When and how to plant cucumbers for seedlings?

The owner of even a small piece of land must grow cucumbers and tomatoes. There is no tastier salad than from vegetables harvested in your own garden. In our article we will talk about cucumbers.

In order to get the first harvest as early as possible, this should be taken care of from the winter. Prepare the soil, grow seedlings, and plant them in open ground in May. While the neighbors in the garden will “wake up” the seeds, your seedlings will already grow.

Deadlines

Cucumbers are thermophilic plants. Despite the presence of cold-resistant varieties bred by breeders for growing crops in Siberia and the Urals, vegetables begin to grow in already warm warm soil. The timing of planting seedlings depends on the date of its transfer to open ground. Start sowing seeds should be a month and a half before this event. A more specific time is determined by weather conditions that are typical for the climate of each region. For example, if in your area cucumbers are planted in the ground in early May, then seedlings should be sown before the first days of April.

Favorable conditions for sowing seedlings in the garden is the period when the air temperature is not lower than +15 degrees during the day and +8 degrees at night. Some gardeners plant crops according to the lunar calendar, they are convinced that the phases of the Earth’s natural satellite affect plant growth. No wonder our ancestors planted cucumbers on Radonitsa, it is tied to Easter, and, as you know, the date of the holiday is calculated not without the participation of the moon. Consider the planting period of cucumbers by region.

• Central Russia (from Tver to the Voronezh region, Moscow region). Seedlings are sown on the windowsill in mid-April, transplanted outside at the end of May.
• Leningrad region. Due to the specifics of the climate, wet summers and lack of sunny days, seedlings are more often planted for further cultivation of cucumbers in a greenhouse, zoned varieties are preferred. For greenhouse cultivation, sowing is carried out from April 1 to April 10, for open ground – after April 25.
• Ural and Siberia. In a short and hot summer, cucumbers have time to grow. But in open ground they should be planted no earlier than mid-June. Accordingly, it is necessary to sow seeds for seedlings in the first decade of May. Planting material is transplanted into greenhouses by May 15, which means that seedlings for greenhouse breeding are sown until April 15.
• Southern regions (Kuban, North Caucasus). In the southernmost regions of the country, seedlings are sown from February to March, and planted in open ground in April. From June 1 to June 15, you can again do seedlings for a second, late harvest. She should get to the garden no later than July 15, then the cucumbers will ripen from August to October.

When dealing with seedlings, it should be borne in mind that the plant variety affects the germination and growth rate – early varieties develop faster, late varieties slower.

Prepare

Future yield directly depends on the quality of seeds and soil composition.. Add to this only patience and good care. Cucumbers have good germination, seeds up to 7 years old do not lose their viability. After sowing, the first sprouts may appear already on the 4th day, if the air temperature does not fall below +20 degrees.

seed

From small, low-quality seed material that has not undergone full preparation before planting, the same weak bushes with a small number of fruits grow. If you sow seeds taking into account agricultural technologies, high results can be expected from seedlings. Seed preparation is carried out in compliance with the following steps.

Calibration

It is not worth wasting time and effort on the germination of low-quality seeds, from which weak, non-viable sprouts may appear, It’s better to calibrate them right away. The selection of planting material is carried out using salted water. It is necessary to prepare a solution (0,5 tablespoons of salt per glass of liquid) and place cucumber seeds in it.

It takes 5 minutes for empty and weak seeds to surface, they must be removed. Dry the remaining seeds, make sure that there are no rotten specimens seized by the fungus. Factory seed, unlike fake artisanal products, goes on sale already in a calibrated form.

Warming up

Sorted seeds can be kept in a warm place for a while, for example, on a radiator, so that the number of female ovaries increases.

Disinfection

This is an important stage in the preparation of seed material, it helps to prevent diseases from entering the garden and grow a healthy crop. Seeds treated with antifungal and antibacterial compounds get rid of pathogenic microorganisms. To carry out the disinfection procedure, the seeds should be laid between layers of gauze or placed in a canvas bag, poured with a solution:

• potassium permanganate – leave for 30 minutes, then rinse and dry;
• “Fitosporin-M” – dilute 1,5 g of the substance in 1 liter of water, disinfect for two hours.

