Why are cucumbers soft and prickly in the greenhouse and in the garden, what to do

The main reasons for growing soft cucumbers

In a greenhouse you can grow vegetables and herbs until the coldest weather. But in this summer “house” for seedlings, a favorable atmosphere must be created, temperature requirements and watering rules must be met. Both fertilizing and timely ventilation of the greenhouse are of great importance.

If you do not follow the rules of agricultural technology, the plants will get sick and the fruits will lose their characteristic hardness.

According to agronomists, softness appears as a result of the following factors:

1. The atmosphere in the greenhouse is too hot.
2. Using insufficiently warm water for irrigation.
3. Incorrect irrigation scheme with violation of the time cycle.
4. There is a small distance between plants, which is why the leaves of some bushes do not provide light to others, and the roots do not have enough nutrition.
5. It's stuffy in the greenhouse, there's no air circulation.
6. Poor soil on the site, and a lack of nutrients leads to plant disease.

By eliminating these reasons, you can achieve a good harvest of strong, crispy cucumbers.

Why do soft cucumbers grow in the garden?

Soft cucumbers often appear in the garden beds. Most often this happens if the plants are constantly in the sun, especially if it is hot for a long time. Due to the high temperature, the cucumbers begin to wither and become soft. Therefore, you need to choose a place for planting seedlings in such a way that the plants are in the shade in the evening or morning, and not all the time in open sunlight.

The bushes are regularly inspected to eliminate the possibility of diseases. This is the second reason, after improper watering, that spoils the entire harvest. If the leaves begin to dry out, spots appear on them, and the ovaries have stopped forming, then the plants are treated with chemicals. This will help get rid of diseases in a few days.

Soft cucumbers: mistakes in growing and what to do

Experienced gardeners know how to properly grow cucumber crops. And beginners sometimes make mistakes that lead to the formation of defective fruits.

Diseases and pests

Softness is often the cause of fungal diseases. For example, fusarium. The fungus can enter the greenhouse along with poor-quality soil or unwashed equipment. To avoid this disease, the equipment used for gardening should be well treated and the seeds should be treated with special preventive compounds before planting.

The disease manifests itself in the form of yellow leaves, and then yellowing of the stem.

You should also be wary of diseases such as powdery mildew. Plants suddenly become “decorated” with a white coating on the leaves, and the fruits become soft and lose their taste.

If gardeners suddenly discover that the crop is sick, they take action: dilute a spoonful of copper sulfate with 3 tablespoons of ash plus chalk in a liter of water. The mixture is poured under the root. And so they give the “medicine” to the bushes for two weeks. Then you need to sprinkle lime around the trunks of the bushes.

Another problem is infectious rot that affects seedlings. Often this disease is provoked by incorrect temperature conditions. The stems of the plant become covered with an unpleasant white or gray coating, the leaves turn white, and the fruits stop developing and become soft.

It is better to immediately remove the affected plants from the greenhouse so that other bushes do not become infected. A good way to prevent the disease is to treat the surfaces in the greenhouse with a solution of copper sulfate.

Dangerous pests include whiteflies, mole crickets, wireworms, and caterpillars.

Special traps made from manure will help against mole crickets. To do this, manure is placed in dug holes, which the bear loves very much. These traps are prepared in the fall. And with the arrival of cold weather, manure needs to be spread on the ground. The frost will do its job - the mole cricket will die.

To protect cucumbers, gardeners also use kerosene. Wooden boards are moistened with it and placed between the bushes. Pests really don’t like the smell, and they go as far as possible.

In addition to these products, gardeners use chemical compounds. This could be Grizzly or Phenaxin and other intexides.

Read our article: How to get rid of a mole cricket

Feeding

These plants need feeding, and constantly. If cucumbers do not receive the required amount of nutrients and vitamins, then the fruits become of poor quality.

But first you need to take care of the soil. It doesn’t hurt to add saltpeter, superphosphate, and potassium sulfate to the soil. The seedlings will like this soil.

As for feeding, it is carried out five times a season. Organic fertilizers and mineral compounds are used.

When the plants bloom, you need to use an infusion with potassium salt, superphosphate, and chicken droppings. Potassium salt and superphosphate will be in equal quantities - 30 g per 10 liters of water, to which 200 g of litter is added.

