Cucumbers in a greenhouse
Cucumbers, as you know, come from India, which means that this culture is thermophilic. In the southern regions, they grow wonderfully in open ground, but in a cool climate they are more comfortable in a greenhouse.

Varieties of cucumbers for the greenhouse

For greenhouses, you need to choose parthenocarpic varieties and hybrids – their fruits are tied without pollination (1). This is important because there are no bees in the greenhouse.

For early plantings in closed ground, only hybrids with increased shade tolerance are suitable. With a lack of light, photophilous hybrids may stop growing.

The most shade-tolerant hybrids are Matrix F1 and Cartoon F1 – they can be planted in heated greenhouses from mid-March (2).

Other shade-tolerant hybrids include F1 Bobrik, F1 Barcelona, ​​F1 Shchedryk, F1 Quadrille, Courage F1 (3). They are resistant to major diseases, they can be used fresh and for conservation.

Since the greenhouse allows you to extend the season of cucumbers, you can plant varieties and hybrids with different ripening periods in it. Approximately 20% – early, which will yield a crop in early summer. About 70% – the average ripening period, they will become the main ones for your blanks. And about 10% are late varieties, they will yield in August. Thus, you will have a crop of cucumbers all summer.

Caring for cucumbers in a greenhouse

Obviously, the conditions in the greenhouse are different from those in the open field. The greenhouse has limited soil volume and higher humidity. Therefore, the care of cucumbers in a limited space has its own characteristics.

Watering cucumbers in a greenhouse

Cucumbers love abundant watering, especially during flowering and fruiting. At this time, they need to be watered often – after each harvest. But in small doses – 2 – 2,5 liters per 1 sq. m.

But when watering, you need to consider 2 important watering rules:

  • never pour water on the leaves (there is no such good ventilation in the greenhouse as in the garden, and here the plants will start to hurt), the ideal option is under the root, with settled water, watering during the day, under the sun’s rays and right on the leaves is also impossible: this is how they form small water lenses from drops that refract light, and the plants eventually get burned;
  • water only with warm water, otherwise the cucumbers will begin to shed their ovaries.

Feeding cucumbers in a greenhouse

In the open field, many gardeners grow cucumbers without top dressing. Often this is justified: the cucumber season is short, they give a harvest quickly and they have enough nutrients that are in the soil. Especially if it is cultivated and organic matter is constantly introduced into it.

Another thing is in the greenhouse – there is often a limited amount of soil, so top dressing is needed. But! It is important to strictly observe the norms of fertilizer application. Because in a limited amount of soil, they will not go anywhere. And if you overdo it – the plants can suffer, or even die.

For the greenhouse cucumber season, 4 top dressings are needed:

  • 1 week after planting seedlings in the greenhouse (4) – 1 matchbox of double superphosphate, 1 tbsp. spoon of potassium sulfate and 1 tbsp. a spoonful of ammonium nitrate per 10 liters of water, the consumption rate is 1 liter per plant;
  • during mass flowering – 0,5 l of liquid mullein, 1 tbsp. spoon of nitrophoska, 1 cup of ash (or 2 tablespoons of potassium sulfate) 0,5 g of boric acid and 0,3 g of manganese sulfate per 10 liters of water, mix everything thoroughly, the consumption rate is 3 liters per 1 sq. m;
  • during the mass formation of fruits – 2 tbsp. spoons of potassium nitrate, 5 tbsp. tablespoons of urea and 1 cup of ash per 10 liters of water;
  • 10 days after the third – 1 cup of ash per 10 liters of water (this is under the root), plus you also need to sprinkle the plants on the leaves with a solution of urea – 1 matchbox per 10 liters of water (that foliar top dressing will help extend the fruiting period of cucumbers).

Popular questions and answers

Cucumbers are delicate and rather capricious plants. Not every summer resident manages to get large yields, and many often have the same questions. We will try to answer them in detail with agronomist-breeder Svetlana Mikhailova.

How to tie up cucumbers in a greenhouse?

The main rule is that the twine should be wrapped around the plant, and not the plant around the twine. Each turn should capture a separate internode.

But you can do without a garter if you sow corn nearby. It is sown 1 – 2 weeks earlier. When the lashes of cucumbers begin to grow, they need to be sent to the shoots of corn. As a result, you will collect 2 crops – both cucumbers and corn.

How far to plant cucumbers in the greenhouse?

In a greenhouse, cucumbers are best planted on ridges. They are made along the length of the entire greenhouse. Width – 95 – 110 cm, height – 25 cm.

The number of rows depends on the width of the greenhouse. If it is 2 – 2,5 m and the path is in the center, cucumbers are planted to the right and left of the path in 1 row. With a width of 3,5 – 4,5 m with 2 paths, cucumbers are planted on the sides in 1 row, and in the center – in 2 rows. The distance between plants in a row is 35-40 cm.

What can be planted cucumbers in one greenhouse?

On the edge of the beds or in the aisles, you can sow lettuce, watercress, mustard, radish, Chinese cabbage. You can also plant onions on a feather or rhubarb and root crops for the sake of forcing greens.

All this is planted until the main culture has grown and has not completely occupied the necessary feeding area.

Is it possible to plant tomatoes and cucumbers in the same greenhouse?

Undesirable because they have different climate requirements. Cucumbers love high humidity, and in tomatoes, pollen sticks together and fruits are weakly tied. But if you can’t, but you really want to, then you can. But we must understand that the yield of both crops in this case will be lower.

Sources of

  1. Plotnikova L.S. Coniferous plants // Moscow, “Kladez-Buks”, 2011 – 96 p.
  2. Shuin K.A., Zakraevskaya N.K., Ippolitova N.Ya. Garden from spring to autumn // Minsk, Uradzhay, 1990 – 256 p.
  3. State Register of Breeding Achievements https://reestr.gossortrf.ru/
  4. Fisenko A.N., Serpukhovitina K.A., Stolyarov A.I. Garden. Handbook // Rostov-on-Don, Rostov University Press, 1994 – 416 p.

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