How to get cucumbers harvest already in May: gardeners' tricks

Cucumbers do not like low temperatures, so as a rule, they are sown from mid-April to mid-May, and the harvest can be picked from mid-July to September. However, you usually want to enjoy dishes with fresh homegrown cucumber as early as possible.

Fortunately, there is a way to grow early cucumbers and harvest them in early summer or even in May. Zelena Sadyba told us what features of the plant should be taken into account to get a good result.

Before you start growing early cucumbers, you need to decide which seeds are best suited for this purpose. Nowadays, there are many varieties with increased frost resistance.

For open ground, you can take any variety that will meet the existing weather conditions. For greenhouses, parthenocarpic and self-pollinated varieties and hybrids are recommended.

Where to sow early cucumbers?

Since cucumbers do not tolerate low temperatures, you should not sow them in open ground. Temperature changes and spring frosts can ruin everything, so it is better to sow seeds for seedlings in a warm room on the sunny side. In this case, the first sprouts will appear in about a week.

Experts recommend sowing one seed at a time, for example, in an empty egg tray so that you don't have to thin out later. When the seedlings have outgrown the egg carton, carefully transplant the plants into small pots together with the soil.

To make the seedlings better tolerate transplanting outdoors, they can be hardened. To do this, just put the pots outside or in a greenhouse on a sunny day for a few hours.

How do I plant young cucumber seedlings?

The seedlings will be ready for planting in the ground in 4-5 weeks from the moment of sowing when you see that two full leaves appear above the first two leaves.

Since the transplanting process takes place sometime in early May when the weather is not stable enough, plant the cucumbers in a greenhouse or hotbed.

If the weather is warm enough and the temperature does not drop below +5°C at night, you can plant the seedlings directly in the open ground. Before that, it needs to be prepared.

How to prepare the soil for planting seedlings?

Before planting, the soil needs to warm up. To speed up this process, you can dig it up without loosening it in early spring.

Two weeks before planting cucumbers, you should fertilize the bed with any fertilizer for growing vegetables. A week after that, loosen the soil and water it daily with hot water. Each time after watering, cover the bed with a dark film. The soil should warm up to about +15°C.

How to care for cucumber seedlings?

To avoid bitterness and ensure proper development of cucumbers, you should make sure that the soil is always evenly moist. In dry weather, cucumbers should be watered daily with a small amount of water.

In addition, do not let the cucumbers grow too big. Pick them on time to get the best flavor.

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