When the plants begin to bear fruit, a different composition must be used: with superphosphate, ammonium nitrate and potassium fertilizers. Proportions: 20:5:10.

When the fruits begin to form, gardeners prepare a top dressing of 20 g of ammonium nitrate and the same amount of superphosphate and potassium fertilizers.

Varietal features

For greenhouses, it is better to purchase self-pollinating varieties. Modern breeders have managed to develop a crop that is quite resistant to temperature changes and is not too sensitive to other external unfavorable factors.

According to experienced gardeners, Dynamite, Emelya, Atlet, and Hercules grow well.

Thus, Atlet is resistant to powdery mildew, and Hercules resists fungal diseases and rot, and can even be grown in heated greenhouses. The Emelya hybrid is also resistant to diseases and pests.

Gardeners have good standing with Amazon, Cornflower, Anyuta.

Amazon is not afraid of olive spot and ascochyta blight, and Anyuta is not afraid of downy mildew.

Varieties such as Murashka and Emelya calmly tolerate the heat that can set in a greenhouse in the hot summer. Since these plants are not afraid of overheating, they retain the hardness of the fruits.

Thus, for growing in greenhouses, you need to select varieties that are not too capricious and can withstand possible temperature changes.

Planting and forming lashes

In the greenhouse you need to prepare the soil so that it is airy and light. Humus is added to the soil so that there is a bucket of humus for every square meter. You can use compost. The soil is also treated with copper sulfate, diluting a tablespoon of the product in 10 liters of water.

Plant seedlings in heated soil using the following scheme:

• Two rows go along a long ridge.
• There is a gap of at least 30 cm between the bushes.
• There is a 50 cm gap between long rows.

The soil is warmed with heated water. They make holes. Seedlings are planted in them. Cover with soil so that the leaves are not damaged. Peat is placed on top of the soil to form mulch. You should not water after planting.

Formation begins when the planted plant gets used to its new “home”. Pruning should be done in the morning on a clear day.

When forming hybrids, you need to leave only the main stem and remove the side shoots by pinching them. All shoots at the bottom of the stem are removed; the stem at the bottom, near the ground, should be clean. The higher the bush, the more leaves. At the bottom, you need to remove the leaves so that air flows calmly between the plants, so the bushes will not be stuffy.

After the second and third leaves on the stem, you should also pinch the stepsons. Trellis are used to support the “crown” of the bush. It is important to know that there should not be strong bushiness, otherwise there will be an extra shadow that will have a bad effect on the development of the fruit.

A properly formed bush will receive enough light and air.

Read our article: How to form cucumbers in a greenhouse

Watering

Water the bushes with warm water to make the plants comfortable. You need to spill the soil 15 cm so that the roots receive the required portion of drink. Watering schedule: once every three days. Each bush receives 5 liters of water.

If the watering regime has been disrupted, the fruits may begin to become soft. To eliminate this problem, gardeners use a special decoction with onion peels. The decoction is prepared simply: pour water over the husks, boil, then cool. When the liquid becomes slightly warm, it is filtered. The bushes are watered with this healing agent. According to gardeners who used this recipe, the decoction helps restore firmness to the fruit. In addition, it acts as a preventative against insects and other pathogens.

Neighborhood with tomatoes

It is known that cucumbers prefer a humid environment, but tomatoes cannot tolerate it. Considering that tomatoes and cucumbers must grow in different microclimates, seedlings are usually planted in different greenhouses. If you place plants together, they will begin to get sick, and you may not see a good harvest.

Temperature

The most favorable temperature for cucumbers is 22 degrees. If it becomes cold or too hot, the plant immediately begins to wither, weaken, and the fruits become unsightly and lose their hardness.

To regulate the temperature, you need to either use fabric to darken the glass walls and ceiling if the greenhouse is very hot due to the sun, or install electrical appliances or install a heating system in the greenhouse so that the crop does not freeze.

Lighting

Cucumbers do not like too much sun, so you need to make sure that the plants receive diffused light. It’s good if tall crops grow on the north side, they will take the sunstroke upon themselves, and the cucumbers will find themselves in a favorable environment.

