Every gardener, before starting to sow seeds, looks for ways to prepare them to improve the harvest. The key to high yield is the quality of seeds and pre-planting measures. So how to prepare cucumber seeds for planting? And how to select the best seeds?
An important point in selecting cucumber seeds:
- if the shelf life is up to 2 years, mostly plants with a large number of male flowers will grow;
- from seeds that are more than 3 years old, plants with mostly female flowers will be obtained.
Table: Shelf life of seeds of various crops
There is no point in collecting and sowing seeds from F1 hybrids.
When purchasing seeds from manufacturers, read the packaging carefully; it may indicate that pre-sowing preparation is not required! In this case, only soil preparation will be required.
These are, for example, plasma seeds. Please note that they differ in color, and you can also find coated seeds.
Seed storage conditions:
- dry cool place
- temperature 10-12 degrees,
- humidity below 60%.
What determines the germination of cucumber seeds?
Cucumbers have good germination; high-quality cucumber seeds have a germination rate of at least 90%. Under the right conditions, the shelf life of cucumber seeds is 6-7 years . Optimal storage conditions for cucumber seeds: a cool, dry place with a temperature of +10...+12°C and a relative humidity of no higher than 60%. Cucumber seeds can withstand freezing (the temperature drops below 0°C), but they still cannot be stored in a garage, country house, or unheated room: if the temperature drops sharply, they will most likely become damp and suffocate. Do not store cucumber seeds in hot places in the apartment: near heating radiators, in cabinets under the ceiling. At temperatures above +25°C they remain viable for only about a year.
Necessary conditions for germination of cucumber seeds
The germination temperature of cucumber seeds is +20...+28°C, germination time is approximately 3 days.
Methods of carrying out the procedure
Often seeds planted dry do not germinate, so they are soaked. This can be done in wet gauze. You need to take a small piece, moisten it well, and place planting material on it. Then cover with a wet cloth. Place in a warm place where they will germinate. If after about 2-3 days it is clear that they have sprouted, then it is necessary to plant them in the ground, and unpecked grains are not suitable for planting. Good quality seeds can germinate even in plain water; sprouts can be seen within 24 hours.
Attention!
Do not allow the seed material to dry out when soaking it. It is necessary to moisturize regularly.
Before planting, you can soak cucumber seeds in a plastic bottle cut into two parts. Place toilet paper soaked in water in it. All this is carefully placed in a bag and left warm for 14 days. Cucumber seeds germinate well in a glass jar, in which they are placed and wrapped in a damp cloth. Close and place in a warm place for 7 days. Very often, to improve germination, the seed is wrapped in gauze for 20 minutes and dipped in vodka. Then they are dried; sowing must be started immediately.
Sizing cucumber seeds
The first thing that is always done with seeds is to calibrate them, that is, select the best ones. This must be done when you buy seeds from hand or prepare them yourself. Store-bought seeds from large seed companies are calibrated in production. First of all, deformed and unnaturally colored seeds (dark or spotted) are discarded. Large, even cucumber seeds of uniform light color are selected for planting.
You can calibrate cucumber seeds in a 3% salt solution. To prepare the solution, take 3 g of table salt per 100 ml of water or 30 g per liter. 30 grams of salt is about 1.5 tablespoons or 3 heaped teaspoons.
The seeds are thoroughly mixed in the solution to remove all bubbles from the surface of the seeds and kept for 5-10 minutes. The floating seeds are thrown away. The rest are rinsed and dried. What is important is that only fresh cucumber seeds (1-2 years old) can be discarded in a saline solution; almost all of the old ones will float, even if they remain viable. Therefore, if you still have all the cucumber seeds floating, then do not rush to throw them away, most likely they are simply too dry. To check germination, place a test batch of seeds for germination.
Features of preparation for sowing
Some gardeners believe that it is better to plant cucumber seeds in open ground directly from the seed packet, dry. But even when sowing directly into the ground, it is worth preparing planting material. For this purpose, hardening is a suitable solution. To harden, you do not need to wait for the seeds to germinate.
Disinfection won't hurt either. Before sowing, water the planting site with “Fitosporin” or a solution of potassium permanganate. The greenhouse has its own microclimate, where there is high humidity and a different temperature regime; it is better to plant sprouted cucumber seeds or seedlings in it.
