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It is customary to plant cucumber seeds in the spring, and in the summer to harvest and prepare various salads. But sowing seeds in the middle of summer, say in July, will allow you to pamper your household with cucumbers throughout the fall, until the first frost.
Getting a good crop of cucumbers depends not only on the quality of the seeds (more on this below), but also on climatic conditions. Those who live in warm regions have nothing to worry about, since seeds in July can be laid directly in open ground. The land for sowing seeds is already prepared and mulched after the previous harvest.
With the advent of the first sprouts of cucumbers, it is not so hot anymore, but the weather is still warm enough to form a good future crop. Residents of cold areas should sow not with seeds, but with seedlings previously grown at home in comfortable conditions.
Preparatory stage
Preparing cucumbers for sowing is an important step and all conditions must be observed for the normal growth of a vegetable crop and a good harvest. It is worth deciding what type of seeds for sowing cucumbers in July is suitable.
So, the term has already been chosen, now you can proceed directly to preparing the soil for sowing cucumbers. A plot for sowing cucumber seeds in July can be chosen either in a greenhouse or on open ground.
From the selected area you need to remove all unnecessary plants. Dig up the earth to the depth of a bayonet shovel, simultaneously enriching it with various fertilizers for the benefit of the crop: peat-humus mixture, rotted mullein. You also need to make mineral top dressing – double superphosphate, potassium magnesia, ammonium nitrate. With good feeding of cucumbers, the harvest will be excellent!
Preparing the seeds for sowing
The choice of seeds for sowing cucumbers is an equally important step. Preference should be given in favor of hybrids that are less susceptible to various diseases and resistant to pests. And given that the cucumber harvest should arrive in time by August or September, seed hybrids should be early ripe. Some can withstand low temperatures, these include the following varieties of cucumber seeds:
- Virtue F1;
- Virenta F1;
- Trump card F1;
- Grasshopper F1;
- Maryina Grove F1;
- Ant F1;
- Saltan F1.
The ovaries from these seeds will form continuously for 3 months. A good harvest will give hybrids and the following varieties of cucumber seeds:
- Garland F1;
- Courage F1;
- May F1;
- Moscow F1;
- Paleh F1;
- Surprise F1.
There is no fundamental difference between sowing cucumber seeds in spring and summer. For a large and ripe harvest, July cucumber seeds also need to be prepared – hardened. Bushes will then grow stronger and more resistant. To this end, cucumber seeds must be sorted, sifting aside small and empty grains. Then they need to be disinfected in a weak solution of potassium permanganate and rinsed well. After that, the seeds for 6 hours should be placed in a suspension of wood ash and dried.
But that’s not all, before moving on to sowing the beds, you need to warm up the seeds for another day, then keep the nitrophoska in a solution for 12 hours. After this period, they must be washed again, placed on gauze, previously moistened with water and covered. Instead of gauze, you can use cotton cloth or wet sawdust. The seeds will be ready for sowing in the ground as soon as they hatch. But you need to make sure that they do not have time to germinate.
Methods for sowing seeds
Sowing seeds of cucumbers can be done according to one of two schemes:
- linear;
- nesting.
The first method of sowing cucumber seeds involves creating small grooves up to a meter long. The distance between them is kept equal to 20 cm, so that future bushes do not interfere with each other. For the second method of sowing cucumber seeds, small square-shaped areas of 60×60 or 70×70 are formed. 2-3 cucumber seeds are placed in the grooves, and 4-5 in each of the nests.
After sowing, the seeds are not watered, but sprinkled on top with a mixture of finely ground pepper (black and red). This measure will protect them from ants, and slugs and mice will stay away from young bushes.
Cucumber seedlings grown at home are placed together with an earthen clod from cups or other containers. When using peat pots for sowing future bushes, young seedlings need to be deepened so that the edges of the pots rise slightly above ground level.
Sowing bushes with cucumbers in the middle of summer using the greenhouse method is carried out in the same way as in the case of open ground, only the distance between the grooves is chosen less than half a meter, and between the nests – 40 cm.
To harvest a rich harvest, sowing can be done twice with an interval of 21 days. It is worth taking into account some tips that allow you to keep cucumber bushes whole and healthy:
- If a hot summer is expected, it is worth choosing a shaded place for sowing;
- For better ripening of the crop, it is necessary that bushes with cucumbers surround plants with tall stems. They will become a kind of protective wall against wind and sunlight;
- Immediately after sowing cucumber seeds, they must be covered with some material, since they are vulnerable during this period.
