Cucumbers - green sweet juicy vegetable that grows with every gardener in the garden. Plants they are quite capricious and require attentive care. What kind of soil they like and at what temperature they grow will be discussed later in our article.
Table of contents
What soil love cucumbers
For the cultivation of cucumber soil should be almost neutral. You can use a weak acid. In such conditions, the plant will give a rich and high-quality crop. If the earth is acidic, then it must be alkalized, or the plant will simply gradually die.
For this you need to make limestone. On average, 1 square meter will require 500 grams of the mixture. At this place, cucumbers can be grown for another two years, and then change the place of growth.
| Soil type | PH level | Summer temperature | Suitability for cucumber |
| Peat bog and marsh-podzolic | 3,0-5 | Big differential day and night | Unsuitable, requires strong liming and protection from temperature extremes |
| Podzol, sod-podzolic, red earth | 4,5-5,6 | From 8.8 ° C at a depth of 20 cm | Not suitable, requires deoxidation and the creation of warm beds, making humus |
| Gray Forest | 4,5-6,5 | From 15 ° C at a depth of 20 cm | Suitable, in some cases requires a little liming |
| Frosty taiga | 4,5-7,3 | Low | Not suitable, in some cases requires liming and the creation of warm beds |
| Chernozem, sierozem, chestnut | 6,5-7,5 | From 15 ° C at a depth of 20 cm | It is suitable. |
| Carbonate, Saline, Saline | 7,5-9,5 | From 15 ° C to 25 ° C at a depth of 20 cm | It is of little use, requires strong alkalisation, release from salts, enrichment with humus. |
Soil preparation for planting seedlings
The best soil for growing cucumbers is considered to be high in moisture. By type, loamy soils are best. Sandy is best avoided, as the plants simply will not have enough water. Cucumbers love warm air and bright sunshine.
Also in the lowland the air temperature will be slightly lower, and cucumbers are very fond of warmth. Therefore, it is recommended to plant cucumbers in late May.
How to check soil acidity
Before planting seedlings in the ground it is necessary to check its acidity. At home, the easiest way to carry out the reaction with regular vinegar. To do this, you need to take a handful of earth, put it on a glass bowl. Ironware is better not to use, it can give a false result.
Pour vinegar over the soil. If the environment is neutral or alkaline, then the reaction will proceed and hissing will occur, bubbles will appear. Everyone carried out such a reaction at least once in his life when he was preparing pastries or pancakes. If the reaction did not occur, it means that it is acidic and must be chilled. For these purposes, use dolomite flour, ground limestone. This should be done in the fall. Therefore, a place for future cucumbers to choose after harvest.
Other popular methods, see the table:
| Indicator Plants | Soil reaction and suitability for cucumbers |
| Horse sorrel, horsetail, florets, bilberries, mosses, meadow mariannik | High acidity. Requires a strong liming. |
| Lingonberry, wild rosemary, mountaineer, mint, bearberry, wading zolotnichka, "cat's foot" | Average acidity. Required deoxidation. |
| Bell broadleaf, hairy sedge, kupena, shields | Low acidity or neutral soil. Suitable for cucumbers. |
| Coltsfoot, yarrow, pharmacy chamomile, meadow clover, wild strawberry, quinoa, nettle, shepherd's purse, sow thistle, slyt | Neutral soil. Suitable for cucumbers. |
| Sedge hairy, "goose foot", wormwood, vetch, alfalfa, arzhanese meadow, fireless sharp | Low alkaline soil. Suitable for cucumbers. |
The best predecessors for cucumbers
Cucumbers must be replaced once every few years. The more often you change, the better the harvest. The best forerunners are onions, cabbage, tomato, potatoes, rye, oats, clover. You can not plant cucumbers after growing melons, pumpkins, cucumbers, squash.
This is due to the fact that these crops feed on the same minerals as cucumbers, thus depleting the soil. They also have common diseases, which may persist in the ground for the next season, to infect new plants.
Spring tillage to plant
The soil must be loosened to saturate it with fresh oxygen. You can start from the end of May. It is also necessary to fertilize it with natural organic or mineral fertilizers. If it was carried out in the fall, then it is not necessary to fertilize it in the spring.
They simply recycle all the added minerals, so cucumbers may not be enough. For this you need to carry out periodic weeding. The smaller the plant, the less it consumes fertilizer.
Natural Organic Nutrition
Manure better to bring in the fall so that he has time to turn into humus. If the earth is heavy clay, then it should be fertilized not later than 30-40 days before planting cucumbers in the soil. Manure has a large number of large minerals. Nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium, potassium - all these substances are contained in it. They are absorbed into plants and provide excellent yield. It is necessary to make about 6-9 kg per square meter of soil in the autumn.
An excellent option would be to use the place where it was previously located. compost pit. In such a place will grow cucumbers in the open field. Humus will emit a large amount of heat and energy. Covering a thick film of seedlings from above will create a greenhouse effect.Moreover, from humus stand out a large amount of nutrients suitable for cucumbers.
Mineral fertilizers when growing crops
Ash is very similar in composition to potash fertilizers and can serve as an excellent substitute. It is usually brought in 200 grams per square meter of land. It is necessary to add ashes in the spring, after a soil loosening.
Solve which fertilizer is better need individually. This question will help solve the consultant in a specialized store. Do not buy fertilizer on the markets and with the hands, as the exact composition of such liquids and powders is not known. This can harm future plants or spoil the soil.
Required soil temperature in greenhouse and open field
The harvest from such plants may not be the best, so it is better to grow them right away at home on the windowsill. If the temperature is below 12aboutC, it can be detrimental to the seeds. They will begin to freeze and stop growing. Therefore, it is better not to allow a critical temperature or cover the seedlings. Adult plants tolerate low temperatures better. The older the plant, the stronger it is. