Problems with cucumbers when growing

Leaf color changed

Such cucumber problems often arise due to a lack of nutrients. Which ones – you can understand by carefully examining the leaves: each variant of starvation has its own signs.

Nitrogen. If this element is not enough, the leaves first turn pale, and then begin to evenly turn yellow.

In this case, you need to make foliar top dressing for cucumbers: 1 tbsp. a spoonful of urea per 10 liters of water.

Phosphorus. With a lack of phosphorus, the leaves become dull and a purple (sometimes purple, bronze or red) hue appears on them. It is especially pronounced on the underside of the sheet. In addition, the edges of the leaves are often bent upwards.

You can correct the situation by sprinkling cucumbers with superphosphate: 0,5 tbsp. spoons for 10 liters of water.

Potassium. The main sign of potassium deficiency is the so-called edge burn of the leaves: they turn brown, dry out and bend down. White dots may appear between the veins. Young leaves become wrinkled.

In this case, foliar top dressing is also needed: 2 teaspoons of potassium sulfate per 10 liters of water.

Magnesium. With a lack of magnesium, the lower leaves of the cucumber begin to lighten, but the veins remain bright green. Later, a mosaic of yellow spots appears on the leaves, and then these spots dry out.

Treatment of plants with magnesium sulfate will help solve the problem: 1 tbsp. spoon for 10 liters of water.

Calcium. The lack of this element is manifested on young leaves – they darken, narrow stripes appear between the veins, the edges bend down.

Plants can be helped by leaf treatment with a solution of calcium nitrate: 1 tbsp. spoon for 10 liters of water.

Iron. You can determine the lack of iron by dark veins against the background of light leaves – they look like a cobweb. The upper leaves of the cucumber begin to turn yellow, while the lower ones remain dark green.

You can save the plants by sprinkling them with a nutrient solution: 1,5 teaspoons of iron sulfate and 3 teaspoons of citric acid per 3 liters of water.

Bor. Signs of deficiency – young leaves grow twisted, and on the old ones a yellow border appears around the edges.

You can help cucumbers with foliar top dressing on the leaves: 1 teaspoon of boric acid per 10 liters of water.

Copper. With a lack of copper, the tips of the leaves begin to turn white, the leaves wither even when watered.

In this case, cucumbers should be sprinkled with a solution of copper sulfate: 1 teaspoon per 10 liters of water.

Manganese. With a lack of manganese, signs appear on the leaves, as if they were damaged by a spider mite: a marble coating appears on the leaves, and pale dots form between the veins.

Spraying plants with potassium permanganate can help in this situation: 1/3 teaspoon per 10 liters of water.

Zinc. With a lack of zinc, the leaves become asymmetrical. Yellow spots appear on them, which eventually become bronze.

You can correct the situation by spraying the plants with zinc sulfate: 1 teaspoon per 10 liters of water.

No fruits set

This problem occurs very often – cucumbers bloom, but there are no fruits. And this is because only male flowers appear on the plant – an empty flower.

There can be several reasons for the empty flower.

Lack of light. Cucumbers need a lot of sun. If they are planted in the shade, female flowers are almost not formed.

You can help cucumbers by placing reflective foil screens near them (it can be fixed on a sheet of plywood).

Excessive watering. Cucumbers love moisture, but do not tolerate its excess. The watering rate should be as follows: 2 – 2,5 liters per 1 sq. m after each harvest.

Cold water. It is impossible to water cucumbers from a well or a column. It is best to pour it into a barrel and let it warm up in the sun. The optimum water temperature is 23 – 25 °C (1).

Heat or cold. At air temperatures above 35 °C or below 12 °C (2) more barren flowers appear on the plant than female flowers.

Covering cucumbers with a non-woven fabric will help to solve both problems – it will protect the plants from both heat and cold.

Excessive feeding. Cucumbers should never be overfed, especially with nitrogen (3).

Fertilizer rates should be as follows:

• during flowering: 0,5 l of liquid mullein, 1 tbsp. a spoonful of nitrophoska, 1 cup of ash, 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 education of Zelentsy: 2 tbsp. spoons of potassium nitrate, 5 tbsp. tablespoons of urea and 1 cup of ash per 10 liters of water;
• after 10 days: 1 glass of ash per 10 liters of water – this is under the root, plus spray the plants on the leaves with a solution of urea: 1 matchbox per 10 liters of water.

grow ugly

Another problem with cucumbers when growing is their appearance. The most common cause of ugly cucumbers is drought. They, as we have already found out, must be watered after each harvest, that is, every 2 to 3 days. But this is unrealistic for weekend summer residents.

In this case, mulching the beds with humus or peat will help – they will help retain moisture in the soil much longer. Better yet, mulch cucumbers with hay – it will not only retain moisture, but also slow down the development of diseases. Hay bacillus actively reproduces in hay, which will secrete the natural antibiotic subtillin: it inhibits the development of pathogenic fungi, including powdery and downy mildew.

Popular questions and answers

We talked about problems with cucumbers with agronomist-breeder Svetlana Mikhailova.

Sources of

1. Fisenko A.N., Serpukhovitina K.A., Stolyarov A.I. Garden. Handbook // Rostov-on-Don, Rostov University Press, 1994 – 416 p.
2. Shuvaev Yu.N. Soil nutrition of vegetable plants // M.: Eksmo, 2008 – 224 p.
3. A group of authors, ed. Polyanskoy A.M. and Chulkova E.I. Tips for gardeners // Minsk, Harvest, 1970 – 208 p.