Cucumbers in a greenhouse: growing technology from planting to harvest

Content

• 1. Varieties of cucumbers for the greenhouse
• 2. Soil for planting cucumbers in a greenhouse
• 3. Planting cucumber seedlings
• 4. Garter of cucumbers
• 5. Formation of a cucumber bush
• 6. Caring for plants in a greenhouse
• 7. Diseases and pests
• 8. Growing cucumbers in a greenhouse in winter
• 9. Harvesting cucumbers

Growing early cucumbers in a greenhouse allows you to get the first greens already in March-April. This is true for central Russia and its northern regions. As for the south, there plants in greenhouses can grow all winter long.

Care after germination or planting of seedlings

Only beginning gardeners believe that caring for cucumbers after planting in open ground and sprouting consists of weeding and watering. In fact, there are more activities - fertilizing, bush formation, pinching, loosening, and in some cases even hand pollination. We'll talk about all the subtleties further.

Thinning

Thinning is only necessary when using the square-cluster planting method. In this case, the plants are not uprooted, but cut at ground level. This way the roots of the cucumbers that you decide to leave are not damaged.

Thin out in the following sequence:

After each thinning, the cucumbers are mulched with peat or sawdust, in a layer of about 3-4 cm. The thinning procedure cannot be delayed, otherwise the cucumbers will produce side shoots, and this will affect the overall yield.

Features of watering

Cucumbers are not watered constantly; weather conditions and stage of development are taken into account. Activities begin 3 days after emergence, the water consumption rate for young plants is 5-6 liters per m2. Stop watering as soon as 4-5 true leaves appear. Now, before the first ovaries appear, watering is limited to the maximum: excess moisture can cause a delay in flowering and impair fruiting.

As soon as the ovaries begin to form, watering is resumed: about 10-12 liters of warm, settled water should be poured under each plant. For this purpose, already in winter, zealous owners stock up on barrels or come up with a sprinkler system so that the water warms up and is not icy.

Watering with cold water provokes fungal diseases, and supplying water from a hose in one stream exposes the roots.

Pinching and shaping the bush

Bush formation is important for yield. The simplest thing you can do is pinch the top of the plant above the fourth or fifth leaf. Such rough intervention will provoke the development of side shoots, and on them there are most of the female inflorescences, from which the ovaries are formed.

Modern varieties and hybrids require a slightly different approach: they have a sufficient number of female flowers. In this case, you need to wait until 3-5 true leaves appear, and then remove both buds and shoots from their axils. This technique in agricultural technology is called “blinding,” that is, the removal of parts that can significantly slow down the development of the plant and negatively affect its yield. As soon as the stem reaches a length of one to one and a half meters, it is tied to a trellis in a horizontal position, and after the side shoots appear, it is pinched. The formed stepsons are directed downwards, then pinched at a height of about a meter from the surface of the bed.

It is difficult to say which forming method will suit your variety: manufacturers rarely provide such information on the bags. You will have to go the experimental route, forming the plants in two ways and choosing the one that gives the best results.

Fertilizing

If cucumbers can forgive errors in formation, then they will respond to carelessness with fertilizing with a sharp decrease in yield. This crop is extremely demanding on soil fertility, and the requirements for elements vary depending on the stage of development.

Before the inflorescences appear, it is necessary to ensure the growth and development of leaves, and for this the plant needs nitrogen. If it was not possible to prepare the bed according to the rules, foliar feeding of the leaves with a urea solution (5 g/10 l of water) helps.

As the plant grows, the need for potassium, phosphorus and other elements changes. Therefore, you can use the feeding scheme indicated in the table.

If the weather is warm, then no more fertilizing is needed. However, in cold summers or in some cases during harvest, one or two additional feedings may be required.

You need to feed cucumbers in the evening or in the morning to avoid causing chemical burns. It is better to apply fertilizer after watering the bed.

Loosening

Cucumbers react positively to loosening, but here you need to act carefully. The roots of the plant are too close to the surface, they can be easily damaged, and this is undesirable. While the cucumbers are small, you can loosen the bed, stepping back 5-6 cm from them; as they grow older, this distance is increased to 12 cm.

