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Wherever you grow vegetables, it is important to add micronutrients to the soil for their full development and high yields. There are not enough useful substances in the soil, which is why fertilizers must be applied to it. This article will discuss how cucumbers are fed during flowering and fruiting.
It is worth noting that cucumbers have a poorly developed root system, as a result of which they do not receive nutrients hidden in the deep layers of the soil. And the lack of trace elements leads to poor yields. Therefore, we suggest that you read this article to find out when, how and with what fertilizers it is best to feed cucumbers. For the development of the bush and the fruiting of cucumbers, the following trace elements must be in sufficient quantities in the soil:
- phosphorus;
- nitrogen;
- calcium.
Soil preparation for sowing cucumbers
To improve the yield of cucumbers, you first need to prepare the soil. Do this in the fall and again in the spring. Features of soil preparation in these seasons will be considered separately.
Autumn soil preparation in the greenhouse
After harvesting, you should carefully clean the beds from bushes and leaves, as well as weeds, and then dig up the soil. All elements of the greenhouse, both metal and wooden, must be disinfected. This procedure should be carried out with glasses. A bleach solution can serve as a disinfectant. So, you will need 300 g of lime, which must be diluted with 10 liters of water. The composition should be infused for 3-4 hours. The elements of the greenhouse are sprayed with water, and the cracks are treated with sediment. After the soil is dug up, but fertilizer is first applied to it. It can be humus, rotted manure or compost, per 1 m2 you will need a bucket of fertilizer. After digging, 300–500 g of fluff lime or dolomite flour are applied to the soil per 1 m2. This is necessary to reduce the acidity of the soil.
Spring work with soil
In the spring, you need to fertilize again and dig up the soil:
- 20 g of potassium sulfate;
- about 30 g of ammonium nitrate;
- about 30 g of superphosphate.
It is important to fertilize in advance, at least 7 days before planting cucumbers in the greenhouse. After that, the soil must be disinfected with a solution of potassium permanganate at the rate of 3 g per 10 liters of water. Then the earth is covered with a transparent film, which will need to be removed immediately before sowing seeds or planting seedlings.
Yield boosting fertilizers
In order for the cucumber harvest to please you, it is important to fertilize the soil. What fertilizers are suitable for this?
Nitrogen
If the soil is saturated with nitrogen, then all stages of plant growth will proceed safely, which will increase the yield of cucumbers. A lack of nitrogen fertilizer is indicated by yellowing of the leaves and slow growth. List of nitrogen-containing fertilizers:
- chicken manure;
- ammonium nitrate;
- cow/horse manure;
- compost.
If you decide to purchase ready-made nitrogen fertilizers, then keep in mind that some of them contain nitrates (toxic substances). They accumulate in the soil, are absorbed by plants and enter the human body through the fruits. Specify the composition of fertilizers. Discard those that contain nitrate nitrogen.
Cooking chicken manure
Organic fertilizers increase the fruitfulness of cucumbers. An excellent tool for feeding is fermented chicken manure. To prepare it, you need to dilute the litter with water and keep it in a warm place, at a temperature above +20ºС. With this mixture, you need to fill in the dug up earth and slightly loosen it with a rake.
potassium
Potassium, like nitrogen, increases productivity and promotes the normal development of bushes. In case of a lack of potassium, the fruits are small and hard. Fertilizer is best done before planting the bushes in the ground.
Cucumbers respond well to Potassium Sulphate. So, you will not only increase the fruitfulness of plants, but also strengthen their immunity. Potassium sulfate is used to feed the root system. At the beginning of fruiting, the application of potash fertilizers should be increased. The amount of potassium introduced into the soil depends on the quality of the land and on the condition of the cucumber bushes.
Calcium
A sign of calcium deficiency is the drying of blooming flowers and ovaries of cucumbers. In this case, the fruits have an irregular shape and immediately turn yellow, lose their taste. Top dressing is carried out before the beginning of the flowering period. A large amount of calcium is found in the eggshell. Ceiling it and sprinkle the soil with the resulting flour.
