruits grow in an irregular shape. It becomes difficult to process such a crop, since it is stored much less time. In order to get delicious winter preparations that will delight throughout the year, it is important to consider all the reasons why crooked cucumbers grow and try to solve problems.
Potassium deficiency
Due to a lack of nutrients, cucumbers most often grow in irregular shapes. If the fetus does not get the right amount of potassium, this may be the reason why crooked cucumbers grow. The situation is aggravated if the weather is cool outside. In cold temperatures, potassium is absorbed even worse.
The deficiency of this microelement will be primarily indicated by yellowing of the fruit and thinning of the stalk. Also, this problem can be seen long before the fruiting begins. If the cucumber foliage begins to bend down, then this may be a clear sign of a lack of potassium.
How to solve a problem
Having decided why crooked cucumbers grow, it is necessary to prepare a solution consisting of 25-30 g of potassium salt dissolved in 10 l of water. The liquid must be infused for 4 days and shed with it. After this, it is recommended to pour a little potassium sulfate on the soil (flow rate of about 40-60 per 1 m 2 ).
You can also prepare a solution of ash. To do this, 0.5 l of dry matter is dissolved in a bucket of water. Each plant requires at least 1 liter of nutrient fluid.
Nitrogen deficiency
Wondering why crooked cucumbers grow, it is worth paying attention to the fruits. If they become a light green hue and taper off greatly on the one hand, and thicken on the other, then this indicates problems. Also, there is a noticeable lag in the development of young cucumbers. All these signs indicate a lack of nitrogen, which explains why crooked cucumbers grow . How to feed the plant in this case?
How to solve a problem
In order to exclude the appearance of deformed fruits, it is enough to treat the plants with urea, 5 g of which must be diluted in 1 liter of water. A similar solution needs to be treated the soil. After 5-6 days, you need to sprinkle the earth with ammonium nitrate (consumption - about 30 g per square meter).
However, do not overdo it, since an excess of nitrogen can cause the ovaries to crumble. Therefore, caution should be exercised.
Those who are afraid to use this tool are recommended to use less aggressive organic fertilizing. For example, you can prepare a solution of manure. To do this, mix fresh mullein with water in a ratio of 1:10. Also, a lot of nitrogen is found in herbal infusion. However, before using it, the concentrate must be diluted with water (1:10).
Wrong watering
This is another reason why cucumbers grow crooked hooks. The fact is that for full ripening, these fruits require quite warm water, heated to a temperature of + 25-28 degrees. Many gardeners neglect this recommendation and as a result, cucumbers begin to deform during growth.
If the plant is watered irregularly, then this leads to twisting of the fruit. Therefore, when the first ovaries appear, it is very important to moisten the soil around the cucumbers at least 2-3 times a day. Starting in mid-August, watering is much less common. It is enough 1-2 times in 12 days.
However, not everyone can regularly supply plants with the necessary moisture. In this case, it is recommended to install a drip irrigation system. This will also prevent the appearance of fungus on plants.
Temperature differences
This most often explains why cucumbers grow curves in the open ground. What to do in this situation and how to identify signs of the appearance of this particular problem? Everything is very simple. If cucumbers become narrow in the middle, then the point is temperature fluctuations. This happens when in the daytime the air temperature is quite high, but it drops sharply with the advent of night.
To solve this problem, it is enough to start covering the beds with cucumbers in the dark.
Under-pollination
If we talk about why crooked cucumbers grow in a greenhouse, then quite often these problems arise due to a lack of pollination. You can recognize such an ailment by the uneven coloring of the fruits.
To prevent such cucumbers from appearing, it is necessary to produce artificial pollination. However, very often gardeners miss the right moment. Boric acid will help correct the situation. The solution is prepared from 3 g of the substance per liter of water. The resulting mixture is sufficient to spray the plants several times.
For the future, it is recommended to purchase varieties of cucumbers that are capable of self-pollination.
Harvesting
It should be borne in mind that cucumbers need to be collected 1 time in several days. Overripe fruits must not be allowed, otherwise they will begin to deform. In this case, there is an incorrect distribution of nutrients and cucumbers will begin to acquire the most intricate forms.
Lack of light
If the plants are planted too tightly to each other, then they will not receive the right amount of sunlight, which in turn can cause unexpected deformation of the fruit. The same thing happens if the summer was cloudy. Therefore, it is worth planting vegetables at a certain distance from each other and make sure that the process of photosynthesis occurs at the right level.
It is also worth considering the features of the selected variety. Some of them are simply not suitable for specific regions or require special conditions of cultivation and care. In addition, there are varieties for which such curvature is a familiar feature. For example, Chinese cucumbers quite often grow with a slight bend, and this is considered absolutely normal.
The recommendations in this article will help you get the best quality crop. The main thing is to approach the issue with all responsibility and provide the plants with the necessary care.