Advice. The germination of cucumbers lasts for 5-6 years, but the best is achieved with a period of 3-4 years. You should not take fresh, just packaged seeds. To do this, it is useful to pay attention to the date indicated on the seed packet.
Disinfection of cucumber seeds in a solution of potassium permanganate
To disinfect cucumber seeds, before sowing, prepare a 1% solution of potassium permanganate (potassium permanganate - KMnO4) and immerse the seeds in it for 20-30 minutes.
After this, the seeds are washed. However, potassium permanganate is only suitable for protecting seeds from infections located on the surface of the seeds. Also keep in mind that the effectiveness of the treatment is reduced if stuck together seeds are soaked.
How much potassium permanganate is needed to treat cucumber seeds?
One standard level teaspoon contains 6 g. To prepare a 1% solution, you need a spoonful of potassium permanganate per 3 cups of water, or a third of a spoon per glass. The solution should be deep purple. Pink, dark pink and light purple solutions (when the bottom is visible through the solution) are practically useless.
Disinfection of cucumber seeds in special preparations
To combat cucumber diseases that persist in the seed embryo, it is more difficult to choose a method. Currently, some bacterial preparations are used to treat cucumber seeds. However, treatment with them suppresses not only harmful, pathogenic, but also beneficial microflora, and it should not be used unless absolutely necessary.
For example, the drugs Fitosporin-M and Baxis are used to combat root rot, bacteriosis and tracheomycosis wilt. Cucumber seeds are soaked in a solution of any of these drugs for 1-2 hours, then dried.
Read more about what preparations are used for seeds and seedlings
Warming cucumber seeds before sowing
On an industrial scale, heating is widely used to disinfect seeds. To do this, cucumber seeds are heated for 3 days at a temperature of +40°C or at a temperature of +80°C for one day. You can warm it up in the oven; some gardeners have adapted to warm up the seeds on central heating radiators or even on incandescent lamps. But in any case, warming up is stressful for the seed embryo, and in addition, it is difficult to maintain precise temperatures at home. Therefore, this method, despite its popularity, is not recommended for home use.
Soil preparation
Cucumbers love light, nutritious soil . Store-bought mixtures will not work. They contain a lot of peat, which is too acidic.
Ready-made substrates are not nutritious enough ; they do not ensure normal development of the root system of cucumbers.
It is better to make the soil for cucumber seedlings yourself. It is worth trying one of the suggested options:
- a mixture of garden or turf soil with humus, peat and rotted sawdust in equal proportions;
- turf soil mixed with rotted compost;
- garden or turf soil mixed with humus, vermicult or perlite;
- peat combined with old sawdust, humus, mullein and washed river sand.
For the mixture, it is better to use the soil into which the grown cucumbers will be transplanted. Light sandy soil is preferable ; heavy soil mixed with clay is not suitable. The substrate must have a neutral or slightly alkaline reaction.
Before mixing, the soil must be sifted and then calcined in the oven or microwave. This treatment, which lasts at least half an hour at a temperature of 90 degrees, kills harmful microorganisms and insect larvae that weaken the seedlings.
Another processing option is steaming . The soil is laid out on a fine mesh net and placed over a container of boiling water. The treatment is carried out for 30-45 minutes, then the soil is cooled. If there is no possibility of heat treatment, the ground can be frozen , this procedure guarantees a good effect.
The sifted soil is placed in plastic bags or fabric bags, and then placed in the freezer or on the balcony (in winter). The substrate is kept in the cold for several days, then brought indoors and left to thaw.
ADVICE! Mineral supplements containing nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus necessary for seedlings will help increase the nutritional value of the soil.
Wood ash, superphosphate, urea, potassium sulfate or potassium sulfate are added to the substrate. All components are thoroughly mixed. The soil mixture can be prepared in advance. Some should be left for later pouring into cups with seedlings.
Soaking cucumber seeds
Soaking is the most popular method of pre-sowing seed treatment . It is known to everyone who has ever planted cucumbers. Soaking accelerates the germination of cucumber seeds, but washes away the protective layer if the seeds have been treated by the manufacturer against infections, and reduces the resistance of germinating seeds to unfavorable conditions. A slight cooling or short-term drying can be safe for dry cucumber seeds, but destructive for pre-soaked ones. Therefore, soaking makes sense when sowing cucumbers for seedlings at home, and when sowing in the ground - only if the weather is good.