Forks help well in loosening. They are carefully inserted into the depth of the horns, and then heeded without swinging. As a result, air enters the deep layers of the soil, and the roots are almost not damaged. The main thing is not to stick the fork too close to the cucumbers, otherwise injury to the plant cannot be avoided.

Mulching eliminates the need for loosening. Therefore, it is better to fill the space between the plants with chopped straw, peat or humus, making a layer of 3-4 cm.

The subtleties of growing with and without a trellis

Most often, cucumbers are grown on trellises of various designs. This is convenient and the fruits get less dirty. However, there is one feature that many gardeners do not know about: cucumbers do not like it when the direction of their vines is often changed or the leaves are turned over. To recover, the plant needs strength; it will take it from the reserve intended for the formation of fruits.

Therefore, when growing cucumbers on a trellis, it is important to follow the following rules:

When growing cucumbers without a trellis, the stems can be pinned to the ground with a slingshot and sprinkled with a little soil. Over time, additional roots will appear in this place, which will have a positive effect on the yield.

Interlacing of shoots should not be allowed. Therefore, when growing without a trellis, pinch out the interfering side stems.

Varieties of cucumbers for the greenhouse

Since growing in a greenhouse is popular among gardeners, many varieties of greenhouse cucumbers have been bred for this purpose. The best varieties for protected soil are F1 cucumber hybrids - the most productive, unpretentious, with the desired type of pollination.

Cucumbers can be pollinated in three ways:

• cross pollination : with the help of insects, wind from one plant to another;
• self-pollination: pollination of the pistil by the stamens of one flower or another flower, but on the same plant;
• not requiring pollination: the so-called parthenocarpic plants form a fruit, but there are no seeds in it, because no fertilization occurs.

The technology for growing cucumbers in a greenhouse excludes the presence of any pollinating insects (and pests too), so the first type of varieties disappears immediately. Self-pollinating cucumbers in a greenhouse can bring a good harvest, but they still require human participation in the pollination process - flowering plants need to be shaken and fans installed so that pollen is guaranteed to fall on the pistils. You can, of course, not waste energy on these procedures - pollination will still occur, but in smaller quantities. Parthenocarpic or pollination-free varieties produce bountiful harvests and require minimal gardener input.

IN THE PHOTO: The cucumber hybrid 'Masha' is self-pollinating, excellent for growing in a greenhouse.

Is it possible to pick cucumbers?

There are rules for collecting cucumbers under different weather conditions that must be taken into account so that the vegetables do not lose the necessary qualities for storage, canning or transportation.

In the rain

In cloudy and rainy weather, you should refrain from harvesting cucumbers, since in such weather they contain less vitamins and minerals (especially potassium). It is also not advisable to pick fruits from the vines immediately after the rain stops.

The reason is that vegetables that have been exposed to rain have a shorter shelf life and are highly susceptible to rotting.

During the heat

During the peak of the heat, it is not recommended to harvest cucumbers, since at high air temperatures the vegetables’ taste quality decreases and their beneficial properties are lost.

Soil for planting cucumbers in a greenhouse

The soil is prepared in advance, before the seedlings are planted. Basic soil requirements:

• fertility;
• good absorbency and breathability;
• pH close to neutral.

How to grow cucumbers in a greenhouse without the risk of infecting new plantings with “old” infections? Disinfecting the soil will help. It is carried out twice: in the fall, after harvesting the crop and tops, all parts of the greenhouse are treated with a bleach solution, and in the spring the soil is spilled with a solution of copper sulfate (7%) or potassium permanganate.

Rules for storing cucumbers

The selection of fruits for preservation begins at the stage of their removal from the vines - overgrown and substandard cucumbers are discarded. Collected vegetables should be protected from wind and ultraviolet radiation by covering them with a cloth and placing them in a cool room.

To preserve the harvest, observe the following rules:

When growing cucumbers, you need to take into account that only timely removal of them from the bush will allow you to get a bountiful harvest.

By following all the recommendations for harvesting and storing cucumbers, you can enjoy fresh fruits all summer and also preserve them for a longer period.

