Vegetable growing can be done all year round (and in winter) and not only in the garden - many city apartment owners grow cucumbers right on the windowsill. The crop is planted at the end of February or at the beginning of March; it can be done earlier if additional lighting is provided for the plantings. The main thing is to choose the right variety of seeds, prepare them in accordance with the instructions, buy nutritious soil and provide your home mini-garden with proper care. For growing on a windowsill in an apartment, hybrid varieties are usually used - with a minimum ripening period, medium-sized fruits, and unpretentious care. More details below.
How to choose a variety
Not all varieties are suitable for living and bearing fruit near a window. Special hybrids have been bred for this purpose. The most popular of them:
Balcony miracle is a low-growing, self-fertile variety that is well suited for home growing. About 8 kg of crispy greens are harvested from one bush. Each weighs up to 60 g. The ripening time of the variety is about 55 days.
Homemade miracle is a shade-tolerant and universal variety: it will grow both in the garden and in protected ground. It has also earned its popularity due to its fairly high yield - about 12 kg of juicy cucumbers, each up to 10 cm in size and weighing around 80 g. They ripen no earlier than the 40th day after sowing.
Garland is an early ripening and self-fertile variety, this variety is distinguished by its impressive (compared to other varieties from this list) size. From one vine you will collect up to 16 kg of 12-centimeter greens, each weighing up to 110 g.
Rules for choosing good seeds
Today there is a whole range of varieties specifically for growing at home on a windowsill. Each of them has certain features that need to be taken into account when choosing. To ensure that your home vegetable greenhouse pleases you with its appearance and produces excellent fruit, pay attention to the following points:
- Estimated sowing date.
- Humidity, amount of light and presence of drafts in the room.
- Appearance of the fruit.
Beginners are recommended to plant shade-loving varieties that are resistant to temperature changes, since they are the most unpretentious. For early sowings, the optimal choice is cucumbers with smooth skin; for late sowings, early-ripening varieties are the best choice. It is imperative to follow the rules for preparing seeds, otherwise they may not sprout.
Also check out the best self-pollinating long-bearing bunched seeds.
When growing cucumbers on a windowsill, you should carefully select seeds.
To grow on a windowsill, choose varieties that do not require additional pollination.
Soil preparation
You can buy ready-made soil for cucumbers on the windowsill or prepare the substrate yourself.
What should it be like:
- fertile;
- light;
- acidity up to 6.8 pH.
To prepare you will need:
- humus;
- peat;
- fertile soil.
Mix these ingredients in equal parts and dilute with a small amount of coarse sand.
The soil is prepared for sowing ahead of time. First (2-3 weeks) they kill all potentially dangerous bacteria in it. For this, treatment with a solution of potassium permanganate or heating in the oven at 100 degrees is suitable.
Next, you need to fertilize the substrate using a special mixture, which is prepared from:
- 200 g of ash;
- 1 tsp nitrophoska;
- 1 tbsp. urea.
This should be enough for one bucket of substrate. One bush requires at least 6 liters of soil.
Indoor: what varieties of cucumbers can be planted on a windowsill, window or balcony in winter
Let's look at the most popular varieties of cucumbers for winter growing on a windowsill:
- Khutorok F1 is a bee-pollinated crop, but it can also be processed manually. Zelentsy are medium in size (about 10 cm) and have black spines. The taste quality is high; cucumbers of this variety can be consumed raw or used for pickling.
Cucumber variety "Khutorok F1"
- Shchedrik is a productive early ripening hybrid, the fruit size is approximately 12 cm. The maximum ripening period is 1.5 months. On one ovary 5-8 green plants are formed, despite the fact that the size of the bush is quite small.
- Crunch F1 - these hybrids ripen within one and a half to two months, give an excellent harvest, and are self-pollinating. An average of 5-7 greens are formed on one ovary. Please note that Crunch loves to grow - so make sure there are supports and enough space for planting.
- Onega F1 is a self-pollinating hybrid, which is also actively used for growing on balconies and window sills. You can collect the first fruits in the first week of the second month of leaf growth. Zelentsy are slightly smaller than average, they can be eaten fresh or pickled.
Read about self-pollinating cucumber varieties for greenhouses here.
Cucumber variety “F1 Khrustik”
- Buyan F1 is a small shrub with a maximum cucumber yield of 8 kg and is a universal variety. Ripening time is up to 50 days from planting; in winter Buyan needs additional lighting.