To soak cucumber seeds, it is advisable to choose a transparent container, plastic or glass. Place a napkin in several layers, paper, gauze or fabric on its bottom, lay out the seeds and pour in so that the water stands but does not cover the seeds entirely. Soak the seeds for 1-2 days until the shell cracks.
How to prepare cucumber seeds for planting at home: methods and rules
As has already been found out, by preparing seeds for planting at home, you can get stronger seedlings, which will have a positive effect on productivity in the future. Improving germination = quality and quantity of the future harvest.
There are several methods of pre-sowing treatment, each of them has its own purposes and characteristics. Let's talk about each of them.
Warming up
Heat treatment improves germination, and it is also believed that when planting material is heated, the number of female flowers will increase in the future. Manipulation is especially useful for seeds aged one year, and for material collected with one’s own hands in cold areas, or if storage was in cold conditions.
You can warm it up using one of the following methods:
- The simplest option: place the seeds in a fabric bag and hang it next to the heating radiator . You can put the bag on the battery itself, you just need to put cardboard under it. Ideally, it is believed that it is necessary to warm up in this way for 1-1.5 months. But warming up for 7-14 days is also allowed.
- You can also heat the seeds in the oven at 60 degrees for 3 hours. However, this option is very risky.
- You can warm it up in hot water . To do this, place the material in a thermos with liquid at about +45-50°C. Leave for 20 minutes. Afterwards, be sure to immerse it in cold water for 2-3 minutes.
Important! The most controversial method of preplant preparation. It clearly cannot be called the best and optimal. After all, warming up can cause stress in the seed embryo. Moreover, with prolonged heating it is difficult to control the temperature.
Many gardeners doubt the usefulness of the procedure. Moreover, they may lose their germination due to high temperature.
Disinfection
Young seedlings can be damaged or even destroyed by fungal or bacterial diseases. Pathogens can be on the surface of the seeds, so in order to protect future plants, it is useful to disinfect (etch) the seed.
Disinfection is more suitable for cucumber seeds collected by yourself. Purchased products have already been treated against fungi and bacteria.
There are several effective ways to disinfect cucumber seeds at home:
- Soaking in chlorhexidine 0.05%. It is necessary to immerse the seeds for 30 minutes.
- In a solution of brilliant green (Diamond green). 1 milliliter of brilliant green is diluted in 100 milliliters of clean water (you should get a dark-colored solution). Disinfect for 30 minutes.
- In a solution of a purchased biological fungicide, for example, Fitosporin-M, or Gamair, Alirin-B, Fitolavin. The solution should be prepared according to the instructions for the drug.
But disinfection in other popular means is not as effective as with the above methods. For example, in hydrogen peroxide 3%, in potassium permanganate (you need to soak in such substances for 20 minutes).
There are alternative disinfection options using natural substances. For example, you can do this with aloe juice (the juice is mixed with water 1 to 1), or garlic infusion (three crushed cloves are infused for 24 hours in 100 ml of water). Soak for half an hour. Such methods have no proven effectiveness, so one cannot expect effective destruction of pathogenic microflora on the surface of seeds. But they won’t cause any harm; some gardeners use them.
Important! After etching, it is necessary to immediately rinse the planting material in clean water.
Soak
Soaking is a very effective way to increase the germination of cucumber seeds. However, you can soak the material before planting in open ground only if the weather is good and there is no risk of cold snap in the first days after sowing. But before sowing seedlings, performing this procedure is always very useful!
Important! Immediately after soaking, you need to send the seeds either for germination or for planting as seedlings, in a bed in a greenhouse or in open ground. You cannot leave them and dry them, otherwise such a break will lead to loss of germination.
You can soak:
- In ordinary water;
- In growth stimulant.
The most effective way to awaken the vital energy of planting material is to soak it not in ordinary water, but in a solution of a growth stimulator . Now there are various effective preparations that can be bought in specialized garden stores. For example, popular products: Epin, Zircon, Energen, Hb-101.
It is convenient to put the seeds in a fabric bag and then immerse them in the solution. Or simply immerse it in liquid and then filter through cheesecloth.