Top dressing during flowering and fruiting
If top dressing of cucumbers in a greenhouse involves the introduction of nitrogen-containing components, then for bushes planted in open ground, another vitamin complex and microelements must be prepared. When feeding garden cucumbers, the following composition is introduced into the soil:
- 30 g of ammonium nitrate;
- 20 g of potassium salt;
- 40 g superphosphate.
All these components are diluted in 10 liters of water.
At the beginning and after the end of the flowering period, cucumber leaves should be sprayed with a solution of boric acid. For 10 liters of water you will need ¼ tablespoon of this remedy. Feeding cucumbers during fruiting is especially important, since during this period vegetables take all the nutrients from the soil. And, therefore, it is important to saturate the soil with them, thereby making up for the lack. Greenhouse cucumbers are fertilized after the formation of the first fruits. To do this, make a solution of nitrophoska. For 10 liters of water you need 1 tbsp. l. this tool. After 7 days, the beds should be fertilized again, but with a different composition – 1 tbsp. l. sodium sulfate and 1 l of mullein. Further, cucumbers in the greenhouse are fed once a week, but now growth stimulants need to be applied. These include herbal infusions and compost.
In bushes growing in open ground, urea must be added by diluting 50 g of the composition into 10 liters of water. Spraying is carried out on a cloudy day or in the evening. In addition, it is recommended to apply mineral fertilizers, alternating them with organic matter. It would be nice if the feeding of cucumbers in the greenhouse included phosphorus. This is important, because, otherwise, the roots will develop poorly, and the bushes will stop bearing fruit. With the timely introduction of phosphorus into the soil, flowering can be activated, which contributes to an increase in yield. Among other things, potassium promotes the absorption and movement of other nutrients through the root system.
The role of wood ash in feeding cucumbers
Ordinary wood ash can be an excellent protection against most ailments of cucumbers. It contains many useful substances, including potassium. Ash can be applied even during the harvest period, as it is absolutely harmless to the body. There are several ways to fertilize cucumbers with ashes:
- sprinkle the soil with pre-sifted ash;
- spray the leaves with an ash solution;
- pour a solution of ash under the roots.
The ash solution is prepared in the proportion of 1 glass of ash per bucket of water. It must be insisted within 24 hours. If you use a solution for spraying bushes, then it should be filtered beforehand. Water must have a temperature of at least 20ºС.
Yeast as a feeding option
Some gardeners prefer to use yeast as fertilizer for cucumbers. The recipe for preparing the composition is to dilute 1 kg of fresh yeast in 5 liters of water. To use this fertilizer, you will need to take 0,5 liters of diluted yeast and dilute it with a bucket of water. Under one bush, it is enough to pour 0,5 liters of liquid.
This simple organic fertilizer recipe will allow you to grow healthy cucumber bushes that will bring you a rich harvest.
Excess and lack of elements. What are dangerous?
It is worth noting that both the lack of nutrients in the soil is detrimental to cucumbers, and their overabundance. How to determine if there are not enough elements for bushes or there are too many of them? You can do this visually:
- An excess of nitrogen leads to a delay in flowering. In addition, the leaves will have a characteristic dark color and will also be too dense. With a lack of nitrogen, fruits with an enlarged stalk will appear.
- Excess potassium slows down the growth of the bush. The lack of this element leads to the development of irregularly shaped fruits with a thin stalk.
- Excess phosphorus leads to early yellowing of the leaves.
- Interveinal chlorosis is a sign of a high amount of calcium in the soil.
After the ovaries of cucumbers appeared on the bushes, you need to feed in 2 stages. The first is designed to provide a high-quality and plentiful harvest, and the second is to increase the fruiting period.
Procedures that prolong fruiting
To cause a secondary flowering of the crop, additional fertilizers must be applied. In this case, you can use:
- a solution of a glass of ash in 1 bucket of water;
- a solution of baking soda and water in the proportion of 30 g per 12 liters;
- urea in a proportion of 15 g per 12 liters of water;
- infusion of rotted hay, aged in water for a day.
Conclusion
With proper use of fertilizers during flowering and fruiting, your harvest will not only be plentiful, but also of high quality. You will forget about sluggish, yellow and crooked cucumbers. We suggest you also watch the video on the topic:
