From the moment of sowing cucumbers to the emergence of seedlings, the gardener will go through moments of doubt and fear more than once – but is everything okay, will the seedlings sprout. Because it is at the initial stage that one can predict how this cucumber season will go, whether the seedlings will grow strong. And not always because cucumbers sprout. It is worth figuring out why there may not be shoots and how to prevent the problem.
Influencing factors
Conventionally, all factors are usually divided into internal and external. Internal – this is what is connected specifically with the seeds, and external – these are climatic conditions, features of sowing and caring for seedlings.
What affects the germination of seeds after planting?
- Age. More than once it happened that even eight-year-old seeds sprouted calmly and gave an excellent harvest. But still there are norms according to which seeds of 2-3 years give the best result, are more predictable. The older the seed, the less chance it has.
- Seed storage conditions. In order for them to live, they need oxygen and not the highest temperature, about +10 degrees (despite the fact that the temperature must be higher for germination). You can’t let them get wet, otherwise they’ll be finished. How they will die due to lack of moisture, and due to overheating. If the humidity is high in the room, it is warm there, then the seeds can germinate ahead of time, which also dooms them to death.
- Size and shape/integrity. The seed should be heavy, without deformation. With visible signs of damage, it is better not to sow it. The heavier the seed, the greater the chance of germination.
- Boarding times. There is a whole paragraph about this below, we can only say that it is precisely because of the shift in deadlines that the whole crop is dying.
- Soil condition. If the land is infected (there was no appropriate cultivation), if it is depleted (there was no crop rotation, sufficient feeding), the seeds have nowhere to take the strength to grow.
- Presowing treatment of seeds. This item is simply not to be missed.
And not a single moment can be subtracted – for a long time of observing the cultivation of plants, all possible problems of germination have already been identified. Even a beginner will successfully grow cucumbers if he methodically follows point by point and controls the process.
Deadlines
Sowing seeds usually occurs in mid-April. And in order to grow them all year round in a specially equipped greenhouse, they can be sown every 3 months – an uninterrupted harvest is guaranteed. It is better not to plant seeds in open ground: it will be impossible to give them at this time as much light and heat as you can give at home, growing them on the windowsill for seedlings.
If everything is done correctly, cucumbers sprout for 4-7 days. If it is decided to grow them in a greenhouse, then this can be planned 3 weeks earlier than in open soil. But at the same time, if the temperature is below normal, plant growth will be delayed by 15 days. In summary, we can say that cucumbers should sprout within a week after planting. If they are not there on the eighth day, most likely something went wrong.
But experts in this case also advise not to despair and give the cucumbers another week, but if 2 weeks have passed since the landing, and the cucumbers do not appear, it’s time to sow a new batch. This one is lost.
seed development process
And now a little informative and boring botany. The germination of a cucumber sprout is the most delicate phase of the entire life cycle of a crop. The cucumber seed itself is white, elongated, with an embryo inside, in a strong seed coat. And this shell does not allow the embryo to be damaged, dry out, germinate ahead of time, be affected by viruses, fungi and other pathogens. But in order for the seed to germinate, it is necessary to create such conditions for this peel so that it opens. This is a special temperature, humidity and sufficient watering.
In general, the life cycle of a cucumber is moisture saturation, it begins from this moment. When the right amount of water is absorbed into the seed, the peel will begin to open. Then the enzyme system is activated, aerobic activity will begin.
In order for the seed to be nourished, and, consequently, its development was given a start, it is necessary to make sure that there is 40% moisture in the soil after planting. While the seed will swell, its moisture requirements will still grow – maybe even doubled. And all this will favorably affect the seed if the temperature does not fall below +25 degrees. But if this indicator falls, after swelling the seed will become moldy, and this is detrimental to him.
Then comes the stage of development of the embryo. This is a whole complex of chemical reactions aimed at the breakdown of starch, lipid oxidation, the appearance of proteins and amino acids. This is how the embryonic root is formed, and the nutrition of the cucumber will be built on the absorption of nutrients from the earth.
If the seed is planted, for example, too deep, you can see the roots that have not shed their skin (and they should have). Such cucumbers will not be able to give productive shoots, the peel will quickly harden and literally seal the seedling in itself. You can try to save by setting up a regular spraying of the sample with a spray bottle, and then peeling off the peel with your fingers – this does work, but not always.
How to speed up germination?
How to quickly germinate seeds is the question of many gardeners. And yes there is quite obvious help, which is the use of growth stimulants. But they are not harmless, therefore, if you do not read the instructions carefully, the seedling will not last long. Warming is also considered to stimulate germination. What this operation looks like: the seeds are placed near the battery (the temperature must be at least +30). And if the sowing period is about to come up, you can also warm it up with a temperature of +50 degrees. It is believed that this will keep cucumbers well without moisture if a dry summer is predicted.
