How to plant overgrown cucumber seedlings?
If, by the time of transplantation, the cucumber seedlings have outgrown, they may die. From the material in this article, you will learn how to properly transplant an elongated plant and what to do to prevent its death.
Reasons for outgrowing
The overgrown seedlings have stems 15–20 cm in length. Strong vegetables rarely grow from such planting material. However, with proper care, it is possible to achieve a high yield and juicy fruits.
Strong pulling of cucumber seedlings is the result of improper care. This happens when the temperature in the room where the seedlings are grown is too high.
It happens that the seeds are planted densely, thereby provoking competition. The shoots have to stretch upwards, which is why some shoots receive more moisture and nutrients than others.
Seedlings planted in spring lengthen quickly due to the excess amount of nutrients contained in the soil. In addition, the seeds are planted too early. V as a result, by the time of transplantation, they have time to outgrow.
The reasons are the structure and nature of each vegetable variety. Cold-loving plants have short internodes. Others have long stems and cling to inserted props.
Preparation
You need to start planting overgrown seedlings in a permanent place with proper preparation. If it is still far from planting, it is necessary to create optimal growing conditions.
Elongated shoots with long stems without leaves are rather weak. Such seedlings often fall without having time to wait for a transplant. Broken roots will not grow, only intact ones have a chance to get stronger.
Planting seedlings should be as delicate as possible, otherwise they will die from the stress they have endured. The thinnest sprouts are carefully twisted around the perimeter of the glasses and covered with earth.
After about a week, the main stem will begin to grow in the root area. At this time, it is necessary to carry out the correct watering of the crop in order to reduce its growth.
While the sprouts are in the room, make sure that the temperature inside does not exceed +16 degrees. Try to increase the distance between the stems as much as possible. To do this, pinch the main shoot over the 2nd leaf.
Immediately before planting, the root system is freed. This is done very carefully, separating the root of the seedling from the bottom and cutting the wall of the container. Someone prefers to wrap each spine with a soft cloth, preventing its breakage.
Seedling roots are quite fragile and often break during transplantation to a permanent place. To avoid stress, planting is recommended in the morning or in the evening, when the plants will not be exposed to direct sunlight.
The ideal conditions for landing are calm, cloudy weather. Practice shows that under these conditions, the seedlings receive minimal stress and practically do not get sick, taking root in a new place.
Saplings grown in peat glasses do not have to be freed from them. This container decomposes on its own in the soil. The gardener's task is to make a hole, put a pot in it and sprinkle it with earth.
Water for watering holes and planted seedlings should be warm. When using cold, developmental delay is noted.
Landing scheme
Planting of cucumber seedlings can be classic and with depth. In order to correctly transplant overgrown cucumber seedlings to the garden bed, they resort to the method of dropping sprouts.
For this, a small depression is made in the ground next to the main stem. An elongated stem is placed in it, covered with soil. After that, the soil is lightly tamped and watered.
Some elongated sprouts are better for burying. However, don't overdo it. The depth of the dug holes should not be great.
After preparing the holes, take the stem, gently roll it up in a spiral, place it in the hole, sprinkle it with earth. The stem deepening method allows active growth of the root system.
In such plants, leaf mass is formed faster. A seedling that has not been dug in requires more care when growing and forming lashes.
Planting patterns for overgrown cucumber seedlings vary. According to the standard technique, it is planted in an area of 70x30 cm. In this case, the area on which the cucumber beds are located should be open.
Unlike the previous scheme, the second technology is characterized by a large distance between holes and rows. Parameters 80x50 cm are considered optimal for growing overgrown lashes.
At the same time, to preserve the root system, you can even lay seedlings on the ground. In addition, there is enough space for this, and the whips themselves will receive more sunlight for quality development and the formation of ovaries.
Step-by-step instructions for disembarkation
To properly plant elongated cucumber seedlings, you need to take into account a number of factors. For example, the distance between future bushes is important.
Cucumber lashes grow very quickly, the spacing between seedlings should be at least 25-30 cm. In this case, it is not necessary to align the position of the seedlings. Having strengthened, they will rise on their own.
You can't push the stems deep into the ground. This will harm the seedlings and may kill them. The minimum depth is 5 cm. Excessive deepening with elongated stems is contraindicated.
When planting, they dig a garden bed for a specific number of bushes. Do not forget to prepare the soil for backfill and cut off the lower leaves of the seedlings.
As needed, props are inserted into the wells. They will become a support for the main stem in the first days of its growth. You cannot tie the plants to the supports yourself immediately after planting.
They try to plant seedlings where plants infected with late blight did not grow before. If possible, the soil is treated with sand.
When planting in a greenhouse, pay attention to watering. Indoors there is more dampness, and moisture here leaves much more slowly.
The roots will not absorb more liquid than they need, therefore, with frequent abundant watering, waterlogging of the soil cannot be avoided. This can cause root rot.
If the seedlings have already formed flowers, you cannot hesitate. They begin to gradually harden it over several days. About a day before the transplant, it is shed well.