Important! When using growth stimulants, it is important to follow the instructions (when preparing the solution, soaking). The solution must be used immediately after preparing the solution.
By the way! It is believed that biological growth stimulants may also provide some benefit, for example:
- honey - 1 teaspoon in 200 ml of water, soak for 5 hours;
- aloe juice - put aloe leaves in the refrigerator for 10 days in advance, and then mix aloe juice with water in equal proportions, leave for 1 day;
- wood ash - mix 1 tablespoon of ash and 200 ml of water, infuse for 48 days, soak for 4 hours.
If you don’t have a growth stimulator on hand, you can soak it in plain water . When soaking, the seeds should not float in water; they should be half covered with a layer of liquid. Otherwise, in the water column without access to oxygen, the seeds can simply “suffocate.” It is best to place a cloth (or gauze folded in several layers) in a saucer with water and place the seed on the cloth. In this case, it is optimal to soak for 12-24 hours.
Germination
Germination awakens seeds from a dormant state, they begin a phase of active life, and a sprout grows under favorable conditions. This procedure requires high humidity and a warm environment.
Why is it effective to prepare cucumber seeds through germination? Firstly, the procedure significantly speeds up the emergence of seedlings after planting (whether they were sown as seedlings or in open ground). Secondly, the technology allows you to immediately detect non-viable (that is, unable to germinate in the ground) seeds, because they simply will not germinate even before sowing, you can immediately throw them away.
Important! After germination at home, you need to handle the germinated cucumber seeds very carefully. If you accidentally break a sprouted beak, the seedling will no longer grow.
Therefore, this method is convenient before sowing seedlings. But when planting material in open ground or a greenhouse, it is easier to break the beak.
Step-by-step instructions for germinating cucumber seeds will help you perform the processing correctly:
- The first thing to do is prepare. You will need a small bowl or saucer, a small piece of cotton fabric, or cotton pads. You can also sprout in gauze (folded in several layers), but there is a high probability that the sprout will grow among the threads of gauze, and it will be more difficult to remove it without injuring the beak.
- Place one piece of cloth on a saucer and the seeds on top. Then cover them with another piece of cloth (or cotton pad) on top.
- Wet the cloth generously with warm, clean water (but it should not float in the water!).
- Place the saucer inside a plastic bag and tie it. Place the bag in a warm place (a temperature of 25-27 degrees is required).
- Now all that remains is to wait for germination. Under favorable conditions, this will happen in 2-4 days. If this does not happen after 6-7 days, then the seeds can be discarded; they are not viable. During the entire germination period, the fabric should always be damp; when drying, it should be moistened!
Important! Immediately after germination, cucumber seeds should be immediately sown as seedlings or in open ground. After such preparation, you can no longer do anything with them!
Bubbling cucumber seeds
Bubbling is the enrichment of seeds with oxygen. Used only for old cucumber seeds, 6-7 years old, to increase germination energy. It does not have any noticeable effect on young seeds. The seeds are placed in a gauze bag and placed in a jar of water at room temperature. Then air is supplied using an aquarium compressor, with the tube located under the bag of seeds so that air bubbles surround it on all sides. The seeds are kept in this state for about a day, but if there are a lot of seeds, then it is advisable to change the water in the middle of the cycle. After bubbling, the hatched seeds are immediately planted in the ground.
Hardening of cucumber seeds
Hardening of cucumber seeds increases their resistance to unfavorable environmental conditions. Hardened seedlings tolerate cold soil better and resist root rot. Seeds intended for hardening are wrapped in a damp cloth, placed on a saucer or plastic container and placed in the refrigerator for 2 days (optimal temperature 0...+2 °C). Make sure the cloth remains damp at all times.
After this, the seeds are immediately sown or treated in a nutrient solution without drying. According to some fans, hardening allows you to speed up the development of cucumbers and even increase the yield of cucumbers by up to 40%.
What seeds need preparation?
Currently, there are many varieties of cucumbers, and most of them are hybrid forms of the vegetable crop. Such seeds are purchased from trusted stores or garden centers. High-quality planting material undergoes special processing and therefore does not require additional preparation before planting.
But seed material collected independently or purchased from private owners requires special preparation.
Reference! Self-collected seed material of hybrid forms of vegetable crops loses its varietal, unique properties and characteristics.
