Top 10 best self-pollinated cucumber varieties for the balcony

Increasingly, city dwellers began to grow not only flowers, but also vegetables on their balconies. Even an inexperienced gardener can cultivate cucumbers on his own loggia. The main thing is to approach the task wisely, follow the rules of planting and care, and an enviable harvest of fresh cucumbers will be provided.

After reading the article, you will learn how to get a harvest of cucumbers on your balcony, which varieties are suitable for this and what is their feature, and you will also receive proven folk tips for growing a rich harvest.

Features of the choice of varieties for growing on the balcony

Not every variety of cucumbers is suitable for growing in an apartment. On the package there must be an inscription that these are seeds for balcony and indoor growing.

Choose cucumbers:

• self-pollinated for the balcony;
• resistant to a lack of sunlight - the planting on the balcony is much less illuminated than on the garden bed;
• with small leaves so that the plant does not shade itself;
• bush type - they have short lateral shoots and internodes.

Review of the best self-pollinated varieties and hybrids of cucumbers for the balcony

Specially bred balcony varieties and some hybrids intended for greenhouses... Let's consider the most popular and well-established ones.

Hummingbird

This is a gherkin type hybrid, no need for pollinators. The leaves of the plant are small, the lateral shoots are short, the internodes are short, from 3 to 10 ovaries are formed in them. The culture is high-yielding, cucumbers grow lumpy and white-thorn, fusiform, 5-8 cm long and weighing up to 80 g.

The hybrid has an interesting watermelon color. The first fruits appear as early as 40 days after planting the seeds. In growing, the Hummingbird is completely unpretentious, tolerates darkening well.

Another advantage is its high resistance to many diseases. Defeats pests are not marked.

Hummingbirds are good for canning.

City gherkin

If there is very little space to grow, the City Cucumber is ideal. Very hardy and unpretentious hybrid. Gherkins grow in clusters, in nodes from 4 to 10 ovaries. Fruit length - 10-12 cm, weight - up to 95 g.

The cucumber is early ripe - the fruits ripen already 40 days after planting - and very fruitful - they harvest from the bush for a long time.

The city cucumber is highly resistant to many cucumber diseases. Very tasty, suitable for salads and canning.

Debut

Self-pollinating hybrid, early maturing and high-yielding. Lumpy greens of a cylindrical shape in length grow to 12-14 cm and weigh up to 100 g. The first cucumbers ripen 45 days after the appearance of the bushes.

The plant is not tall, with a bundle ovary. Does not require special care, it has good disease resistance. The debut is not suitable for conservation, but when fresh it tastes excellent.

April

Self-pollinating early ripe hybrid - the fruits begin to ripen on the 45th day of planting seeds... The plant is short, bushy. Vegetables have large tubercles and white thorns, the weight reaches 200-250 g. With good care, up to 15 kg of harvest is harvested from 1 m².

There are also disadvantages: the hybrid is not suitable for winter canning and is not very resistant to cucumber diseases.

Attention! If the fruits are not picked in time, they will outgrow and turn yellow.

Booth

The hybrid is ideal for growing on a windowsill or balcony.Leaves are medium-sized, do not darken themselves, the root system is compact, internodes are short, have 3 to 9 ovaries.

Balagan is early ripening - ripening begins on day 41. Fruits are small, up to 10 cm long and weighing up to 85 g, do not outgrow for a long time. The hybrid tolerates a lack of light and moisture well and is disease resistant.

Swallowtail

Swallowtail is planted by lovers of large cucumbers. Their length is up to 12 cm, weight is up to 110 g. This is an early ripe self-pollinated beam hybrid with short shoots on the sides and internodes, on which up to 11 flowers appear.

Unpretentious to care for and resilient. The excellent taste of Machaon is preserved when canning and pickling.

The calendar

Self-pollinated high-yielding hybrid. Differs in high resistance to cucumber infections and excellent taste. Gherkins up to 10 cm long and weighing 80-90 g, white-spiked and lumpy. The calendar is used both fresh and for canning.

Zozulya

Most popular cucumber hybrid from those grown on balconies and plots. In greenhouses, the yield is much higher than in open field plantings.

The plant is small, bush, cucumbers of a cylindrical shape with tubercles 20-22 cm long and an average weight of 220 g... Zozulya is immune to disease.

Cucumbers without bitterness, suitable for fresh consumption and in salads. They are not intended for canning and pickling.

Elegant

Grade Graceful refers to early maturing. The first fruits are harvested 40 days after germination. The plant is medium-growing, forms from 5 to 7 lateral shoots. Differs in increased resistance to diseases such as powdery mildew, bacteriosis, olive spot.

Cucumbers themselves grow up to 14 cm long and weigh up to 15 g, even, with small tubercles. The taste is high. The variety is universal, suitable for salads and canning.

Balcony miracle

The hybrid produces a high yield on the window and has a great fruit flavor. The plant is weakly braided and medium-sized, with a compact root system. This makes it possible to grow it even in flower pots and pots.

Cucumber Balcony miracle is unpretentious in care, tolerates a lack of light well and is resistant to diseases. The fruits are gherkins, they grow up to 8 cm in length, weighing about 60 g. Cucumbers have a pleasant taste and bright aroma. They use the Balcony Miracle in fresh and canned form.

Growing tips

The key to getting a good harvest of cucumbers is to strictly follow the planting instructions, the recommendations of experienced gardeners and adhere to the rules of agricultural technology:

1. Choose only seeds suitable for balcony cultivation.
2. Create the necessary microclimate on the loggia or windowsill - cucumbers love heat and do not tolerate drafts.
3. If there is a lack of light, install fluorescent lamps.
4. Regularly water planting with warm water.

The methods of planting seeds for home cultivation are no different from cultivation in the garden:

1. Carefully lay out the seeds on a napkin dipped in potassium permanganate, rinse after 15 minutes and leave on a moistened napkin for germination.
2. Soak the soil with the same potassium permanganate solution. Cucumbers love loose, fertilized, fertile soil.
3. When the seeds are germinated, carefully plant them in prepared containers.
4. Water regularly with warm water, watch the temperature (+ 21 ... + 22 ° C) and feed.
5. After the third leaf appears, transplant the seedlings into larger containers, which are taken out onto the balcony and placed in a permanent place.
6. Install a net or trellis - the growing lashes will cling to them.

After transplanting cucumbers to a permanent place, caring for them continues: watering once a day, feeding no more than 1 time in 10 days and providing a microclimate on the loggia.

As the lashes grow, they are tied up so that they do not break, and the side branches are pinched. The soil around the stems is periodically loosened and moistened.

Attention! When the fruit reaches the normal size for the variety, it is picked.Too large cucumbers weaken the plant, and by dropping the crop, it directs all its forces to the next fruiting.

Conclusion

If you approach the process of growing cucumbers responsibly and diligently, the first fruits will appear on the balcony two months after planting the seeds.

Nothing is impossible, and you can grow gherkins at home at any time of the year. There are no particular difficulties in this; the main thing is to choose the right variety and follow all the rules and recommendations. Have a good harvest!