Cucumbers are heat-loving vegetable crops, which requires creating the most comfortable conditions for their growth and development. It is especially difficult to grow a rich harvest in regions with long winters and short summers. But there are special designs with biological fuel that can provide plants with the necessary heat and nutrients. Thanks to this, it will be possible to harvest an early harvest and reduce labor costs when caring for seedlings. There are several ways to make a warm bed for cucumbers in the fall. It is important to familiarize yourself with the features of each and adhere to the manufacturing technology.
Why is it better to make a warm bed for cucumbers in the fall?
When arranging a warm bed in the autumn, experienced gardeners highlight the following positive aspects, which are the determining factor in the implementation of work during this period:
- heated soil;
- the presence of plant material (fallen leaves, tops, weeds) in sufficient quantity;
- the owner of the site has more free time;
- a lot of time for effective reheating of organic raw materials;
- By spring, the place for planting vegetable crops is completely prepared.
Important! To prevent rodent infestations, a metal mesh should be placed under the improved compost heap. It is also effective to place prickly branches of raspberries, gooseberries, and conifers on the bottom.
We add liming additives in the fall
If in your area there is something wrong with the acidity of the soil, in addition to fertilizers, in the fall you should think about introducing substances that regulate it. Fluff lime (slaked lime), dolomite flour, chalk, ash are excellent means for reducing excessive soil acidity, when many nutrients enter a state in which they are no longer absorbed by plants. And the activity of some beneficial bacteria is inhibited.
They are evenly distributed over the soil surface without mixing to depth (dig beds with such additives should only be done on extremely heavy clay and loamy soils). The intervals between adding liming agents should be 1-2 years.
Soil liming is carried out in the fall, because At least several months must pass from the moment the above additives are added to the start of the active growing season of plants so that their growth and development are not disrupted.
- Soil acidity: determine and regulate
If your soil is highly acidic, this can seriously harm your plants. How do you know when it's time to take action?
As you can see, in the fall the soil in the garden and vegetable garden needs your care and attention no less than at the height of the summer season. The garden should be provided with a comfortable and proper “wintering”. Don’t forget to properly take care of the soil in a timely manner, add the necessary substances and prepare it for the new season so that it increases its fertility and repays you with a rich harvest.
Types of warm beds
There are several types of warm beds.
Buried (trench)
It is recommended for use in regions where there are difficulties with hydration. This structure is made below ground level and can last for 3-5 years. You can use a warm bed both in open areas and in greenhouse complexes. Among the advantages they note: economical consumption of both effort and money, reduction in the frequency of watering, and does not require digging every year.
But when there is heavy precipitation, there is a high probability of their erosion. In addition, water in the soil can stagnate, which provokes the development of putrefactive processes on plant roots. Also, agricultural crops more often suffer from attacks by parasitic individuals. You should not place a warm bed in the shade, otherwise the seedlings will not receive additional sunlight and will begin to get sick. In such buried beds there is a high probability of damage to the planted plants by returning frosts.
Elevated
This option for a warm bed is relevant for the regions of the middle and northern zone. It is built above ground level and can be useful for 3-5 years. Such a warm bed is used for growing cucumbers in open areas. It is valued for its rapid warming up by the sun, low probability of damage by return frosts, ease of cultivation and good moisture retention. In addition, no crawling pests will be able to cause damage to the future harvest; you can place a warm bed even in an area unsuitable for cultivating vegetable crops.
But there are some nuances here: it requires some effort to arrange it, carry out frequent irrigation activities, and in the heat, cucumbers can burn.
At ground level
The height of the structure above the soil level is only 3-5 cm, and it lasts for 1-2 years. Among the advantages of this variety are:
- ease of manufacture;
- good yield of cucumbers;
- no significant costs.
But with irrigation and frequent rains, the edges of the bed can be washed away, resulting in the loss of useful components from the soil. Taking these points into account, such beds need to be restored to their original form and corrected every year.
Important! Organic raw materials with signs of disease or rot cannot be placed in a warm bed. Otherwise, the planted plants will become sick and there will be no expected harvest.
Ways to improve the soil
Experienced gardeners constantly improve the soil. This is especially true for crops that require special attention and care, like cucumbers.
Peat, hay, rotted manure, and old sawdust are perfect as mulch. They will warm the root system of the vegetable crop, supply the soil with useful substances, and retain moisture from evaporation. In addition, mulch prevents the growth of weeds and allows cucumbers to grow and gain strength unhindered.
This mainly applies to growing cucumbers in greenhouses. The plant loves carbon dioxide very much, and therefore it is recommended to place a barrel with fresh mullein in the greenhouse. In open ground, the content of this substance is increased by mulching the beds with fresh manure.
Once every 14 days, cucumbers are fed with a milk solution (1:10). This composition promotes rapid rooting of seedlings and accelerates their growth.
How to make a warm bed for cucumbers in the fall
There are 2 ways to make a warm bed for cucumbers in the fall, both in a greenhouse and in an open area. The main difference here lies in the use of raw materials.
With manure
Thanks to manure, all laid vegetation begins to rot faster and more efficiently, working, releasing the heat necessary for the normal growth of cucumbers. The use of such universal structures based on biological fuel is especially effective in Siberia, where growing vegetable crops in open ground conditions is extremely problematic. In such cold areas, reliable greenhouse complexes with additional heating are built. Work on arranging the bed should be carried out taking into account the following algorithm of actions:
- Dig a trench 90 cm wide, arbitrary length, depth - the bayonet of a shovel.