Soaking is also included in the preparatory measures that help improve germination. It takes place with the participation of a wet cloth: seeds are placed in it, then they are sent to a bag (protection from oxygen), moisture is maintained there.
If you sow such seeds, sprouts will appear in a couple of days. And if you do not soak, you will have to wait longer for sprouts.
The next method is seed hardening. It is two-stage: at the first stage, the seeds are wrapped in cloth, sent to the refrigerator for 5 hours, and at the second stage, the material is kept in the house for 5 hours. And all this two-stage hardening is repeated 6 times. For cucumbers, this is like training, which more easily adapts them to possible temperature fluctuations.
Finally, the Sprouting will help increase germination. The seeds are again placed in a wet cloth, covered with something dense on top. Humidity must also be controlled, if necessary, by adding water. Light should not fall under the fabric, this is fraught with seeds inside. When the germ appears, the germinated seeds are sent to the ground, which is already prepared for them. After 2-4 days, sprouts can be expected from germinated seeds.
Why there are no sprouts and what to do?
Everything described above is the best plan for preparing seeds for growth and creating conditions for excellent seed germination. But it is worth considering separately all the main potential problems that affect the growth of a plant, the timeliness of its passage through all natural phases. And there are many such problems/reasons.
Soil temperature
Most problems occur at low temperatures. Cucumbers with her are not viable, you should not even experiment. If it falls below +12, most likely, the seeds will become moldy. The optimal temperature range for seed germination is + 23-27 degrees, which should be enough for seedlings of cucumbers in 4-5 days. Yes, it is not so rare and + 15-17 degrees for cucumbers is enough for visible shoots, but at the same time, rarely all seeds sprout at the same time.
Temperature is one of the most risky moments, failure to comply with it often forces you to try planting seeds again and again. Although it is usually easy to follow it when planting seeds at home. The “sill” method is the simplest and most reliable.
Material buried incorrectly
It turns out that this may be the case. The best depth of instillation, as practice shows, is 2 cm. The sprout breaks through this depth without problems, this is the optimal barrier earthen layer for it. But if you deepen it further, the seedlings are likely to experience problems with βpeckingβ. It may not come up at all. And if the depth, on the contrary, is less than 2 cm, the peel may simply not come off the seedlings, and this, as noted above, is also a threat to the death of seedlings.
heavy ground
The heavier the soil, the less uniform, uniform will be the shoot of sprouts. And if low temperatures also negatively reinforce such unfavorable conditions, you can not wait for seedlings. But if there is only heavy soil, and nothing else is foreseen, you can do this: before planting, make a small groove in the ground up to 2 cm deep. It is necessary to sow seeds in it, which are sprinkled on top with lighter soil (or maybe sifted earth). The layer is also added to 2 cm. If, in this case, the seeds in the groove are covered with heavy earth, the sprouts will not be able to break through it.
Dry or too wet soil
Even before planting seeds, the soil must be moistened. Such watering has a name – moisture charging. With cold watering, you need to wait, do not rush to sow, let the earth warm up a little. If the soil is dried out before sowing, seed germination will definitely slow down. They are unlikely to break through in a week, usually they will rise only on the 10-11th day. Finally, the seedlings are completely threatened with death, because the germinal root itself will simply dry out. You just need to consider that the earth dries up in hot weather.
And if, on the contrary, pour the soil, then this is a threat to seeds growing in clay soil. Intensive watering of such land is almost always associated with thinning seedlings – that is, not all seeds will be able to break through.
Wrong preparation
The above described what to do to improve seed germination. A typical mistake is to use all methods at once. No, such actions will be a big burden for the seed. Drying after stimulation by means of growth is also a mistake; embryonic roots may not form.
storage error
And here the main problems of seedlings may lie. The main point is to maintain the maximum level of conditional germination. It can last up to 7 years and even a little more, but it is better not to live up to such terms. Two-year, three-year seed is much more productive and allows you to predict the season in advance.
It is necessary to store the seeds in a dry place, relatively cool (for example, in a basement or cellar). Usually the seeds are covered with a film or something else as dense. But they should not be covered with woven material, because there are gaps between the interweaving of fibers, which will already be an obstacle to maintaining a special temperature inside this storage.
But even cucumbers may not grow if the soil is very depleted or infected. If pathogens operate inside it, the seeds will not have a chance to survive. And even if a few shoots still appear, they may be damaged and weak. Finally, seed defects themselves should not be discounted. Especially if it is taken from outside, it is not known how it was stored, how old it is, etc.
In the spring, the hot season begins for gardeners, and without leaving their homes they are already included in the process. And such a crucial stage as sowing seeds must be completed in accordance with all the rules, eliminating risks and mistakes.