In a greenhouse, you can cover the walls and ceiling with white fabric, so the leaves of delicate plants will not get burned, but will be able to enjoy enough light for them.

Cucumbers need 10 hours of daylight, no less. If there is not enough sun, artificial lighting can be installed in the greenhouse.

Read our article: Why do cucumbers grow with crochets?

Possible diseases

Fusarium, or Fusarium wilt, is a fungal infection of cucumbers. This is the most dangerous reason why fruits in a greenhouse become soft. Fungal pathology may be present in the soil if it has not been disinfected. The infection can be caused by dirty rakes, shovels, hoes, or when watering. High moisture levels are an ideal environment for fungus to form.

Cucumber crops need plenty of watering, but if you overwater, the plant will begin to hurt. When affected by fusarium, the foliage is primarily affected:

• it turns yellow;
• withers.

It is necessary to check the condition of the plant crop every day - timely intervention will make it possible to stop the spread of fungal infection and protect the harvest. Similar pathologies include powdery mildew. The disease “blocks” the process of photosynthesis, so whitish spots appear on the foliage. Healthy fruits - prickly and strong - lose their hardness when affected by the disease.

To prevent fungi, it is necessary to change cucumber varieties. Experts advise replacing the top of the substrate before planting next year. If the disease does appear, the affected seedlings are treated with the following solution:

• vitriol;
• ash;
• chalk.

Per liter of water requires 1 teaspoon of copper sulfate, 3 tablespoons each. ash and chalk. After treating foci of fungal infection, seedlings must be pollinated with dry lime.

What can you pour on cucumbers to make them crunchy?

Many gardeners use traditional methods. Healthy “drink” for plants is based on organic matter.

Water the bushes:

• barnyard diluted in water in a ratio of 1 to 10;
• liquid bird droppings, which are infused for three days before use, and then diluted with water, taking 20 parts of water for one part of liquid droppings;
• yeast during the growing season, dissolving 500 g of yeast in 3 liters of water, adding half a glass of sugar and leaving the product for three days. Then this mixture is diluted with water, using a glass of infusion per 10 liters of water;
• infusion of onion peels, boiling the peels in water and leaving for three days, and then diluting them in water;
• iodine solution, diluting 15 drops of the product in a bucket of water.

According to gardeners, such watering will not only have a beneficial effect on the taste of the fruit, but will also protect against diseases and pests.

Soil composition: what should it be for cucumbers in a greenhouse

When planting cucumbers, it is important to take into account all the nuances.
For example, remember what plants grew in this area last year. It often happens that predecessors deplete the soil and cucumbers lack the necessary minerals and trace elements.

In addition, do not lose sight of soil disinfection. It may contain pest larvae, harmful bacteria, and fungal spores. All this can not only deprive you of your harvest, but also destroy the seedlings. Therefore, before planting, it is worth disinfecting the soil by watering it with a solution of potassium permanganate.

If the seedlings have already been planted, it is important to feed them on time. Mullein solution is perfect

You need to take 1 liter of slurry per bucket of water. It is necessary to take precautions when applying nitrogen-containing fertilizers, since their excess provokes the growth of leaves and inhibits the formation of fruits. If the soil is already saturated with nitrogen, it can be neutralized by adding potassium and phosphorus fertilizers.

Prevention of growing soft cucumbers from experienced gardeners

Experienced gardeners follow simple rules that allow them to preserve the hardness of the fruit and their taste.

What do we have to do:

1. The temperature should not be lower than 18 degrees.
2. In the greenhouse, you need to open the windows and doors to allow air circulation.
3. Don't forget about loosening the soil.
4. Check the bushes regularly to ensure there are no diseases or pests.
5. Plant seedlings in soil where pumpkin crops have not grown before.
6. Before planting seedlings, always change the top layer of soil.
7. Follow the landing rules.
8. Do not thicken the greenhouse.
9. Use drip irrigation.
10. Harvest the crop in a timely manner.
11. Before planting seedlings, disinfect greenhouses and soil from possible pests.
12. Always use warm water for watering.

If you follow the rules when caring for this crop, you can avoid such a nuisance as soft fruits.