- Place a fine-mesh anti-rodent metal mesh at the bottom.
- Then lay down paper, branches, chopped tree trunks, fallen leaves and manure.
- Pour a layer of fertile soil on top.
- Pour boiling water over everything and cover the warm bed with plastic material.
A clear sign of the normal process of decomposition of organic matter in a warm bed is the presence of condensation on the film.
No manure
It is possible to build a structure suitable for growing cucumbers without the use of manure. Various plant residues and kitchen waste are used for these purposes. A warm bed can be located above ground level or in the form of a trench. The technology for making a warm bed consists of the following steps:
- Digging a trench.
- Laying vegetation from the garden.
- Sprinkle it with fertile soil, the layer should be 10 cm.
- Water with hot water and cover with film to quickly decompose waste.
It is recommended to plant cucumbers in such beds only 10 days after filling it with plant debris. An early harvest of cucumbers is possible only from the second year.
Important! To prevent plant roots from ending up on the surface of the earth, the raw materials should be well compacted and compressed.
For cucumbers in open ground
Cucumbers love well-fertilized soil. Therefore, preparation of beds for planting this crop in open ground should begin in advance.
in autumn
For autumn digging, add up to 8 kg of manure, 10 g of a mixture containing potassium and phosphorus (dosage is indicated per 1 sq. m.). The digging depth is from 25 cm. Do not break up the earthen clods in the fall.
It is recommended to add organic matter to cucumbers no later than mid-October. It allows you to saturate the soil with useful substances, preparing it for the spring sowing of vegetables. In addition, organic matter increases the effectiveness of mineral complexes introduced in parallel or a little later.
Do not neglect the use of ash. This natural mineralizer supplies the soil with many macro- and microelements. It contains potassium and phosphorus in a form convenient for absorption, and therefore quickly passes into the soil.
Experienced gardeners advise sowing cucumbers in areas where thorough liming was carried out 3 years ago.
in spring
If the cucumber beds have been well fertilized since the fall, it is recommended to apply fertilizer in the spring about 7 days before planting.
Grooves are made in the garden bed, up to 40 cm deep, and filled with rotted manure or compost at the rate of 5 kg per square meter. m. They are sprinkled with fertile soil on top. Then the ground is loosened and covered with film for several days.
In the spring, when digging, mineral complexes are also added. For example, a mixture of Superphosphate (45 g), saltpeter (20 g), potassium salt (30 g).
From the moment of spring digging until sowing, the soil is loosened and weeds are removed.
If the cucumber beds are located in an open area, not protected from drafts, it is recommended to plant natural barriers from the wind - sunflowers, corn.
Caring for a warm bed
Growing cucumbers on a warm compost heap has its own subtleties in care, especially with regard to irrigation measures. It is recommended to moisten the soil in raised structures almost every day, since the soil dries out quickly and the plants lack moisture. As far as feeding procedures are concerned, there is no need to use nutrient formulations in the manure bed. Considering that during the process of decay, organic raw materials produce more nitrogen than phosphorus, potassium and other useful elements. Therefore, cucumber bushes should be fed with wood ash to compensate for this deficiency. As an option, a complex mixture for cucumbers is also suitable; it must be used in strict accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.
Another point when cultivating vegetables in boxes is the inability to install trellises for them. It is better to give preference when choosing planting material to bush-type seeds. Tall plants will require a bed that is sunk or level with the ground.
Application of mineral fertilizers in autumn for planting cucumbers
Plants can absorb all useful substances from the soil only in the form of an aqueous solution. Therefore, many people prefer to use liquid complex fertilizers: they penetrate to the roots more quickly and, naturally, are absorbed faster by plants. What else needs to be taken into account: mineral fertilizers applied in the fall should have a minimum nitrogen content; on the packaging of such compositions it is usually written: “autumn” or “for autumn use.” These mineral mixtures contain almost no nitrogen, but contain phosphorus, potassium, calcium - microelements necessary for the ripening of shoots, strengthening plant immunity, and increasing resistance to low temperatures. Information about the rate of fertilizer application is also available.
Advice from experienced gardeners
To obtain not only a quantitative, but also a high-quality harvest, you must adhere to the following recommendations:
- It is better to choose a place for arranging the structure in a sunny clearing where there are no drafts.
- Use only warm water to irrigate plants.
- You need to sow the seeds at the end of April, then the chances of a rich harvest are much greater.
- Weeds must be removed without fail.
- If you plan to sow cucumber seeds in a place where these crops also grew before, then it is necessary to completely replace the top layer of soil.
- The best predecessors of cucumbers are tomatoes, onions, cabbage, and garlic.
The best predecessors of cucumbers
According to the rules of crop rotation, the most suitable predecessors of cucumbers are:
Many gardeners have adopted the method of planting cucumbers on a compost heap, which is formed with boards made of boards. The heat that cucumbers so need is produced due to the rotting of the lower layers of such a bed, and vegetables can be sown much earlier by covering them with film. Since the branches are not capable of rotting in one season, it is possible to arrange a place for cucumbers in the same place more than once, while replacing the top fertile layer of soil.
