Growing cucumbers on stringsand other vertical supports is a good way to make better use of space in a greenhouse, tunnel or vegetable patch. The advantages of such cultivation are: saving the garden area, better lighting for ripening cucumbers, less water consumption, less disease and easier harvesting. We present the basic principles of growing cucumbers on strings!
Growing cucumbers on strings
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Varieties of cucumbers for growing on strings
Cucumber is a species that grows strongly and quickly. For vertical cultivation on strings, choose thecucumber varieties that create long shoots with strong sticky whiskers, which are best for supports. Of course, it is also important that these varieties are resistant to low temperatures and cucumber diseases, such as: powdery mildew of cucurbits, downy mildew of cucurbits and cucurbits.Recommended varieties of cucumbers for growing on stringsare mainly Polish hybrid varieties, i.e. those whose seeds are marked with the symbol F1: Izyd, Osiris, Rhodes, Zefir, Icarus, Kronos, Śremianin, Tarot and Hermes Skierniewicki.
Stand for growing cucumbers on strings
The stand for the cultivation of cucumber on stringsshould be sunny and sheltered from the wind to protect the plants from low temperatures and strong gusts of wind. While in the case of growing cucumbers in a greenhouse, this will not be a problem, in field cultivation, you can create a quiet corner by planting other tall plants, such as, for example, near the cucumbers.corn or beans.
For amateurs ingardens, it is best to grow cucumbers from seedlings , avoiding the work related to the care of seedlings and the risk of their attack by sprout debris. The plants are planted in a fertile, warm position after the risk of spring frosts is over. Such an agreed date is May 15.
Keeping cucumbers on strings
Cucumber produces a lot of green mass, sothe supports to which the strings will be tied must first of all be strong and stable . The structures on which the plants will grow can be very different, from more difficult to make very simple.
Cucumbers planted with strings
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Often usedconstruction for vertical cucumber cultivationare 2 stakes, about 2 m high, driven into the ground every 4-5 m to a depth of 60 cm.The posts are connected with a steel wire fixed at the tops, and a second one, spread about 15 cm above the ground.Cucumbers are led vertically on strings stretched on the rackPlants are planted along the wires at a distance of 20-30 cm. You can dig slightly larger holes for the seedling and fill them with humus, fertile soil.
Cucumbers are climbing up the strings
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The supports to which we attach the stringscan also be attached at an angle, for example, to a stable fence or a building wall. They can also be nailed in 2 rows and connect at the top to form a kind of tent. We can also fix one stake vertically in the ground, install a metal hoop at its top, from which we unfasten the strings radially. We plant cucumbers in a circle. When they start climbing the strings, they will create a green tent.
Tie up and care for cucumbers on strings
To tie the cucumbers, attach a string , on which the plants will twist, in such a way that its length and tension can be adjusted.We wrap the plant with the free end of the string and fasten it 10 cm above the ground. As the plant grows, we wrap it around the string. We can additionally attach it with special clips or staples for attaching plants so that it does not slide off.
Tying cucumbers to strings
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It's best to use a plastic string. It does not expand in volume under the influence of water and does not develop diseases. But many gardeners also successfully use ordinary jute twine.
Good yielding cucumber plants require pruningSo remove the lower side shoots and flowers to a height of 50 cm above the ground. Shorten the remaining shoots to a height of 1 m above the ground after the third leaf.
Thanks to this treatmentcucumber focuses all its energy on fruit productionand is less susceptible to diseases or excessive shading by adjacent plants.It is also worth removing yellowed and withered leaves and weak shoots, which by absorbing nutrients weaken the plant.
Growing cucumbers on strings
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In cucumber cultivation, you should take care of a clean, weeded position . We regularly weed sensitive plants, making sure not to damage the shallowly located cucumber roots.
Thanks to vertical cultivation, watering cucumbers is easierand much more effective than in flat cultivation. It is easier to get the water directly to the roots, reducing its losses. Cucumbers are very demanding when it comes to soil moisture. The slightest lack of watering immediately affects the taste of the fruit and makes the cucumbers bitter. We water the plants regularly, especially during the period of setting and growing fruit.
Thanks to the cultivation on strings, we do not soak cucumber leaves during watering
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We use warm water for watering cucumbersbecause cold water inhibits plant growth, causes shedding flowers and fruit buds. At a later stage of cultivation, it also contributes to fruit rot.To reduce water evaporation from the ground, maintain a high soil temperature and reduce the growth of weeds, we mulch the plants mowed with grass, straw, black foil or fleece.
Growing cucumbers on strings
Fig. pixabay.com
Cucumbers create a large green mass, so they have high nutritional requirements. First of all, they need nitrogen, and also phosphorus and potassium during the fruit setting and growth period. So we use ammonium nitrate 3 weeks after planting cucumber seedlings, then after the first harvest, and if necessary, mineral foliar fertilizers.In amateur crops on plots and in home gardens, a special fertilizer for tomatoes and cucumbers with micronutrients.By using such a fertilizer, we will provide cucumbers with all the necessary nutrients.
Ripe cucumber fruits are collected regularly , even every day, so as not to limit the further flowering of the plant and the maturation of the next fruits.
MSc Eng. Anna Błaszczak
