To get good harvest of cucumbers, it is necessary to choose the right site for their cultivation, prepare the soil and follow the rules of proper crop rotation. The crop is quite demanding in terms of soil and air humidity, as well as light and elevated temperatures, so beds for cucumbers should be laid out in places protected from piercing winds, without shading.
Areas with low relief - lowlands - should be avoided, as cold air flows into them.
Soil requirements
The best soils for considered loamy and sandy loam. The highest crop yields are obtained in well-fertilized fertile areas with neutral or slightly increased acidity.
Cucumbers are very responsive to the addition of organic matter. Cucumber plantings require regular and fairly frequent watering. Uncultivated, acidic, poorly heated and heavy soils with a shallow arable layer are considered unsuitable for cultivation.
The best predecessors of cucumbers
Fertilizing cucumbers
The amount of nutrients (in a form easily accessible to the plant) in the ground should be sufficient, since the root system of cucumbers is located in the upper layers of the soil and is characterized by a relatively high rate of their consumption.
During a short growing season, cucumbers produce not only a powerful leaf apparatus, but also a lot of fruits. That's why it is necessary to add a sufficient amount of organic matter, which, when decomposing, supplies the roots with additional portions of carbon dioxide.
Organic fertilizers for cucumbers
Fresh manure on cucumber beds Most often applied in the fall. Transforming into humus, it structures the soil, loosening heavy clay soils and binding sandy ones. If the soil in the garden is heavy clay or loamy, slowly warming up, then it is advisable to incorporate fresh manure into it 30-50 days before sowing the seeds (immediately after the snow melts) - this leads to rapid heating. On soils well fertilized with organic matter, the effectiveness of mineral fertilizers increases several times.
Adding peat It makes sense only on heavy, damp soils, as this improves the structure and its physical properties.
Mineral fertilizers for cucumbers
When cultivating cucumbers they use mineral fertilizers and, which can act as a complete replacement for potassium compounds. Ash is covered at a rate of about 200 grams per square meter. meter. Mineral fertilizers need to be added when digging up the soil in spring: ammonium nitrate - 15 g/sq.m. m, superphosphate – 40 g/sq. m, potassium salt (in the absence of ash) – 25 g/sq. m.
If you are using complex fertilizers, then when adding them you should follow the instructions and dosages indicated on the package. Most of the minerals are added immediately before sowing or when sowing seedlings and seeds in holes, and the rest is added in the form of liquid root dressings.
Soil liming
If the soil is not highly acidic, then it should be lime (deoxidize) using dolomite flour, ground limestone, tuff. This stage of work is carried out in the fall during digging.
The simultaneous application of fresh manure and lime is not allowed - this leads to a chemical reaction, which results in the loss of valuable nitrogen.
During autumn liming of the soil, which is carried out every 4-5 years, rotted manure is applied in the spring. Plant waste ash is not only a natural potassium-phosphorus fertilizer, but also a means of reducing soil acidity.
Spring cultivation of beds for cucumbers
Dug up since autumn plots for cucumbers, fertilized with organic matter, are loosened in the spring. If the manure was not applied in the fall, then the humus is scattered in early spring, and the soil is dug up to a depth of a spade.
From the moment the snow melts until the sowing of cucumbers, it is necessary to monitor the looseness of the soil and immediately remove any emerging weeds. Mineral fertilizers are applied around May 20-25, the soil is dug up, the top layer of soil is leveled with a rake and planting begins.
A properly selected site, compliance with the basic requirements of crop rotation and careful soil preparation will help you get a good harvest of cucumbers. The culture does not like darkening, cold and infrequent watering. However, it is more important to provide cucumbers with fertile soil, with a neutral acidity level and good air exchange.
Soil requirements
Vegetable crops are sensitive to heat. Therefore, it is best to choose sunny areas, with well-warmed soil and natural protection from gusty winds. Cucumbers love warm water; cold water causes bitterness to accumulate in them. This should be taken into account when watering.
Proper crop rotation is extremely important. So, the ideal predecessors of this crop are cabbage, potatoes, legumes, and herbs. You should not sow the vegetable where related zucchini and squash grew last season. Pests and diseases could have accumulated in the ground, which could easily destroy the cucumbers.
The place for planting vegetables is prepared in advance. Cucumbers are very responsive to the addition of organic matter, and therefore, in the fall, manure, droppings or mullein are added to the soil. This way the plants will receive a full range of nutrients necessary for normal growth and development.
Composition and properties
Cucumbers love fertile, humus-rich soil. These can be loams or sandy loam soils. If there is only alumina on the site, adding sand will improve the situation (a couple of buckets are enough for 1 sq. m.). In addition, the level of acidity plays a big role.
A neutral pH is required for a rich harvest. Slightly acidic soil is also acceptable. But highly acidified soils require preliminary liming. The dosage of lime is determined by the current acidity level, usually from 250 to 550 g per square meter. m.
Note. Acidity is often reduced with chalk and wood ash.