After fertilizing the holes with compost, planting is carried out according to the usual scheme, placing future bushes in a checkerboard pattern. In order to increase the soil temperature and to protect against frost near the bushes, you can sow corn and peas.
In open ground
When planting cucumber seedlings in the holes, do not forget about preliminary soil preparation. To do this, it is loosened in advance, making it lush and light. Then fertilized, sprinkled with ash, performing antiparasitic prophylaxis.
The ground should be well warmed up. Cucumbers are sensitive to temperature fluctuations. To minimize stress, you need to create the same conditions in which they grew up indoors.
Before planting, the hole is spilled with warm water. Next, a sprout is placed in it, sprinkling its root part with earth. To keep warm and maintain the moisture level, the hole is covered with grass or hay on top.
In the absence of grass, use a special covering material. However, when using it, holes are made on the canvas in advance at the locations of all the holes.
In the open field, seedlings take root more easily than in a greenhouse.However, sometimes weakened overgrown lashes have to be tied up so that they do not break due to strong winds.
The choice of planting scheme depends on the variety. The more the lashes grow, the more spacious the landing should be. However, if the cultivation is vertical, then the typical scheme is followed.
To the greenhouse
You need to plant cucumber seedlings in the greenhouse before the first true leaf appears. First, it is necessary to create the most comfortable conditions for the culture.
Daytime temperature should be about +20 degrees, nighttime - +15. The approximate air humidity should not exceed 80%. The duration of daylight hours is 12-14 hours.
If it is dark in the greenhouse, it is necessary to arrange artificial lighting. For this, lamps with a power of 500 W per 1 m2 are used. The formation of greenhouse cucumbers is performed in 1-2 stems.
Planting is carried out based on the condition of the seedlings. Sometimes for this it is necessary to pre-cut the whips. Such training helps to reduce the likelihood of injury.
Usually, seedlings are not buried. They are planted to a depth of 8 cm. Before planting, a little wood ash or sawdust is placed on the bottom of each hole. The sprouts themselves are trying to plant at an angle, placing the rows in a checkerboard pattern.
To improve adaptation, the lateral processes are removed. Pinching is resorted to during the appearance of the 1st ovary. If it is not in the first 3 sinuses, the shoot is removed completely.
Useful Tips
Until the plants are planted in a permanent place, they must be hardened. It usually takes up to 2 hours in the first days. For this, the seedlings are taken out into the street (balcony, loggia).
It is advisable to choose wet or cloudy weather for hardening in the early days. Over time, you can put seedlings in the sun. The hardening time is gradually increased.
Thus, before planting, the seedlings will be outdoors almost all day. The day before the transplant, you can leave them overnight, covered with plastic.
Elongated seedlings transplanted to a permanent place require proper care during rehabilitation and maturation. Seedlings are provided with regular abundant watering.
This should be done every day, once a day. The soil should not dry out. Cucumbers are moisture-loving plants. The lack of moisture will affect the quality of the fruit. They will be small and dry.
The recovery stage of seedlings with an injured root system can take a lot of time. You need to water the roots with settled water with a temperature of +20 to +25 degrees.
Useful for tops and spraying with warm water. When the lashes begin to gain color, the amount of watering is reduced to moderate. Approximately 1 time in 10-14 days, fertilizing of a mineral or organic type is applied.
It is important to choose the right type of fertilizer. At the initial stage of cultivation, it is better to buy a top dressing that will stimulate the growth of roots, not leaves (you cannot use saltpeter).
As the roots are exposed, soil is added near the main stem. They also make sure that the plant is getting enough light.
One of the best solutions is to form cucumber bushes vertically. For this, cords or wire are pulled along the ridges. The lashes will rise along them.
Plants planted in an open area require shading in the heat. To do this, you can use materials at hand (for example, old unnecessary sheets or straw).
To stimulate the development of lateral stems with female inflorescences, they resort to pinching the lashes above the 3rd real leaf. In a similar case, the primrose is cut off with the root system.
If the soil begins to swamp in the greenhouse lashes, you need to stop watering and loosen it. This will provide air access to the roots and dry out the soil.
When transplanting tall varieties, bushes are formed into one stem. Medium-sized varieties pinch about 3-4 internodes.
With a sharp cold snap, lashes growing in open ground are covered with spunbond or other covering cloth. The priority is given to materials of darkish tones, since they attract ultraviolet rays. In addition to protection from the cold, the films contribute to the rapid rooting of seedlings.
Caring for the bushes involves constant visual inspection for diseases and parasite attacks. If colonies of aphids and ants are found, as well as infectious diseases, urgent measures must be taken.
Depending on the type of problem, chemicals, biologics or folk remedies are used to solve it. You can resort to them only when the seedlings take root well and grow.
Do not spray the lashes with chemicals during the growing season. It is necessary to use the funds taking into account the instructions attached to them, diluting the substances in the correct proportions.
To increase the yield, you need to remove the grown fruits from the beds in a timely manner.
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