How to pinch cucumbers correctly - when and why is it needed
Cucumbers are one of the most popular summer cottage crops in our latitudes. However, the homeland of the vegetable is the tropical and subtropical regions of India. At the foot of the Himalayas, there are still cucumbers growing in the wild. In greenhouses, the culture was first grown in ancient Rome, and the vegetable first came to Russia only in the 16th century.
Not every gardener, especially a beginner, can get a good harvest of cucumbers on his site. One way to increase yields is by pinching cucumber lashes. In the article we will tell you how to pinch cucumbers correctly and whether you need to do it.
The content of the article
The essence of the reception
Novice gardeners mistakenly believe that caring for a crop consists only in watering and feeding. To grow a good harvest, cucumber bushes need to be shaped.
Attention! Pinching cucumbers is an agricultural technique aimed at the formation of cucumber lashes for abundant and long-term fruiting.
Pinching cucumbers is also called pinching. The essence of the technique is to remove the upper part of the young shoot of a cucumber in order to activate the growth and development of lateral processes. The pinching method (pinching the tip) is commonly used in the cultivation of vegetable crops.
A similar exercise in the open field or in the greenhouse preserves the strength of the plant for intensive fruiting.
The meaning of the pinching procedure
The need for the procedure is due to the peculiarities of the growth of the cucumber culture. With natural growth, mainly "male" shoots are laid on the main stem of the bush. Later, many "barren flowers" are formed on them, which do not give fruit ovaries after the flowers wither.
"Feminine" flowers appear on lateral shoots. For this reason, pinching the cucumber bush is a prerequisite for abundant fruiting.
Pinching plants in greenhouses and outdoors provides the following benefits:
- more female flowers are formed on the bush;
- the illumination of leaves and ovaries improves;
- the likelihood of the appearance of diseases due to the thickening of plantings decreases;
- yield increases;
- the duration of fruiting increases;
- the likelihood of the appearance of bitter fruits decreases;
- the fruits ripen faster.
Do I need to pinch hybrid cucumbers
In some cases, a rich harvest of cucumbers can be obtained without forming a bush.... Breeders bred varieties and hybrids of the culture with the female type of flowering not only on the lateral shoots, but also on the main stem. If such plants need to be pinched, it is only for the purpose of thinning the bushes.
Hybrid varieties of culture are branched (with developed lateral whips) and single-stemmed (with limited growth of lateral shoots).
Important! Pinching the main stem in single-stemmed cucumber hybrids will rob you of your crop.
With sufficient heat, sunlight and moisture, branched varieties give the greatest yield. In such plants, after the first, main fruiting wave on the main stem, fruits begin to form on the side branches.
Need to know! When growing early-ripening hybrids with active branching, the fruiting period is extended to 1.5-2 months.
Popular hybrids of branched hybrid cucumbers include F1 Ant, F1 Grasshopper, F1 Trump Card.
Terms of the procedure
The pinching of those varieties and hybrids of crops that need it is carried out shortly after planting seedlings in open ground or in a greenhouse / greenhouse.
But first, the cucumber bushes are tied up. The garter is started when 4-5 true leaves have formed on the plant. On average, at this time, the bush grows up to 30 cm in height.
In the most common vertical method of garters, a horizontal bar fixed at a height of about 2 m is used, to which the twine is tied. They use their own rope for each bush. The stem of each plant is carefully tied up.
After that, they begin to form a bush. Depending on the variety of culture, place and growing conditions, pinch the main or side shoots.
It is interesting:
What is cucumber, how is it grown and eaten.
Why cucumbers are bitter, how to prevent it and what to do with the crop.
What is needed for the procedure
To carry out the pinching procedure, you will need a sharp stationery knife, pruning shears or ordinary scissors. Of course, you can pinch the stem with your fingers, but in this case, the tip of the lash turns out to be soaked. It is easier for infections to get into such a wound, and then the stem will begin to rot.
After processing each bush, the tool is disinfected. Disinfection of scissors is carried out primarily to protect against the spread of viral diseases that are transmitted with the juice of diseased plants.
Various means are used for disinfection. Alcohol wipes and medicated sprays work well. Household products containing chlorine or alcohol can be used.
