The scheme, which requires the formation of cucumbers into one stem, is not suitable for all varieties. It is also not suitable for open ground planting. Experienced gardeners know this, but beginners most often have no clarity on this issue. Let's try to figure out why this formation option is justified when growing cucumbers in a polycarbonate greenhouse.
Classification of cucumbers
At the beginning of each year, gardening stores amaze with an abundance of seeds.It can be very difficult to choose suitable seeds for your garden. So as not to make a mistake and not admire again barren flower on cucumbers, we learn to understand the main differences of this culture.
Ripening time
Everyone looks at this characteristic, and most often this parameter becomes the main one for a beginner. I read that “ultra-early ripening cucumbers will ripen in 36 days,” and happily bought a pack. Everyone wants an early harvest of cucumbers.
Of course, you need to pay attention to the timing. This is necessary for planning the harvest for the whole summer, because you want cucumbers not only in June. Cucumbers won’t hurt either in August or September. Therefore, you need to plant plants at different times:
- early ripening species (until ripening 32 - 45 days);
- species with an average ripening period (45 – 50 days);
- late-ripening species (from 50 and more).
Variety or hybrid
This characteristic is important if the summer resident wants to receive his seeds. In the case of the F1 hybrid, this is excluded. The seeds do not retain varietal characteristics; there is no point in collecting them for further propagation. Seeds are taken from varietal cucumbers without fear for further use - all the characteristics of the plant are preserved.
Pollination method
You must definitely pay attention to this characteristic, especially if the cucumbers are grown in a polycarbonate greenhouse. According to this characteristic, all varieties and hybrids are divided into three types:
- bee-pollinated;
- self-pollinating;
- those that do not require pollination are of the parthenocarpic type.
Any type can be planted in open ground, but for greenhouses the last two are self-pollinating varieties (hybrids), parthenocarpic.For plants that do not require pollination, it is important to know how to form cucumbers into one stem.
Branch type
We've reached the most important parameter. The type of branching characterizes the plant’s ability to throw out lateral branches from the buds located in the axils of the leaves. In the table you can see how all cucumbers are divided by type of branching.
The characteristics left without consideration - the purpose of using the fruit and their size - do not affect the formation of the cucumber.
The information from the table can be used for harvest planning. For example, if you want to quickly get a not very large but friendly harvest, plant varieties with a weak branching ability. It will take a little time to care for; you can plant cucumbers more often. If you want to have crispy greens on the table all summer long, choose self-regulating hybrids.
Formation schemes
In practice, three schemes for forming a cucumber bush have taken root. If you are planting several varieties with different types of branching, you need to form the bushes according to a scheme suitable for each variety:
- in a classic way;
- in one stem;
- using the Danish Umbrella method.
We form a bush according to the classical scheme
This is a universal approach, very popular among summer residents who grow cucumbers. A bush formed according to this pattern resembles an inverted Christmas tree.
As the central conductor grows, step-by-step removal of stepsons, ovaries and flowers must be carried out. From the beginning of the stem to the 5th leaf, remove everything from the axils. Count out the next 5 leaves, leave the stepsons in them, but pinch them after the first leaf.
Leave 2 leaves on the branches emerging from the next 3 axils, 3 from the 3 nodes above.Throw the central stem, which continues to grow, over the top of the trellis and point it down. At a height of 60 cm from the ground, the crown can be pinched.
Bush with 1 stem
Growing a cucumber with a bunch (super bunch) type of fruiting in greenhouses will be beneficial for the summer resident. U bunch cucumbers the formation of ovaries (4 – 7) occurs in the nodes of the central conductor. This results in a very powerful load on the conductor, so the single-stem method of maintaining a cucumber is considered optimal.
We pluck out the ovaries, stepsons and flowers from the first 4 axils. We leave the ovaries in subsequent nodes, and pluck out the stepsons one by one along the entire length of the central stem.
By choosing a weakly branching bunch hybrid for your greenhouse, you can significantly save time on pinching bushes. The advantage of forming 1 stem is a large yield obtained per square meter. This is achieved by planting seedlings more densely.
Experienced summer residents manage to collect 15 kg of bunch-type cucumbers per unit area in their greenhouse. Naturally, only those who choose the correct molding scheme and do not forget about fertilizing and watering.
Danish Umbrella Scheme
This formation of cucumbers in a greenhouse For a beginner it will seem difficult. It is used for parthenocarpic varieties for indoor soil grown on a trellis. The liana is divided into 3 zones:
- Zone I - from 0 to 5 knots;
- Zone II - from 5 knots to 9;
- Zone III - all nodes above 9.
In zone I we blind each node. In zone II, you need to leave 1 ovary in each node, and pluck out the stepsons; zone III is the most difficult:
- Leave 2 ovaries in the 7 axils.
- From the fourteenth node we send out a shoot, which we pinch after the 2nd leaf.
- We blind three nodes, and let two shoot along a short path.
- The 20th node is used to obtain a continuation shoot, pinched after the 8th leaf.
- The central lash, which has grown to the top of the trellis, is thrown over it and after 3 leaves the crown is pinched off.
- From continuation shoots, it is permissible to produce 3 shoots of the 2nd order.
Farmers use this scheme in the spring in heated greenhouses. Long-fruited varieties are grown for sale. The seemingly complex scheme for the formation of cucumbers in a greenhouse makes it easier to care for the plantings. The lower part of the greenhouse is free, and all the green mass is at the top, it is well lit, and the bottom is ventilated.
Pinching the old way
Summer residents pinch out varieties planted in greenhouses in the old way. Count 7 nodes from the bottom of the bush and pinch off the crown. Side shoots grow from the axils. All of them are not needed, the three most powerful ones are enough, the rest should be removed. When the side shoots form 4 nodes, their growing point needs to be pinched.
Some tips from experienced summer residents
Remove no more than 2 stepsons at a time; if you miss the moment, the length of the lateral stepsons exceeds 25 cm, the formation of lashes can lead to the shedding of ovaries and flowers. Don’t forget to feed bushes that have had their shoots removed. For these purposes, complexes tested by summer residents (“Giant”, “Giant”) and herbal infusions are suitable. If the weather is damp and cool, spraying the bushes with a fungicide will not hurt.
A good prevention of fungal infections is treatment with the drug “Oxychom”. The product acts systemically and protects the plant from the inside and outside. If fungal spores get into the wound, Oxychom will neutralize and prevent infection from developing.
If you are too lazy to remove stepchildren
A busy summer resident who rarely visits the garden should take the choice of varieties (hybrids) seriously.Let's consider hybrids that do not need pinching. Growing such hybrids requires less effort.
True friends F1 is a hybrid with weak branching. At the nodes of the plant, up to 8 ovaries are formed. The hybrid is pollinated by bees. Little susceptible to disease. Maintains productivity during temporary summer cold snaps.
Bouquet F1 is a hybrid of the parthenocarpic type. There are no side shoots. Up to 5 greens are formed in a node. Good immunity to powdery mildew and mosaic. The taste of the fruit is excellent.
Alphabet F1 is a parthenocarpic hybrid. The side lashes of the hybrid are rare. There are up to 5 ovaries in a node. The yield from the central stem of the hybrid is uniform. The first wave lasts a month, the second wave comes later. The ovaries are formed on the side lashes.
