How to grow cucumbers to get high yield?

Cucumber, this juicy and crunchy vegetable, is popular for its refreshing aroma and rich juice. Not only can it be eaten raw to quench thirst, but it also provides rich nutrition. The versatility of cucumbers allows them to be enjoyed as both a vegetable on the table and as a healthy fruit. In rural areas, many people grow cucumbers . Let’s learn together how to grow cucumbers to achieve high yields.

1. Determine the appropriate sowing time

Cucumbers usually prefer warm environments and are not resistant to low temperatures. The starting temperature for seed germination is 12°C, and the most suitable temperature range for growth is 20-28°C. If the temperature is lower than 15℃ or higher than 32℃, cucumbers are prone to flower and fruit drop; if the temperature is lower than 10℃, plant growth will stagnate. Cucumbers can be grown in greenhouses or in the open air. For cucumbers grown outdoors, it is recommended to sow when the average daily temperature is stably above 15°C. During the Grain Rain season, the temperature rises and rainfall increases. The average daily temperature in most parts of my country has stabilized at above 15°C. Therefore, it is suitable to sow cucumbers grown in the open air in mid to late April. In addition, you can build a small arch shed to grow seedlings by yourself and start sowing one month in advance.

2. Cultivate healthy seedlings

Cucumbers can be sown directly or raised as seedlings before being transplanted. The latter helps to cultivate stronger seedlings, which is very beneficial for increasing cucumber yields. The key to cultivating healthy seedlings is to make nutritious soil. You can use 6 parts of fertile garden soil (no cucumbers were planted before), 4 parts of well-rotted farm manure, and add appropriate amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium compound fertilizers . Mix well and then sow. Use hole sowing when sowing. Cover with 1 to 3 centimeters of soil after sowing and water thoroughly. If the temperature is low when sowing, you can cover the seeds with straw to keep the soil moist, and then remove the covering after the seeds germinate.

In order to accelerate seed germination, it is recommended to carry out germination treatment before sowing. Soak the cucumber seeds in warm water for 3 to 5 hours, then wrap them with wet gauze and place them in a warm environment of 25 to 30°C to germinate. When 70% of the seeds turn white, they can be sown. For large-scale planting, the seeds can be soaked in 1% copper sulfate solution or 100 times formalin solution for 10 minutes before sowing to kill the pathogens on the seed surface and reduce the occurrence of cucumber diseases. After treatment with the agent, be sure to rinse the seeds with clean water.

3. Avoid overcrowding in the field

If it is seedling transplanting, the cucumber seedlings can be transplanted when they grow 4 to 5 leaves. Cucumbers like moisture but are afraid of waterlogging. They should be planted in soil with deep soil layer, rich organic matter, convenient drainage and irrigation. When preparing the land, apply 1000 kg of fully decomposed farmyard manure and 30 kg of triple compound fertilizer as base fertilizer per mu, mainly by hole application, to improve fertilizer efficiency.

After land preparation, make ridges 1.2 meters wide and at least 15 centimeters high. Plant two rows in each ridge, with a row spacing of 80 centimeters and a plant spacing of 40 centimeters. Plant two plants in each hole. Cucumbers should not be planted too densely to avoid falling flowers and fruits and high incidence of diseases and pests, which will affect the yield and quality of cucumbers. For cucumbers grown in greenhouses, after land preparation, you can use a mixture of 200 ml of DDT, 2 catties of sulfur and 10 kg of sawdust and then smoke them. This will effectively kill the pathogens in the greenhouse and reduce the risk of disease in greenhouse cucumbers.

4. Fertilize according to fertilizer requirements

Cucumbers require less fertilizer in the seedling stage, but more fertilizer in the flowering and fruiting stage. Therefore, fertilization should follow the principle of "light fertilization in the seedling stage and heavy fertilization in the flowering and fruiting stage" to meet the nutritional needs of stem and leaf development and continuous flowering and fruiting. During the cucumber seedling stage, 1,000 kg of decomposed manure or 10 kg of urea can be applied per mu to promote the healthy growth of the seedlings. Note that it is not advisable to apply nitrogen fertilizer too much to cucumbers, so as to avoid aggravating diseases and pests and causing excessive growth of stems and leaves, which will affect flowering and fruiting.

After the cucumber blooms and sets fruit, the amount of fertilizer required increases. At this time, 20 kilograms of triple compound fertilizer can be applied per mu. During the peak flowering and fruiting period of cucumbers, you can spray 0.3% potassium dihydrogen phosphate foliar fertilizer (90 grams of potassium dihydrogen phosphate and 30 kilograms of water) once every 7 to 10 days, and spray 2 to 3 times in a row to prevent premature aging of the plants and increase cucumber yields.

5. Control water before fruit setting and water after fruit setting

Although cucumbers like moisture, the principle of "controlling water before the cucumbers set and watering frequently with small amounts of water after the cucumbers set" should be followed. It is not advisable to water the cucumber seedlings too much in the stage to promote root development. No watering is required unless there is drought. Excessive watering is not conducive to root development and can easily cause the plants to grow too tall. Cucumbers require a lot of water during the flowering and fruiting period, so sufficient water supply should be ensured to meet the cucumber's demand for water during expansion. It is advisable to water frequently with small amounts of water, once every 5 days.

6. Pruning and Pinching

When the cucumber grows to 30 cm in height, you can build a rack to guide the vines. The direction of guiding the vines should be counterclockwise, and the height of the rack should be more than 2 meters. During the growing period of cucumbers, pruning and pinching are required to remove side branches that do not produce fruits. When the main vine and the side vines that produce fruits are more than 2 meters long, pinching should be done in time to inhibit vegetative growth, promote reproductive growth, and facilitate more flowering and fruit production.

When pruning and pinching the tips, the old leaves, diseased leaves and diseased fruits at the bottom should be removed in time to reduce nutrient waste and improve field ventilation and light transmission.

In general, cucumbers are rich in nutrients and are loved by consumers. To grow high-yield and high-quality cucumbers, it is necessary to sow at the right time, cultivate strong seedlings, plant at a reasonable density, fertilize as needed, water scientifically, prune and pinch the branches, etc.