- Emelya F1 is a variety with large fruits weighing no more than 150 g; the ripening period of the crop is 40-50 days from the moment of planting. Parthenocarpic is one that has high cold resistance, which gives it certain advantages over other varieties. In order for it to grow well and bear fruit, it needs a lot of light. Initially, the variety was grown for eating raw, but it is also excellent for pickling.
Hybrid cucumber variety “Emelya F1”
- Babylon F1 – the variety takes a long time to ripen, ideal for winter cultivation. Provided there are no drafts and good lighting, the fruits will appear 70 days after planting. Flowers are predominantly female - 1-3 pieces per node. The fruits are large and weighty. This hybrid is prone to the formation of bunched ovaries, the yield is good.
- Ant F1 - at the ovary of the variety it forms 3-7 greens, which can grow up to a weight of 100 g. In general, this variety is intended for growing in the ground, but it also bears fruit well on a windowsill in winter. The ripening period is short - only 38-40 days. An important advantage of the hybrid is that there is no need for manual pollination. The bush practically does not grow in width.
- Masha F1 - the variety bears fruit 40 days after planting, and it also has high resistance to diseases. During the formation of the ovary, the bushes need special care. The grouping of clusters is large, it amounts to 7 cucumbers per ovary, which is determined by the miniature size of the adult fruit. The peel is dark and lumpy, making the variety ideal for pickling.
Cucumber variety Masha F1
- Miracle at the F1 window - the cucumbers are quite small (no more than 8 cm) and very tasty, ideal for pickling. The fruiting period is about 40 days.
Manual pollination is carried out as follows - male flowers are picked and the stamens are carried along the female pistils. It is also convenient to use a soft brush for these purposes.
The growing conditions for the listed hybrids are practically the same. You will harvest from the bushes as the fruits ripen. Of course, it’s better not to count on tens of kilograms from the windowsill, but you will always have a couple of cucumbers for lunch. How to store cucumbers fresh, read this link.
Germination
For germination, use peat tablets or ordinary plastic cups. Both methods involve a subsequent dive. It is carried out as soon as the future vine acquires at least five normal leaves.
You can do without replanting - in this case, sow immediately in a permanent place and cover the pot with seedlings with transparent film.
Requirements for cucumbers for the home garden
For home-grown cultivation, they take either parthenocarpic hybrid varieties that are pollinated without the help of insects. Or artificially created varieties for cultivation indoors. They are characterized by a long fruiting period and excellent taste.
The concepts of “parthenocarpic” and “self-pollinating” should not be confused. In the first option, we are talking about a hybrid that can produce a crop without pollination. The female flowers set on their own, but the vegetables do not produce seeds. In the second, the plant pollinates itself due to the presence of both pistils and stamens. Fruits are formed with seeds.
Methods of natural pollination
General requirements for varieties for home cultivation:
- parthenocarpicity;
- shade tolerance;
- precocity;
- high productivity;
- disease resistance.
Experienced gardeners also cultivate bee-pollinated varieties that require forced pollination. The procedure is carried out using an elastic brush, which is used to apply pollen to the stamens and stigma of the female flower.
The absence of unfavorable weather factors accelerates the fruiting of cucumbers in closed ground
You should choose the most unpretentious varieties and hybrids. Thanks to the battery, plants placed on the windowsill are exposed to high temperatures. This can lead to an increase in the number of male flowers, which can lead to a decrease in the number of greens.
In indoor conditions, it is difficult to influence the length of daylight hours and lighting conditions. This primarily applies to windows facing north or shaded by nearby buildings. Therefore, for growing at home, it is advisable to purchase shade-tolerant varieties and hybrids. Bee-pollinated tuberculate and parthenocarpic long-fruited plants have this quality.
An imbalance in the percentage of male and female flowers towards the former reduces yields
Problems during cultivation and ways to solve them
A window sill or loggia is not a guarantee that the plant will not get sick or even die if the rules of agricultural technology are not followed:
- Excess moisture can cause root rot - the plant withers and the stem near the soil turns black.
- A sharp change in temperature or draft leads to wilting, loss of leaves, slower growth of fruits and further death of the vines.
- Yellowing of the foliage may be due to lack of watering, lack of nutrients, in particular nitrogen, or the development of a disease - powdery mildew.
- A temperature drop below +16 °C can cause fruit growth to stop and drop.
Did you know? In Europe, they prefer cucumbers only with perfectly smooth skin without thorns - those varieties on which they are present are called “Russian cucumbers”.
Today it is possible to purchase fresh cucumbers even in winter or early spring, but with a little effort anyone can grow these delicious vegetables at home, thereby being confident in their quality.