Features of prevention

Greenhouse plants quite often wither due to violation of the rules of care and neglect of preventive measures. Gardeners with many years of experience in growing cucumbers in protected soil conditions rarely let the situation get to such a deplorable state.

Nevertheless, competent and timely preventive measures can largely protect greenhouse cucumbers from the development of wilting processes.

• Using exclusively high-quality seed material, as well as healthy and hardened cucumber seedlings.
• Strict adherence to basic technology in the manufacture of substrates, which must take into account the timing of their use. It is advisable to give preference to the use of modern low-volume technologies, which provide for regular replacement of the soil substrate used for greenhouse cultivation of vegetables.

Creation and control of optimal conditions for proper growth and stable development of cucumbers helps to lengthen the growing season and fruiting time

• Creating and monitoring optimal conditions for proper growth and stable development of cucumbers helps to lengthen the growing season and fruiting time. In the conditions of ground greenhouses, during the fruiting stage and after complete rooting of vegetable crops, the method of adding well-rotted compost to the surface of the beds is practiced, which stimulates the formation of an additional root system. In addition, high-quality soil aeration should be ensured, which has a beneficial effect on the yield of greenhouse cucumbers.
• The use of a highly efficient drip irrigation system requires careful control of the drainage of nutrient solutions, which will not allow liquid fertilizers to stagnate and become inoculated with pathogenic microorganisms.
• Performing the most correct and low-traumatic formation of cucumbers, as well as timely harvesting, which will minimize the load on the vegetable crop and slow down the aging process of the roots.

You may also be interested in an article about effective fertilizers for cucumbers in a greenhouse and traditional methods of pest control.

Is it possible to eat soft cucumbers?

There won't be much harm if a soft cucumber gets into your food. It just won't taste good in a salad. Therefore, housewives prefer to select soft cucumbers from their strong, crunchy counterparts.

Some home craftswomen use soft cucumbers - unless, of course, they are affected by rot, then the vegetable goes into the trash - to prepare preparations for the winter. But we are not talking about whole pickled cucumbers, but about dressings for soups and main courses. Another option is to use soft fruits for sauces.

Read our article: Why are cucumbers bitter in the greenhouse?

Why do cucumbers become soft when pickled in a jar?

Before starting the process of canning cucumbers, they must be carefully sorted. If fruits that have begun to rot are missed, then even in lightly salted form they will become unfit for consumption. Of course, the preparation may include greens that have begun to deteriorate from the inside and their condition cannot be determined by touch, then the pickles will most likely be irrevocably spoiled. This situation can be prevented only by preparing cut fruits.

Important! The easiest way to save canned cucumbers is to soak them in vinegar.
But this will only help if the vegetable has slightly lost its elasticity. Also, the reasons that pickled, salted and simply salted cucumbers in a jar have become soft can be:

1. Zelentsy are not kept for the required time before preservation in cold water.
2. A large amount of salt was used or it was finely ground and iodized.
3. The fruits are withered, not freshly picked.
4. The pickled cucumbers were of the salad variety.
5. The brine was very hot.
6. The preservation was not stored cold. Storage in an apartment provokes fermentation processes.
7. The water used for marinade or brine was soft or with a high chlorine content.
8. Horseradish, cherry, and currant leaves, which preserve the elasticity of the greens, were not put in the jar.

There are many reasons why cucumbers are soft. It is extremely difficult to fight them all, so it is better to prevent them by following the rules of agricultural technology. Then the cucumbers in jars will spoil less often.

What can you cook with soft cucumbers?

Experimenters, preferring not to throw away soft fruits, try different recipes. Some are quite successful.

Dressing for pickle sauce

What do you need:

3 kg of cucumbers, onions and carrots - one kilogram each, 2 cups of tomato paste, a glass of vegetable oil, the same amount of sugar, 80 g of salt, half a glass of table vinegar.

How to cook:

Clean the fruits. Chop the carrots and onions and simmer in a small amount of oil. Finely chop the cucumbers, add to the carrots and onions, simmer again, season with salt and sugar and add tomato paste. Cook for half an hour, then add vinegar. Mix. Place this mixture in a glass container and roll up.

You can also add pre-boiled pearl barley to the mixture.