Ideal soil for cucumbers should contain:
- Mullein. Natural organic raw materials contain a lot of nitrogen, which gives the carbon dioxide the cucumbers need. In addition, fresh raw materials create a greenhouse effect in the garden bed, which protects heat-loving plants from temperature fluctuations.
- Sawdust. It is a natural soil loosener. Microorganisms that decompose wood actively consume nitrogen, which is especially important when there is an overdose of this macroelement.
- Dernina. Contains humus, a small amount of nitrogen, and organic matter. Clover sod is especially good, with a width of 6 cm. Before planting in cucumber beds, this natural organic matter must rot well.
- Humus. The main source of nutrients for cucumbers, since it contains all the elements necessary for the culture, and in a form convenient for absorption. If it is unavailable, it is replaced with rotted compost.
- Sand. It perfectly loosens the soil and acts as an excellent drainage material.
- Peat. Allows you to increase the percentage of soil nutrition, improves its moisture capacity and air permeability.
Soil for seedlings
The substrate is easy to prepare yourself, or you can purchase it ready-made at a specialized store. Of the purchased soils for seedlings, both universal and specially designed for cucumbers, squash, and zucchini are suitable.
The soil for seedlings should be loose and well breathable. Include a full range of macro-, microelements and vitamins. Have good moisture holding capacity.
Soil options:
- Peat + rotted manure + sawdust (2:2:1). Wood ash (a glass per bucket) and mineral fertilizers (a small spoonful of urea, potassium sulfate, Superphosphate) are also added here.
- Turf + humus + compost (in equal parts). Also add a glass of ash, 25 g of Superphosphate, 15 g of potassium sulfate. Dry substances are pre-diluted in 10 liters of water.
- Peat + sand + sawdust + mullein + rotted manure (6:1:1:1:1).
- Turf + high peat + rotted sawdust + compost (in equal proportions).
Under cucumbers in a greenhouse
If you plant vegetables in a greenhouse from year to year, diseases and pests accumulate in the soil. They must be disposed of in a timely manner. Therefore, much attention is paid to preliminary preparation, which is carried out in the autumn and spring periods.
in autumn
The process of preparing soil for greenhouses begins after harvesting and removing old canes. The tops must be burned, which prevents the possible spread of diseases throughout the area.
Then they remove about 8 cm of soil, in which pests have already settled, and begin digging and applying fertilizer.
Don't forget about disinfecting surfaces. Copper sulfate is often used for this. Labor-intensive but effective treatment of the soil with bleach (500 g per one and a half buckets of water, leave, drain the top water) will not hurt. They do this after digging.
Sulfur bombs are widely used as dry processing. When burned, acrid smoke is released, which kills germs even in hard-to-reach places. Sulfur dosage – from 60 g per cubic meter.
Organic matter is added before the end of October so that in the spring it can warm up the soil before planting cucumbers. You can also add rotted sawdust, which will improve air exchange.
in spring
Well-prepared soil must meet the following requirements:
- Be free from trash and weeds.
- Contain a minimum of acid or alkali.
- Have the ability to retain moisture.
- Contain sand, ash, organic matter. The latter, if not applied in the fall, is evenly distributed over the beds in the spring.
For cucumbers in open ground
Cucumbers love well-fertilized soil. Therefore, preparation of beds for planting this crop in open ground should begin in advance.
in autumn
For autumn digging, add up to 8 kg of manure, 10 g of a mixture containing potassium and phosphorus (dosage is indicated per 1 sq. m.). The digging depth is from 25 cm. Do not break up the earthen clods in the fall.
It is recommended to add organic matter to cucumbers no later than mid-October. It allows you to saturate the soil with useful substances, preparing it for the spring sowing of vegetables. In addition, organic matter increases the effectiveness of mineral complexes introduced in parallel or a little later.
Note. If the soil is light, the use of manure is postponed until spring.
Do not neglect the use of ash. This natural mineralizer supplies the soil with many macro- and microelements. It contains potassium and phosphorus in a form convenient for absorption, and therefore quickly passes into the soil.
Experienced gardeners advise sowing cucumbers in areas where thorough liming was carried out 3 years ago.
in spring
If the cucumber beds have been well fertilized since the fall, it is recommended to apply fertilizer in the spring about 7 days before planting.
Grooves are made in the garden bed, up to 40 cm deep, and filled with rotted manure or compost at the rate of 5 kg per square meter. m. They are sprinkled with fertile soil on top. Then the ground is loosened and covered with film for several days.
Note. Instead of manure, compost, hay, rotted leaves or sawdust are quite suitable.
In the spring, when digging, mineral complexes are also added. For example, a mixture of Superphosphate (45 g), saltpeter (20 g), potassium salt (30 g).
From the moment of spring digging until sowing, the soil is loosened and weeds are removed.
If the cucumber beds are located in an open area, not protected from drafts, it is recommended to plant natural barriers from the wind - sunflowers, corn.
Ways to improve the soil
Experienced gardeners constantly improve the soil. This is especially true for crops that require special attention and care, like cucumbers.