Features of culture
Today, no one can be surprised by apartment cucumbers. An increasing number of summer residents prefer not to part with garden vegetation even in winter. Advantages of home growing:
- compact plants will not take up too much space;
- you can choose a high-yielding species;
- The cucumbers ripen very quickly; after 28-35 days you can eat the fruits.
However, there are varieties of cucumbers for growing on a windowsill that are completely unsuitable for these purposes. Some varieties will only be able to grow in open ground or a greenhouse, and there will be too little space for them on the windowsill, so the plants will not be able to develop and bear fruit normally. To understand how to choose cucumber varieties for growing on a windowsill, you need to study all existing categories.
Sowing technology in an apartment
Cultivating cucumbers on a window must begin with choosing suitable containers and preparing a soil mixture.
Containers for planting
First you need to prepare cups for growing seedlings. For example, suitable for a window sill:
- various disposable containers,
- plastic containers for dairy products.
In the future, plants will require more land. Therefore, you can use buckets or boxes for planting.
Main! For each cucumber there should be at least 5 liters of earthen mixture.
The soil
Soil for growing is required:
- nutritious,
- loose,
- moisture-intensive.
The soil is made up of equal parts of humus, turf soil and clean river sand. For looseness, you can add vermiculite. If it is not possible to independently prepare the soil for planting, purchase ready-made industrially produced earthen mixtures.
Seed preparation
High-quality cucumber seeds germinate well on their own without any special treatments. If it is necessary to accelerate germination, before planting, they can be soaked in warm water with the addition of growth stimulants. For example, when preparing seeds for planting, you can use well-known preparations:
- "Epin"
- "Zircon".
Attention! The seeds can be kept in water for 24 hours or until sprouts appear. The main thing is to change it in a timely manner. Otherwise, the water will turn sour and the seeds will die.
Sowing
Sowing of seeds is carried out to a depth of no more than 1 cm. After sowing, the containers are watered with warm water and covered with cellophane. It will take only 2-3 days for seedlings to appear. As soon as the seedlings develop 3-4 true leaves, they are transplanted with a lump of earth into large containers.
Zozulya
The F1 hybrid, relatively young and not very well known, has proven itself well among “indoor” gardeners thanks to the following qualities:
- self-pollinating;
- high-yielding;
- resistant to the most common diseases;
- Suitable for both fresh consumption and pickling.
The main disadvantages of the variety include its light-loving nature, therefore, when planting on a shaded windowsill, you should increase the daylight hours with the help of lamps.
Optimal conditions for growing cucumbers
As with planting in open ground, you will first have to deal with seedlings. Therefore, you will need to stock up on plastic cups (suitable for dairy products), peat tablets, etc.
Attention!
In the future, the bushes will have to be transplanted into boxes along with a lump of earth. One adult plant will need less than 5 kg of soil mixture.
Air temperature
In order for cucumbers in an apartment to bear fruit all year round, they need to create a suitable temperature of 18-22 °C. If it is cool, the ovaries will not appear; if it is hot, the flowers will wither and the lashes will begin to dry out. Fruit crops are afraid of drafts. Therefore, even in a warm apartment, cold window sills should be insulated - put polystyrene foam, newspapers folded in several layers, or boards under the pots.
Lighting
By choosing cucumber varieties adapted for your apartment, you may be left without a harvest if the growing location is unfavorable. The north side is not suitable. Containers should be placed on window sills on the south or southeast side of the house.
To avoid burning the leaves, phytolamps should be placed at a distance of 30-40 cm above the plants. The recommended daylight hours are 15-16 hours.
Interesting!
Phytolamps can be replaced with fluorescent lamps. And to increase the luminous flux, foil or mirrors are installed on the sides of the light source.
Preparing and planting seeds
If cucumber seeds purchased in a store are colored, it means that they have already been prepared for sowing, but with white seeds you need to tinker a little more.
The seeds are placed for half an hour in a solution of potassium permanganate (1 g per 100 ml of water) for disinfection. Cucumber seeds that float to the surface are removed - they will not germinate.
Then the cucumber seeds are placed in damp gauze for pecking. You can treat the seed with biostimulants (Epin, Zircon). After about 2 days, the first seedlings appear.
Russian winter
The variety was bred in 2013, based on the Klin plant varieties, famous since the times of Tsarist Russia for their increased resistance to disease.
They have remarkable qualities characteristic of the main variety:
- shade tolerance;
- low branching;
- good product and taste qualities.
Unlike other varieties, it has pimply fruits with faint whitish stripes.
