How to grow cucumbers to achieve high yield?

Cucumber, as a common vegetable , occupies an important position in China's vegetable market with its bright green color, crisp taste and various eating methods. It is suitable for people of all ages. Let’s learn together how to grow cucumbers to achieve high yields.

1. Land Preparation

Cucumbers need sandy loam with good drainage, rich organic matter, and strong water and fertilizer retention capacity to grow. The suitable soil pH value is 5.7 to 7.2. When the pH value is lower than 5.5, the plants may show chlorosis and growth stunting; when the pH value exceeds 7.2, it may cause root burn and salt damage.

2. Variety selection

Choose cucumber varieties with strong disease resistance, stress resistance, good commercial quality and high yield, such as Jinyou No. 10, Bonai No. 3, etc.

3. Seed treatment

Soak the seeds in warm water at 55°C for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring constantly until the water temperature drops to 30°C, and continue soaking for 3 to 4 hours. Then wash the seeds thoroughly to remove mucus and germinate them at 28℃ to 32℃ for 1 to 2 days until 70% of the seeds turn white and are ready for sowing.

4. Seedbed Preparation

Choose soil that has not been used to grow melon crops within 3 to 5 years, and mix it with high-quality decomposed organic fertilizer in a ratio of 3:1. Add 2 kg of three-element compound fertilizer to every cubic meter of soil. Use carbendazim and thiram in a ratio of 1:1, mix 8 to 10 grams of the agent with 15 to 30 grams of fine soil per square meter, 2/3 of the agent is used for the bottom layer of the seedbed, and 1/3 is used for covering after sowing.

5. Sowing and Seedling Raising

The sowing time of spring cucumbers should be determined according to the planting time. The suitable calendar seedling age is 40 to 50 days, and the physiological seedling age is four leaves and one heart. The sowing time will vary depending on the seedling raising method. Rapid seedling raising saves time and promotes early high yields.

6. Seedling Management

1. Temperature control: During the period from sowing to seedling emergence, the daytime temperature should be controlled at 28℃ to 32℃, and 10℃ to 18℃ at night; during the period from seedling emergence to heart breaking, the daytime temperature should be 25℃ to 30℃, and the nighttime temperature should be 16℃ to 18℃; during the period from heart breaking to transplanting, the daytime temperature should be 20℃ to 25℃, and the nighttime temperature should be 12℃ to 16℃.

2. Watering management: Water should be properly controlled during the seedling stage to keep the soil slightly moist.

3. Hardening of seedlings: 7 to 10 days before transplanting, reduce watering and increase ventilation to harden the seedlings at low temperature. The daytime temperature is controlled between 18℃ and 20℃, and the nighttime temperature is between 8℃ and 10℃.

7. Irrigation and soil loosening

4 to 5 days after transplanting, when the heart leaves begin to grow and new roots grow underground, water the plants once to help them grow. After that, until the root melon is established, no watering is generally done, but tillage and loosening of the soil is carried out. The first tillage should be deep and careful, about 7 cm deep, including around the seedlings. The purpose of tillage is to loosen the soil, increase ground temperature and promote root growth.

8. Support and vine binding

To prevent wind damage, trellises should be installed immediately after planting. Cucumbers are usually grown using a herringbone support, with one bamboo pole per plant. When the melon vines grow tall and cannot stand upright, they should be tied up in time, once every 3 to 4 leaves. When tying the vines, do not tie them too tightly, just enough to allow the index finger to be inserted. Each time you tie the vines, keep the tops of the vines at the same height.

IX. Pest and disease control

Common diseases of cucumber include wilt, downy mildew, powdery mildew, etc., and the main insect pests are aphids and pillbugs . Comprehensive prevention and control must be carried out, including reasonable crop rotation, strengthened field management, and timely measures in the early stages of the disease.

10. Harvest

Harvesting usually begins 25 to 30 days after planting, and the harvest period is about 40 to 60 days. The average yield per mu is 3,500 to 4,500 kilograms. The melons should be harvested when the top becomes round from pointed.

Finally, cucumbers are vegetables that can be harvested multiple times. During the flowering period, you can spray a little sugar water on the petals and leaves to attract bees for pollination, thereby increasing yield. The above is the experience of efficient cucumber cultivation, and I hope it will help to increase yield.