Factory seed material, which goes on sale, has already undergone bactericidal treatment and is ready for planting.

Germination

Thanks to the germination technology, the seeds are actively developing. This method is used if they want to increase the germination of seedlings and accelerate the process of plant development in the future. The following steps will help to hatch the seeds.

• Fold a piece of gauze in several layers, place on the bottom of the plate.
• Spread the seeds on the fabric in one row.
• Pour in water so that the seeds are barely covered. In a large amount of water, they will die, but without moisture they will not open. Therefore, you need to make sure that the gauze is always moistened.
• The liquid evaporates more slowly, and a greenhouse effect is created if a plate with planting material is placed in a plastic bag.
• For germination, the seeds should be removed in a dark warm place (more than +20 degrees).
• After 2-4 days, the planting material will hatch. It is necessary to remove the “not awakened” seeds, they will no longer be useful, and plant the rest for seedlings.

Sometimes growth stimulants are added to the water – diluted aloe juice, ash or the Zircon preparation.

Hardening

Harden the seeds in a cold place. To do this, they should be laid in layers in wet gauze, and put the container in the refrigerator for a day. It is not necessary to decontaminate and harden seedlings intended for greenhouse cultivation of cucumbers.

soil

Cucumbers are unpretentious, but preference is still given to light soil, with neutral acidity, with good penetration of water and air to the roots of the plant. Soil with this composition can be purchased at specialized stores. However, many vegetable growers like to make soil mixtures on their own. To do this, they prepare the following composition:

• ordinary soil from the garden – 2 parts;
• compost – 2 parts;
• peat – 1 part;
• sand, sawdust or vermiculite – 1 part.

50 g of azofoska and a little wood ash are placed in a bucket with the prepared composition. Everything is well mixed. A week before sowing seeds, the soil is disinfected with a solution of copper sulfate or manganese. To get rid of insect larvae, some gardeners heat the soil in the oven.

Where to plant seedlings?

You can sow the seeds of greens in an ordinary flower pot with a wide planting area. But the tender roots of cucumber seedlings break easily during a dive.. Therefore, they try to transplant plants together with a clod of earth, which requires an individual cup for each sprout. It is even more convenient to choose containers that themselves dissolve in the ground over time. The industry produces a large number of devices to help vegetable growers, they can always be found on the shelves of specialized outlets.

Plastic cassettes

They are containers made of thin plastic with small cells. 1-2 plants are planted in each nest. There can be up to 50 of them on one cassette. When the time comes to transplant the seedlings into the ground, the nest is cut with scissors and the sprout is carefully removed along with a clod of earth.

Some models of cassettes are complemented by a water tray or a lid to create a greenhouse effect.

Plastic reusable seedling kits

Sets of planting cups are produced from durable plastic. They are suitable for multiple use. Thanks to the removable bottom, the plant easily leaves the containers along with the clod of earth. After planting the seedlings in the ground, the cups are washed and sent for storage until next year.

The set has a tray with fixed stops to keep the containers firmly in place.

The disadvantages of such kits include the frequent loss of bottoms – soiled with earth and set aside during planting, they become invisible and are often forgotten in the beds.

Peat pots

For seedlings, this is an excellent organic material. During planting, the plant does not need to be taken out of the container, it is planted along with the pot. Peat, splitting over time in open ground, becomes a good nutrient medium for cucumbers. The disadvantage of containers is the porosity of peat, due to which moisture from the soil in the cups quickly disappears. To avoid this, you need to install seedlings in trays with water.

Peat tablets

They are a balanced nutrient substrate, produced in the form of tablets, which has everything necessary for the development and growth of seedlings. It remains only to make a recess and place the seeds in it. Seedlings should be watered periodically, avoiding drying and shrinkage of the material. Unfortunately, small volumes do not allow the sprout to grow significantly and get stronger. They are suitable for warm, humid regions where even small seedlings transplanted outdoors develop quite quickly.

Many summer residents have their own view on the appearance and origin of seedling containers. Their imagination allows them to sow seeds in unusual containers at home.