Source

Planting cucumber seedlings

How to plant cucumbers in a greenhouse? Only seedlings. This method allows you to achieve the main goal - getting an early harvest. Read more about how to grow cucumber seedlings in our article “Growing cucumbers for seedlings: timing, planting and care technology.”

The ideal age for transplantation is 25 days . The issue of planting timing is decided individually and depends on the region, type of greenhouse and selected varieties.

Young cucumbers in the greenhouse are planted with a two-line tape. Rows are formed at a distance of 50–60 cm, ribbons - 80 cm from each other. The gap between plants in the tape is 20 cm.

Further cultivation of cucumbers in a greenhouse involves, first of all, feeding the seedlings immediately after planting, watering and mulching the surface.

Good harvest of cucumbers

Cucumber is one of the most popular vegetables in our country. Perhaps everyone who has a garden grows these juicy fruits. Cucumber is a “capricious” plant, therefore, in order to reap a rich harvest, you need to take a responsible approach to caring for cucumber beds.

To ensure a good cucumber harvest, you need to choose a cucumber variety suitable for your climate and provide suitable conditions for the growth of the vegetable.

What a gardener needs to know about cucumbers

So that your efforts are not in vain, you need to remember that light, moisture and warmth are necessary for good growth and fruiting of cucumbers. The soil temperature should be about 20-23 degrees, and the optimal air temperature is 25-27 degrees. You need to know that cucumbers have a rather weak root system, so the soil should be rich in moisture, minerals and humus. Also, regardless of whether the cucumbers grow in open ground or in a greenhouse, they must receive enough light, otherwise the shoots will wither and will not bear fruit.

Planting cucumbers

Seed selection and preparation

Cucumbers should be planted in the second half of May.

Important conditions for good growth of cucumbers are the correct choice of seeds and their preparation before sowing. Self-pollinating hybrid varieties of category F1 are well suited for a greenhouse: “Amur”, “Temp”, “Orpheus”, “Emelya”, “Dynamite”, “Courage”, “German”, “Alpinist”, etc. All these varieties will allow you to get a good harvest not only in the greenhouse, but even on the balcony or windowsill, since insects are not needed for pollination. In open ground you can plant varieties such as “Farmer”, “Lord”, “True Friends”, etc. For regions with cold climates, special cold-resistant hybrids have been bred that produce crops even at low temperatures. They also belong to the F1 category: “Brawler”, “Balalaika”, “Saltan”, “Three Tankmen”, “Trump Card”, “Thumb Boy”.

Before sowing, cucumber seeds must be prepared. Select the largest ones and fill them with a 3-4% solution of table salt (2 teaspoons of salt per 1 liter of water), mix and let stand. Remove floating seeds; they will not sprout. After selection, dip the seeds in a weak solution of potassium permanganate, this will disinfect them. Then place the seeds on a napkin soaked in fertilizer (1 spoon of fertilizer per 1 liter of water) and place on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator for 12-15 hours. As soon as the seeds germinate a little, they are ready for planting.

Planting seeds

Cucumbers are very moisture-loving, so they need to be watered regularly.

You can grow cucumbers in a winter greenhouse all year round. If the greenhouse is not heated or the bed is on open soil, it is best to plant cucumber seeds in early April, so that by the end of May the plants can be planted on the ground. If you decide not to grow seedlings, immediately place the seeds in greenhouse soil, two or three per hole to a depth of 1.5-2 cm. If you decide to replant the shoots, plant the seeds in seedlings in peat pots. The soil in the pots should be fertile, warm and moist. Place two or three seeds in each container and cover them with film until the seeds germinate.

After germination, leave the strongest shoots. Remember that cucumbers need light to grow, so it is best to grow seedlings on a windowsill. To ensure that the shoots develop quickly, water them with warm water (its temperature should not be lower than 25 degrees). Melt or rain water is good for this purpose. It is necessary to maintain a constant temperature in the room with seedlings. During the day it should not fall below 15 degrees, at night - below 12 degrees.