Spicy garlic dressing

What to take:

for 2 kg of cucumbers - half a kilogram of carrots and 300 g of onions, a bunch of parsley, several cloves of garlic, a large spoon of salt.

How to cook:

Peel the cucumbers and carrots. Grate. Crush the garlic, chop the parsley, chop the onion. Mix all ingredients. Add salt and stir. Leave the mixture for a couple of hours, then simmer for 10 minutes. Place into jars and roll up.

Salad sauce

What to take:

3 cucumbers, salt to taste, a spoonful of olive oil, a couple of cloves of garlic.

How to cook:

Remove the skins from the cucumbers. Crush the garlic. Grind vegetables in a blender. Mix all ingredients. Use as a sauce for vegetable salad.

Natalia

Author

Ask a Question

To prevent cucumbers from becoming soft, gardeners must follow the rules of agricultural technology. Violation of the temperature regime, daylight hours, watering, untimely introduction of fertilizing and non-compliance with the planting scheme can lead to the plants getting sick, and as a result the fruits will be soft and lose their taste. Health to you and your loved ones!

Summer resident makes mistakes

Compliance with the watering schedule will determine the speed of ovary formation. There are no universal recommendations. The schedule depends on the characteristics of the selected variety, temperature conditions in the region, and physical and chemical parameters of the soil. Watering is carried out two to three times a week. Water consumption per 1 m², depending on the variety of cucumbers, is 1-2 liters. First, check the soil moisture level. If the seedlings have not absorbed all the water, you should wait a bit with the described manipulation.

An insufficient supply of fresh air or a constant draft are errors that occur in a greenhouse and in open ground. Air stagnation leads to the so-called greenhouse effect, to the activation of pathogenic flora. The opposite phenomenon - a draft reduces the protective forces of the bush. Failure to comply with the minimum distance between plantings. Wanting to increase the volume of the future harvest, the gardener plants cucumbers too densely.

The roots, without sufficient free space, become weak. It is harder for them to absorb moisture and nutrients. The result is that the fruits will be soft and small. Reluctance to maintain the distance between plantings leads to another problem - rot of the root system. “Tightness” is a catalyst for the development of seedling diseases. It is easier for pathogens to move from one bush to another. The minimum distance between plantings in a greenhouse bed ranges from 15 to 20 cm. Other gardener mistakes:

You may be interested in:

What to do if cucumber leaves wither: what to treat with Many people are familiar with the problem of wilted leaves on cucumbers. The reason may be improper implementation...Read more...

1. Failure to comply with the temperature background - the vegetable feels comfortable at + 18 C + 22 C. Changes up or down should not be allowed. Even short frosts or drought will first lead to softening of the fruit, and then to wilting. If it becomes sharply cold, a heater is installed in the greenhouse. Seedlings in open ground are covered with a protective film.
2. Imbalance of nutrients - do not apply fertilizer without preliminary analysis. Soil acidity, cucumber variety, humidity level are parameters that are analyzed in detail. Errors lead to a slowdown in the formation of ovaries and weakening of the immune system.

Over time, the leaves turn yellow on the shoots and wither. Too rapid growth of a bush is also dangerous.

On a note!

Leaves rise too high, creating excessive shade. Neighboring plants lack sunlight.

Final table

To get a high yield of tasty, aromatic, marketable cucumbers, it is important to follow basic agrotechnical methods for growing the crop. Particular attention should be paid to the timely and correct application of organic and mineral fertilizers, alternating root watering and foliar feeding. Preparing the soil for planting cucumbers should begin in the fall: add organic matter and lime to deoxidize the soil during digging.

Adviсe

Small secrets will improve the quality and taste of preservation:

1. Add 3-5 mustard seeds or 1 tbsp to the brine. spoon of vodka. This will protect the workpiece from tearing off the lids.
2. If you put a piece of horseradish root on top of the jar, you can avoid mold.
3. A small piece of oak bark will make the fruit crispier.
4. To make cucumbers pickle faster, cut off their tails.
5. To increase crispness, an aspirin tablet is added to the preservation.
6. A teaspoon of mustard will make the vegetables crispy.

Advice ! Do not put fruits of different sizes in one jar. Large cucumbers take a long time to pickle, small ones - quickly.