Instructions for pinching cucumbers
Cucumber is a climbing plant. Therefore, to save space, the vegetable is grown on a vertical support. This is especially true for the greenhouse breeding method.
The pinching procedure is carried out before flowering. Be careful when removing excess shoots. Damage to the main stem and removal of excess leaves will kill the plant.
The procedure is done as follows: with one hand, they slightly pull the leaf off, and with the other, carefully cut the whip at the stem or pinch off with your hands.
The procedure for pinching in the open field, in the greenhouse / greenhouse and on the balcony is different.
Pinching cucumbers in the greenhouse
The expediency of the procedure depends on the characteristics of the cultivated variety or hybrid and on how densely the seedlings are planted. If the main shoots are short, it is not necessary to pinch them.
The stepsons are removed after 4-5 leaves have formed on the bush and the plant is tied up.
Step-by-step instruction:
- Form a zone of "blinding", i.e. remove leaves and shoots at a height of 50 cm from the ground. Ovaries and young lashes are removed completely.
- At a height of 50 cm and up to 1 m, lateral shoots are pinched, which are located above the first leaf.
- Above the stem, the shoots are pinched over the second leaf.
One ovary is left on one sheet. When the main cucumber lash reaches the top of the trellis, it is pinched, leaving three leaves.
The pinching scheme is shown in the photo. A competently performed procedure provides cucumber bushes with full sunlight and a full flow of air.
Attention! Free growth of cucumbers in a greenhouse and a greenhouse leads to excessive shading and oppression of plants. The risk of developing diseases increases and the yield decreases. And it will not be very convenient to look after such wilds.
Outdoors
When growing cucumbers in an open place, the tops of the main lashes are first cut off. This is done when the main shoot has reached more than a meter in height, and the lateral lashes have grown to 50 cm. At the same time, pay attention to the fact that second-order shoots should form on the lateral processes.
If there is no garter, remove the growth point after the fourth leaf on the main stem. The lateral processes are pinched after the second leaf.
If hybrids of cucumbers are grown in the open ground, the pinching is done only on the side shoots.
When grown outdoors, parthenocarpic cucumber varieties are not considered appropriate pinching. This is due to the fact that pollination mainly occurs with the help of insects, and female flowers are predominantly formed on the bushes themselves, which appear at a sufficient speed.
On the balcony / windowsill
Achievements of modern breeding allow you to get a good harvest of vegetables even when grown on a windowsill or balcony. In such conditions, the pinching procedure takes on particular importance due to the limited space.
The formation of cucumber lashes in this case includes:
- pinching the main stem after it reaches the ceiling;
- regular mustache removal;
- removal of lateral processes.
Common mistakes
Common mistakes made when forming cucumber bushes include:
- Too late the procedure, when the plant has already grown more than a meter in height.
- Removing half of the bush at a time is fraught with the death of the plant.
- Pinching immediately after transplanting. After planting the seedlings, they wait about two weeks for the plant to take root and grow stronger. If the shoots are too small, it is better to let them grow.
- Too frequent procedure. Re-pinching is done about 3-4 weeks after the first.
Advice... In one approach, no more than one fifth of the green mass of the bush is cut off. Too much damage leads to the death of the plant.
Tips & Tricks
Pinching cucumbers is a simple technique. Even a novice gardener can master it.
Before embarking on agrotechnical techniques, it is worth familiarizing yourself with the recommendations for growing your particular variety. It is important not to confuse hybrids with plants that are pollinated by insects.
In order for the plant to properly distribute food, and nutrients were used for the formation of fruits, "male" flowers are removed. In this case, nutrients and moisture will evenly flow into the lateral lashes, where there are more “female” fruiting flowers.
The pinching procedure is carried out in dry weather, in the morning. Pinching in the rain increases the risk of disease.
Read also:
How to pinch a pumpkin in the open field.
Causes and treatment of cucumber anthracnose: the most effective control methods.
Conclusion
The correct pinching of cucumber bushes increases yields and accelerates ripening. Without pinching, the culture spends a lot of energy on the development of "male" lashes with barren flowers and lateral processes. However, not all varieties and hybrids need this procedure.
Before taking the reception, study the manufacturer's recommendations for growing a particular variety of cucumbers.