Landing

Sprouted shoots are planted in open ground in the second half of May. The place for the beds should be sunny, protected from the wind. The soil needs to be heavy and fertile, fertilized with manure. The planting area must be cleared in advance, all weeds removed and the soil loosened. It is best to plant cucumbers at a distance of 20 cm from each other, so the shoots will not compete for space in the sun and the harvest will be maximum. The distance between the beds should be 60-70 cm. Stretch the wire in two rows along each bed at a height of approximately 1.5 meters. Make sure the wire is attached firmly and will support the weight of the shoots.

Cucumbers can be planted in a film greenhouse throughout May.

To protect from winds and scorching sun, plant tall plants, such as sunflowers, next to the cucumbers. Place these plants across two cucumber beds. Make sure that they do not create excessive shade, otherwise the harvest will be poor - remember that cucumbers need light.

Seedlings should be planted in a film greenhouse from May 1 to May 20, in unheated greenhouses made of glass and polycarbonate - in mid-April, and in winter greenhouses this can be done even in February. The greenhouse planting scheme does not differ from that in open ground. Maintain distance between the shoots and the beds so that the cucumbers have enough room to grow.

Cucumber care

Without proper care, your beds will not bear a rich harvest. Cucumbers must be monitored and cared for, not allowing one shoot to crowd out others, constantly keeping the soil moist, fertilized and protecting the plants from the cold.

Loosening the soil

The first loosening must be carried out 2 weeks after the seedlings are planted. It should be shallow and neat. You need to loosen the soil no deeper than 3 cm so as not to damage the roots. The following loosening is carried out 1-2 times a month, while piercing the soil with a pitchfork to a depth of 20 cm. This method allows you not to touch the fragile root system of cucumbers.

Top dressing

A good harvest can only be obtained if you feed the plants correctly. Alternating mineral and organic fertilizers is best suited for this purpose. Remember that cucumbers do not tolerate chlorine, so beware of chlorine-containing substances. At different stages of cucumber growth, their need for certain substances changes; this must be taken into account when feeding. Throughout the growing season, several feedings are carried out:

The first time after planting seedlings, it is better to keep them in a greenhouse.

1. The first - at the beginning of flowering: 1 tbsp. a spoon of Kemira all-purpose (you can use mortar, crystalline, nitrophoska) and 0.5 liters of mullein per 10 liters of water. Use at the rate of 3 liters of solution per 1 sq. meter.
2. The second - at the beginning of fruiting: the same composition at the rate of 5 liters per 1 sq. meter.
3. The third feeding is 2 weeks after the second: 1.5 spoons of Kemira all-purpose and 0.5 liters of mullein per 10 liters of water. Consumption: 6-8 l per 1 sq. meter.
4. The fourth feeding is carried out 2 weeks after the 3rd with the same solution.

After cold weather, it is recommended to carry out foliar feeding. To do this, prepare the following solution: 1 teaspoon of urea and half a teaspoon of superphosphate per 10 liters of water. Foliar feeding should be done in cloudy weather or in the evening to prevent foliage burns.

Watering

Design and operation of drip irrigation for cucumbers.

Cucumber is a moisture-loving plant, so it needs careful watering. Cucumbers have a rather weak and superficial root system, so they need to be watered often, and on hot sunny days almost every day. But excessive moisture is also dangerous for shoots, because gas exchange in the soil is disrupted, oxygen access to the roots is impaired, and the soil temperature becomes uncomfortable for plants.

Watering cucumbers should begin immediately after planting and should be done a week before flowering. The amount of water should be 4-5 liters per 1 square meter. m. With the beginning of flowering, water the beds every 2-3 days at the rate of 8-12 liters of water per 1 sq. m. meter. The amount of water taken for irrigation depends on weather conditions. When there is high air humidity and frequent rains, take less water so as not to “flood” the plants. To ensure that the cucumber leaves do not burn in the sun, and the soil is better saturated with moisture, watering must be done in the first half of the day.

To maintain the microclimate in the greenhouse, keep a tank of warm water, or better yet, a mullein solution, into which you can throw a handful of hay. This will not only maintain the necessary air humidity, but will also enrich it with carbon dioxide, which will have a beneficial effect on the fertility of cucumbers.