Proper and timely care is the key to success
After sowing seeds in July, it is equally important to make the right care. It’s not as difficult as it might seem. After three days after sowing seeds or seedlings, it is worth fertilizing using a solution of urea (urea).
The rest of the time, top dressing for cucumber bushes is applied as needed. If the land was well prepared before sowing cucumber seeds, then you can do without it at all. However, in cases of disease or insect attacks, the bushes simply need top dressing to recover.
During the first 20-25 days at night, cucumber bushes should be covered with polyethylene. And so that they do not break, you must first install a wire frame. In a greenhouse, as a rule, the temperature at night rarely drops below 20 degrees and you can do without a film.
After each watering or precipitation, it is necessary to loosen the soil in a timely manner. This is necessary to avoid the formation of an earthen crust, due to which the access of oxygen to the roots of the bushes will be difficult. You also need to monitor the appearance of weeds and weed in time. Young cucumber bushes do not need competitors in terms of nutrition.
With the appearance of the 3rd or 4th permanent leaf on the bushes, it is time to tie the bushes to any support. For those who do not want to do this, several arguments can be made:
- In an upright position, cucumber bushes are better protected from mechanical damage;
- In this position, each bush receives a large portion of sunlight, and is better ventilated, which protects it from decay;
- So it is much more convenient to harvest a rich crop of cucumbers;
- Tied bushes allow you to rationally use the space of the beds (up to 70% savings).
If this is not done, then young bushes, due to their fragility, can quickly break.
Safety measures
To protect the roots of the bushes from the cold, it is recommended to carry out the operation of mulching with compost with a layer of 8 or 10 cm. This applies to the underground part, while the upper part of the bushes can be saved from the cold by spraying with Epin-Extra, which is sold in ampoules with a capacity of 0,25 ml. For 5 liters of water, you need 4 such ampoules. After preparation, the solution is stored for no more than 2 days, so you need to use it immediately. For cucumbers, this is a good anti-stress remedy.
Lack of water or excessive watering, along with a small amount of nutrients in the soil, leads to the appearance of various kinds of diseases in the bushes, which is expressed by yellowing of the leaves and other characteristic signs.
Since the conditions for late sowing of bushes may not always be favorable, the appearance of rot is not ruled out. It is necessary to carefully monitor the condition of the leaves and the bushes themselves as a whole. When the first undesirable signs are found, it is recommended to add low-fat milk to the water for irrigation in a ratio of 1: 1. The total amount of such a solution for watering cucumbers is taken at the rate of 1 liter per 8 bushes.
If the bushes were sown in greenhouse conditions, then often the crop can be spoiled due to condensate appearing on the walls of the shelter. High humidity levels can lead to rot and fungal diseases such as powdery mildew. Getting rid of excess water will be watering at the very root and earlier in the day. In this case, it is necessary to exclude the ingress of drops of water on the bushes themselves.
With the end of watering, bushes with cucumbers should be covered with non-woven material (for example, spunbond is suitable) before the air in the greenhouse warms up well. Such a measure concerns rather film greenhouses, because a lot of condensate does not form in glazed structures. Trichodermin, which is a kind of antibiotic, will help to defeat powdery mildew.
Correct watering
Proper watering is just as important as the correct sowing of seeds. The procedure should be carried out in the early morning hours or late in the evening. In this case, the water temperature should be slightly above 25 degrees. By evening, she will have time to warm up. If the weather is warm outside, then you need to water the bushes no more than once every 2-3 days. The amount of water should be equal to 4 liters per square meter. As soon as the bushes with cucumbers fade, the consumption should be increased to 9 or 10 liters.
With the onset of cooling, the amount of water for irrigation should be reduced. This is done as a precaution. Cool conditions adversely affect the ability of the plant’s roots to absorb moisture and nutrients. And abundant watering in this case will lead to the formation of rot. Thus, the frequency for the beginning is reduced to 1 time per week.
In the autumn months, even less often – no more than 1 time every 2 weeks. The amount of water can be practically not reduced – that is, 8 or 9 liters per square meter. Adult cucumber bushes should be watered only after the ground is completely dry. At the same time, wetting the soil well so that moisture reaches the root system.
Conclusion
Well-chosen varieties of seeds for sowing, their proper preparation, competent planting, timely care and proper watering technique – all these are the main components of an excellent harvest. Their observance before and on time of sowing will allow you to enjoy a fresh harvest right from the garden all autumn.