- Mulching
Peat, hay, rotted manure, and old sawdust are perfect as mulch. They will warm the root system of the vegetable crop, supply the soil with useful substances, and retain moisture from evaporation. In addition, mulch prevents the growth of weeds and allows cucumbers to grow and gain strength unhindered.
- Increase in carbon dioxide content
This mainly applies to growing cucumbers in greenhouses. The plant loves carbon dioxide very much, and therefore it is recommended to place a barrel with fresh mullein in the greenhouse. In open ground, the content of this substance is increased by mulching the beds with fresh manure.
- Fertilization with milk
Once every 14 days, cucumbers are fed with a milk solution (1:10). This composition promotes rapid rooting of seedlings and accelerates their growth.
Caring for cucumbers can be made more rational if you take into account the recommendations of experienced gardeners.
- Strengthening the roots
After each rain, the soil must be loosened so that the root system receives oxygen and continues to develop. After growing 4 leaves, the bushes hill up a little - this way the plant receives maximum rainwater.
- Artificial pollination
If self-pollinating varieties are sown, then there are no problems. But those that need pollination do not always receive it due to the lack of bees. Therefore, gardeners strive to lure these beneficial insects by planting fragrant herbs and flowers: clover, lungwort, sage.
- Abundant watering
Cucumbers love water; the soil should not be allowed to dry out. Watering is carried out either early in the morning or in the evening and only with warm water. The soil should be wetted at least 16 cm.
- Don't neglect feeding
Even if the soil is fertile and well-dressed in the fall, cucumbers still need fertilizer in spring and summer. This is a fast-growing crop that rapidly consumes nutrients and begins to starve if they are deficient.
Conclusion
Proper preparation of the soil, increasing its fertility and reducing acidity is the key to obtaining excellent cucumber yields. However, it is important to observe moderation in everything and not to oversaturate the soil with fertilizers or calcium.
Since cucumbers are crops that are demanding on soil fertility, in order to get a rich harvest, it is best to worry about preparing the site for planting in advance. Loamy or sandy loamy loose soils are best suited for cucumbers; acidic and heavy ones are unsuitable for this crop. Cucumbers require neutral or, at least, slightly acidic soil. Therefore, preparing the soil for planting cucumbers should begin with determining its acidity.
Soil acidity assessment
Soil acidity is expressed by pH. Thus, the soil with a neutral reaction necessary for planting cucumbers should have a pH equal to 7. The lower the pH number, the more acidic the soil and the less suitable for cucumbers. A higher pH is an indicator of alkaline soil, which is also not suitable for this crop.
Soil acidity can be analyzed in a specialized laboratory. This analysis is carried out using a special device, widely known as the Alyamovsky device. Having purchased such a device, an amateur gardener, using the instructions supplied with it, will be able to independently analyze the soil at his summer cottage.
There is a more trivial and accessible way for every amateur gardener to assess acidity using litmus paper. This paper is sold in stores that sell chemicals. The “secret” of this method is as follows: a 30-centimeter vertical cut of the soil is made with a shovel. The earth is moistened with distilled or rain water, and then part of the mixture is squeezed in the hand together with litmus paper. The color of litmus paper is compared with a standard control scale, and the acidity of the soil is determined by matching the color.
In the absence of an Alyamovsky device and litmus paper, you can roughly estimate the acidity by looking at the weeds growing in the area where the cucumbers are to be planted. Peculiar indicators of acidic soil are plantain, horsetail, speedwell, pikulnik, sedge, horse sorrel, mint, creeping buttercup, wood lice, fireweed, and heather. In such an area, the acidity of the soil must be reduced before planting cucumbers. If creeping wheatgrass, field bindweed, coltsfoot, thistle, odorless chamomile and clover grow well on the site, then the soil is either neutral or has a slight level of acid and is quite suitable for fastidious cucumbers.
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Application of fertilizers and other substances
Preparing the site for planting cucumbers begins in the fall. To saturate the soil layer with minerals, it is necessary to apply fertilizers. If it is slightly acidic, it is best to use liquid alkaline organic fertilizers. To neutralize the increased acidity of the soil at the site, it is limed by adding various substances, including slaked lime, dolomite flour, cement dust, chalk, defecate or ash.
With the arrival of the first warm spring days, the ground must be dug up to a depth of at least 25 centimeters. After this, the top, approximately 12 centimeters, layer of soil is thoroughly mixed with a rake with a layer of humus collected in the fall. High-quality humus is real “gold” for a gardener and the key to a future harvest. To prepare it, you can use all kinds of organic substances, for example, sawdust, dried grass, fallen leaves, straw, manure, pieces of paper, and so on. After watering, the area chosen for growing cucumbers is covered with film for several days so that the soil warms up to at least 150 C.
If soil preparation for some reason did not start in the fall, then a simplified version of spring activities is needed. In this case, the application of lime materials must be excluded; it is allowed to apply liquid alkaline organic fertilizers and an increased dose of humus at least a week before sowing seeds or planting seedlings.