Harvesting

Ripe cucumbers should be harvested as they grow. The shoots should be handled very carefully, do not lean them against the ground and do not turn the vines over, otherwise, with prolonged contact with wet soil, additional roots will form on them, this can lead to a deterioration in fertility. It is not recommended to leave overripe and diseased fruits on the branches, as they can slow down the growth of healthy ones.

It is best to pick cucumbers in the morning. Night growth is the fastest, and the fruits collected in the morning are the juiciest. In addition, in the hot sun, ripe cucumbers can become bitter and turn yellow. Also, bitterness can appear from frequent changes in weather, lack or excess of water and unsuitable soil.

Follow the instructions in our article to get a rich harvest of cucumbers for salads, pickles and snacks. Best wishes!

ParnikiTeplicy.ru

Garter of cucumbers

If you can tie up cucumbers in open ground, or you can leave them to spread along the ground, then to the question of how to grow cucumbers in a greenhouse, the answer is clear - on trellises.

The first garter is carried out a week after planting.

This technology allows you to save useful area of ​​the greenhouse, give the plant maximum light and air, which prevents fungal diseases.

IN THE PHOTO: Gartering cucumbers in a greenhouse significantly saves space.

How to pick cucumbers correctly?

In order to pick ripe cucumbers on time and correctly, as well as to obtain a sufficient quantity of them, you need knowledge of the rules, which are determined by what period of the year the vegetables ripen, at what time of day the harvest takes place, how often and using what technology.

Did you know? Fresh cucumbers contain the flavonoid fisetin, which protects brain cells from aging.

In what month?

In our latitudes, there may be different times for harvesting cucumbers, since, from mid-summer until the beginning of autumn, cucumbers actively ripen in summer cottages and fields.

What time of day?

Another important nuance that needs to be taken into account during harvesting is the appropriate time of day to pick fruits from the bush. It is better to do this early in the morning or late in the evening. The reason for the choice is the property of cucumbers to acquire greater elasticity due to the abundance of moisture received from watering during these periods of time, which affects the presentation of the product and its taste.

How often?

According to experienced gardeners, it is advisable to carry out cleaning regularly, preventing the fruits from overgrowing. The schedule depends on the required size of vegetables and their purpose. This will also stimulate the growth of new ovaries, for which the cucumber vines will always have the strength to feed them.

If you miss the right moment of picking, the fruits will outgrow, their skin will become rough, the development of new ovaries will be delayed and there will be fewer and fewer of them. Therefore, it is important to know how many days after collecting the last batch of vegetables you need to repeat the procedure. The frequency of picking fruits from the bush is once every 2–3 days or more often.

Did you know? Although in culinary terms cucumbers are classified as vegetables, in botany they are classified as fruits and are considered a false berry.

Collection technology

It may seem that picking cucumbers is not difficult. It is important to remember that when separating vegetables from the bush, there is a risk of damaging the plants by being too active. If you sharply tug, twist or pull the fruits, the delicate vines can be injured, and their roots will be undermined, which will lead to drying out of the plants.

You must adhere to the following technology for removing cucumbers from mother plants:

1. It is necessary to separate cucumbers using sharp tools - pruners, scissors or a knife.
2. The stalks of the cut fruits are left on the vine.
3. Try not to turn over the foliage and vines themselves during collection, and also not to step on the vines.

Find out more about how to grow cucumbers correctly.

Formation of a cucumber bush

Caring for hybrid cucumbers in a greenhouse comes down not only to watering and loosening, but also includes the formation of the plant. Hybrids always form into one stem. Below 50 cm, all ovaries and stepsons must be removed so that the plant gets stronger. Free growth of all shoots may be one of the reasons why cucumbers grow in a greenhouse but do not produce a bountiful harvest.

It is customary to pinch varietal cucumbers above the fifth leaf , since the main stem most often produces male flowers - barren flowers.

IN THE PHOTO: Proper pinching of cucumbers is the key to a strong plant and a good harvest.

What types of cucumbers are there?

The first thing you need to pay attention to when choosing seeds is what type they are. Cucumbers can be varietal or hybrid (marked with the symbol F1, which means the first generation of crossing varietal species).