How to determine what cucumbers are missing

If abnormal fruits are formed, you should not increase watering, as this will not solve the problem and may lead to rotting of the roots. If the cucumbers are pear-shaped or crooked, most often the bush lacks microelements. You need to carefully examine the plants, paying attention to the following problems:

At any of these signals, you need to introduce nitrogen fertilizers - a urea solution at the root or by spraying the entire bush.

Phosphorus deficiency is manifested by accelerated growth of empty side shoots, and the leaves become lighter and may show signs of necrosis. The plant has a sickly and lethargic appearance.

Potassium deficiency can be determined by the following signs:

With a deficiency or excess of magnesium, light and dark spots appear on the leaves. In some cases, the foliage even curls. Problems with manganese cause protruding and darkening of the veins on the leaves. Calcium deficiency is identified by an unhealthy yellow border on the leaves. The same symptom is characteristic of the lack of a sufficient amount of boron.

Did you know? With the help of a cucumber, door handles and other shiny surfaces will simply shine: just wipe them with a small slice of the vegetable.

Reason 2. Improper watering

Cucumbers need to be provided with water at a comfortable temperature. If it is less than 25-28°C, this is fraught with a change in shape. Untimely watering also affects the fruits; they harden and curl. As soon as the ovaries appear, the bushes need to be watered every 2-3 days. After August 15, if the weather is good, you can carry out the procedure once every 7-14 days.

How to grow a good harvest of cucumbers

If for some reason you are unable to moisten the soil regularly, but the summer is quite hot, use a drip irrigation system. Such a device has many advantages. It allows you to use water sparingly and reduces the risk of developing fungal diseases.

The illustration for the article is taken from open sources

Reason 7. Features of the variety

It is worth noting that in some cases, the curvature of the fruit is considered one of the varietal characteristics. As a rule, this is typical for late-ripening varieties and hybrids. Bend is also not considered a defect if you are growing Chinese cucumbers.

The illustration for the article is taken from open sources

If you want to please yourself and your loved ones in winter with preserved cucumbers in the form of even and equal-sized cucumbers, purchase planting material from trusted places and provide this crop with proper care.

Correct technology for preparing pickled cucumbers

Failure to follow preservation rules is one of the main reasons why cucumbers become soft when pickled. The green vegetable can be prepared in any way; it can be pickled, salted hot or cold. In order not to spoil the products and not waste time, you need to adhere to preservation technology.

Filling with hot brine

The hot pouring method is used to immediately sterilize pickles. For a liter jar take 1 tbsp. a heaped spoonful of salt, pour this solution over the vegetables with spices, and leave for 3 days to ferment. The brine is boiled and the boiling marinade is poured over pre-washed vegetables, which are placed in sterilized containers. The product is rolled up and stored refrigerated.

Important! After seaming, the jar is turned upside down to check the tightness.

The main thing is not to keep the cucumbers in a warm room during fermentation. Workpieces that have been left to sour for a long time in the room become soft under the influence of lactic acid bacteria in the brine.

Pickling

Cucumber harvest can be pickled with vinegar in the proportion of 70 g of acid, 2 tbsp. spoons of sugar, 1 tbsp. spoon of salt per 3-liter jar. Place cucumbers and herbs in a clean container, pour boiling water over them, and leave for half an hour so that the components are sterilized. Water is poured into a saucepan, salt, sugar and vinegar are added and brought to a boil. Boiling brine is poured into the workpieces and rolled up with metal lids.

Cold billet

Cold pickling is prepared in barrels, glass jars and enamel dishes. To ensure that the vegetables absorb moisture and remain crisp, they are soaked in water for several hours. After this, clean and undamaged products are placed in containers with spices. The preparations are poured with salt water (150 g of salt per 3-liter jar) and left for 1-2 days in a warm room.

To get rid of bacteria, the brine is brought to a boil and poured cold into jars of vegetables. They are rolled up with metal lids or covered with nylon lids and stored in a cool, dark place.

Pickling cucumbers in barrels - grandma's old way

For your information! The process of pickling sour cucumbers can be determined by the foam on the surface of the brine. It forms if the room is warm.