• Using the eggshell along with the tray, the inventor of this method has several advantages at once. The shell is securely fixed in the cells of the tray, the plant receives calcium as a nutrient fertilizer. When transplanting, it is easy to break the shell and plant seedlings with an earthy clod, and crumble the shell in the garden as a top dressing.
• Sowing seeds in plastic bags, at first you can cover them. It turns out the greenhouse effect, which creates a special microclimate inside the bag. When the first leaf appears, the packages are opened. When planting plants in open ground, there is nothing easier than taking out a sprout along with the soil and transplanting it.
• Plant seedlings in disposable plastic cups intended for drinks, – a classic of the genre, many summer residents do just that. You just need to make holes in the bottom of the glass and put the seedlings on the pallet.

With the same success, all kinds of food containers of small volume are used – plastic containers for yoghurts, pates, mashed potatoes, cheese curds.

Seed sowing

Most gardeners prefer to grow cucumber seedlings at home in separate small containers, but some also plant them in a common container. The landing pattern in both cases is similar, with the exception of a slight adjustment.

• Prepared containers are disinfected before sowing. To do this, they are poured with a hot solution of potassium permanganate and allowed to stand for 5-10 minutes, then the manganese is drained. Peat containers are not processed.
• To prevent root rot, holes are made at the bottom of the cups.
• For the same purpose, a drainage layer in the form of sand and peat is laid on the bottom of the tanks.
• Then the prepared soil is poured into glasses or into a common container, not reaching the edges by 1/3.
• The earth is moistened.
• Seeds are spread on moist soil, several pieces in one glass. Later, when the seedlings sprout, a stronger specimen is chosen, and the weak one is removed with scissors under the very root. You can not pull it out, the main sprout may suffer. In general containers, the seeds are placed on a moist surface in 7-10 cm increments. If they are planted too close, the seedlings will stretch and be weak.
• The laid out seeds are lightly pressed down so that they are fixed in moist soil and do not move during sprinkling with earth.
• Then the containers are carefully covered with nutrient soil 2-2,5 cm above the seeds.
• Seedlings are well moistened with a spray bottle.
• Containers are covered with food or ordinary plastic wrap.
• Seedlings are removed in a warm place (+20 … 24 degrees) until germination. Monitor soil moisture.

Care

Containers with seedlings should be ventilated daily, removing condensation from the film. Start with 15 minutes and increase this time every day. It is necessary to monitor the condition of the soil, but, as a rule, under the film it will be wet, and watering is not required. When the first shoots appear, the film should be removed so as not to interfere with the normal growth of seedlings.

• Lighting. Seeds do not need light, but sprouts do. Lack of light will cause the seedlings to stretch out and become thin and frail. Therefore, after removing the film, the seedlings are transferred to the windowsill, preferably located on the south, southeast or southwest side. Seedlings should receive lighting up to 14 hours a day. If there is not enough natural light, you need to install artificial lamps with phytolamps or fluorescent light.
• Temperature. Seeds germinate in warmth (up to +25 degrees), and sprouts do not need high temperature, they will need a maximum of +18 … 20 degrees. In this state of air, greenery slows down its growth, allowing the root system to develop. During the period of growing seedlings, it is important to protect it from drafts. A week before planting in open ground, containers are taken out into the street, for example, onto a balcony, in order to gradually accustom the seedlings to a lower temperature (hardening method).
• Watering. Soil moisture is necessary for a young plant, its condition is monitored daily. Don’t overwater the containers as this will cause root rot. During watering, you do not need to direct a direct stream of water to the leaves of the plant, try to get under the root. Once every 3 days, the greenery itself can be irrigated from a spray bottle, the scattered flow of moisture will not harm it. For irrigation, use warm settled water.
• Additional fertilizing. Top dressing is done once, during the period when two well-defined leaves appear on the seedlings. 7-8 hours before the procedure, the soil should be moistened, since the introduction of fertilizers into dry soil threatens to damage the roots. The composition is prepared as follows – 10 g of saltpeter, 20 g of superphosphate and 20 g of potassium sulfide are added to 15 liters of water.