Many summer residents prefer certain varieties of cucumbers because they love their taste and know the secrets of growing them. After all, varietal cucumbers retain their excellent taste for years. Their seeds can be collected and planted in subsequent years. In addition, they are less whimsical and tolerate temperature changes more easily - ideal for Sunday gardening.

Did you know? Russia is the second largest producer of cucumbers after China.

The disadvantages of varietal plants include the following:

• not resistant to diseases;
• often bitter;
• give an unpredictable harvest;
• cross-pollinate with other varieties.

Hybrids produce equally beautiful fruits. They are immune to many pests and have high productivity. However, the seeds of a hybrid cucumber lose their parental properties, turning into a varietal plant.

Disadvantages of hybrids:

• demanding on air temperature, soil composition, watering;
• need abundant feeding;
• are more expensive than varietal ones.

Cucumbers can set fruit with or without the participation of bees. Varietal representatives are usually bee-pollinated. This makes it difficult to cultivate them in greenhouses and greenhouses. To allow insects access, open the greenhouse often and remove covering material. Pollination can be carried out with a brush, transferring pollen from the male flower (stamen) to the female flower (pistil).

The vast majority of hybrids are self-fertile and form an ovary without outside help. They are also called parthenocarpic, or self-pollinating.

According to the ripening period - the time from the first shoots to the appearance of greens - cucumbers are divided into early, middle and late.

Planting varieties of different harvest periods will allow you to enjoy your cucumbers from summer to late autumn.

Cucumbers also vary in size, skin thickness, and taste. They can be smooth or pimply, for salads or preparations, cold-resistant, shade-tolerant, with bunched fruits and even white-fruited.

Buying seeds is an important step. Choose varieties that are suitable for your summer cottage conditions, based on your intentions for further use. Carefully read the description on the packaging.

Caring for plants in a greenhouse

Important information on how to grow cucumbers in a greenhouse without loss:

1. The temperature regime for cucumbers is very important, the ideal range is +25–27°C for young plants and +27–30°C for fruiting ones . Strong fluctuations in daily temperatures are dangerous due to the stimulation of excessive foliage growth in the absence of fruiting, so try not to allow night temperatures to drop significantly.
2. Watering should be done with heated water every 3-4 days . Water should not get on the leaves - only on the soil. The best time to water is early morning. When the first ovaries appear, it is worth increasing watering, and on hot days, run water between the rows to locally increase the level of air humidity.
3. Regular fertilizing with complex mineral fertilizers is done if organic matter (in particular, rotted cow or horse manure) was not added before planting.

The topic of fertilizing cucumbers in a greenhouse deserves a separate article, as it contains a lot of details and nuances. For example, the obvious advantage of organic matter in open ground can be a headache in a greenhouse: rotted manure perfectly attracts soil flora: fungus gnats, nematodes and other dangerous living creatures. But mineral fertilizers in reasonable dosages will ensure healthy growth and development without the proliferation of pests.

The first fertilizing with mineral fertilizers with a high nitrogen content is done during planting. The second - complex (nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus in equal parts) - during flowering. The latter - during fruiting - with fertilizers with a predominance of potassium, which is responsible for the accumulation of other minerals in the cell (which give the taste of cucumber) and water. Potassium is also responsible for the shelf life and disease resistance of cucumbers. Three weeks before harvesting the fruits, feeding stops.

How to properly prepare seeds and seedlings

Because all gardeners want to get a good harvest, they need to start with proper seed preparation. Varietal representatives can cause more trouble. Sometimes, for example, you come across dummies. The hybrid is more versatile and reliable. In any case, I recommend soaking the seeds before planting to ensure their suitability.

Seeds of varietal cucumbers tend to ripen biologically. For planting, take 3-4-year-old, or better yet 7-year-old, cucumber seeds.

The seeds are placed in a moist environment. This can be a cloth soaked in water, soft paper or a sponge. Provides a temperature of +27-28 degrees. Constantly monitor the process. As soon as a millimeter root appears, it’s time to sow. It is better not to use seeds with sprouts longer than 0.5 cm. The plant will be elongated and weak.

For seedlings, use special store-bought or disposable transparent plastic cups. Representatives of pumpkin plants have very sensitive thin roots, damage to which can lead to the death of the plant. Therefore, growing seedlings in a single container with subsequent picking is undesirable. A hole is made at the bottom of the cup.

The glass is filled 1/3 of the volume with a nutritious soil mixture with the addition of vermicompost. Lightly compact. Place the prepared seed on its edge and sprinkle it with 1 cm of soil. Again, carefully compact it, water it, and cover it with a lid until germination. It is better to pour water not on the ground, but into a tray with cups placed inside it.

On what day do cucumbers sprout after sowing depends on the variety and germination conditions. Usually the seed lasts for 3-5 days. In open ground – 5-7 days. As soon as the sprout appears, remove the lid and take it to a well-lit place with an air temperature of about +23 degrees. The plant is planted in the garden 25 days after germination.

Diseases and pests

The greenhouse creates a favorable environment not only for cucumbers, but also for their pests and diseases. The most common infections:

• brown spot
• peronosporosis
• root rot
• powdery mildew

Pests that feed on parts of the cucumber plant:

• aphid
• sprout fly
• ticks
• thrips
• wireworms

Disease prevention involves keeping the greenhouse clean and disinfecting it annually.

Storing the harvested crop

It is best to store fresh cucumbers in the refrigerator . At low temperatures and high humidity, you will save your crop from withering:

When storing in the refrigerator, the fruits are placed in a plastic bag, without tying it, and placed on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. You can cover them with a damp cloth.

Important! Do not seal the bag with cucumbers tightly! Otherwise, in 2-3 days they will “suffocate” and lose their taste.

For storage in the cellar, take trays or boxes and cover with film . This method ensures the presence of the necessary moisture and delays the evaporation of water. It is possible to use enamel pans with lids.

If you do not plan to store cucumbers for a long time, place them in water in the form of a bouquet with the stems down . Water should cover only the lower parts of the fruit and their stalks. In this case, leave the stalks long. Change the water daily.

If you want to preserve cucumbers for as long as possible, then use a glass jar , after putting chopped or grated horseradish into it, following these instructions:

Another way to keep cucumbers fresh is to use raw egg whites.:

Growing cucumbers in a greenhouse in winter

Often beginners are very impressed by stories or videos about growing cucumbers in a greenhouse during the winter. Growing cucumbers year-round in a greenhouse is not only about providing your family with delicious salads, but also a good business if the volume is right. However, to organize such an activity, a permanent structure will be required, equipped with heating devices and equipment for supplementary lighting of plants on short winter days.

We will definitely cover this topic in our next articles.

IN THE PHOTO: To grow vegetables in a greenhouse year-round, the greenhouse should be equipped with a heating system and good lighting.

Stimulation

Cucumbers bear fruit most effectively if the daytime temperature on a sunny day is between 21–26 ˚С, and at night it becomes a little cooler, about 18–19 ˚С. But we all know how hot it can be in a greenhouse in the summer. To make the daytime environment inside more comfortable for plants, experts have long whitewashed the roof with a regular chalk solution at the height of summer. This really gives good results. In some greenhouses, it is more convenient to do without painting, but simply stretch a synthetic mesh or thin white non-woven material under the roof, securing it with clothespins or office clips to the frame elements.

If warm nights last for 2–3 weeks in a row or longer, the cucumbers will bear fruit well at first, but then become exhausted and reduce yield. In this case, a night's rest will help them: try ventilating the greenhouse late in the evening for a week so that it cools down to 16–18˚C. After this, the cucumbers will come with renewed vigor.

Organization of space. How best to plant cucumbers Read more

The best varieties for greenhouses

Plants with not too spreading vines that can feel comfortable in the confined space of a greenhouse are suitable. Determinate forms are preferred ; when growing indeterminate cucumbers in a greenhouse, you will have to remove the lateral shoots and pinch out the growing points.

Which cucumbers are best to plant in a greenhouse? The following varieties of cucumbers are suitable for indoor soil :

1. Murashka is a high-yielding, early-ripening hybrid. Moderately long vines need reliable fastening and do not require pinching (shaping a bush). The fruits are small, neat, covered with small black thorns, with juicy and pleasant-tasting pulp. Cucumbers are never bitter and are suitable for salads or pickling. The hybrid is resistant to real and downy mildew.
2. Benefit is an early ripening hybrid, suitable for winter greenhouses and film greenhouses. The timing of planting cucumbers in a polycarbonate greenhouse must be calculated based on the fact that the fruits of this variety ripen 45 days after germination, do not taste bitter, and are suitable for canning or fresh consumption. Resistant to various diseases, rarely affected by pests.
3. Suomi is an early ripening hybrid suitable for growing in winter greenhouses. The plant is compact, productive, with strong immunity. How do cucumbers grow in a greenhouse of this variety? The fruits are small, strong, with a pleasant, not watery taste. Universal purpose .
4. The bouquet is a very early variety. How long do cucumbers grow in a greenhouse? The fruits ripen within 30 days after planting. The variety is characterized by bouquet fruiting, small strong fruits ripen in peculiar bunches. The taste is rich and bright.
5. Okhotny Ryad is a variety with a long fruiting period; the fruits can be picked throughout the season. Grows well under film or in glass greenhouses. Agricultural technology is standard. The fruits are medium-sized, strong, very juicy. The variety is resistant to sulfur foot and powdery mildew .
6. Emelya is an early ripening hybrid, ideal for heated greenhouses. The fruits ripen in bunches ; tall bushes need strong supports. Cucumbers are especially tasty in salads, but canning is also possible.

Transplanting

Seedlings should be planted when the fourth leaf appears, until it has outgrown and is quite strong. Sick plants should not be planted in a greenhouse.

An important point when planting seedlings is that the soil temperature is not lower than +15 degrees. The air temperature in the greenhouse structure is of secondary importance. There must be a thermometer in the greenhouse. It is better to take your temperature in the morning. Experienced gardeners cover the measuring area with plywood or a board to prevent it from being warmed by the sun. The thermometer is placed in the shelter to a depth of 20 cm, leaving it for 15-30 minutes. Thus, the most objective result is obtained.

To speed up the heating of the soil, you can cover it with plastic film or additionally build a warm bed, which should be spilled with hot water to activate the biofuel.

The stages of transplanting seedlings into a greenhouse are as follows:

1. Dig holes and fill them with fertilizer. The distance between the cucumber recesses should be at least 40 cm.
2. Water the soil for disinfection with a warm solution of potassium permanganate.
3. Plant seedlings in the holes, deepening them to the first true leaf.
4. Compact the soil around it and cover it with a thin layer of dry soil.

For greater heat retention, you can additionally mulch the beds with cucumbers.

Pinching and tying

Pinching and tying are the most important activities in growing cucumbers. Pinching is carried out taking into account the variety, since caring for each pollinated species or hybrid may have its own characteristics. In the simplest version, the formation of bushes of insect-pollinated varieties includes the following actions:

• removal of lateral shoots, tendrils and inflorescences from the bottom of plants;
• garter to trellises (3 weeks after planting);
• trimming the tops above the 6th leaf;
• garter of growing side shoots.

Growing cucumbers from sowing to harvesting - do you know all the tricks?

Crispy fresh cucumbers, collected from your own garden, are certainly a decoration for the table. What life hacks do gardeners themselves come up with for borage plants?

Even at the stage of choosing cucumber seeds, you are probably wondering where exactly you will grow the crop. Modern breeders have created varieties and hybrids specifically for growing outdoors or in a greenhouse.

However, outdoor cucumbers that can withstand cooler climates often have rough skin and spines. Cucumbers for greenhouses produce smoother fruits, but require a comfortable microclimate.

Sowing seeds for seedlings begins in mid-spring in small pots, usually peat, filled with a universal soil mixture.

The technology is simple: plant two seeds to a depth of about 3 cm, then water.

To germinate, seeds need a temperature of at least 20°C, so the containers are placed in a warm place without drafts, and some even build mini-greenhouses from ordinary toothpicks and film.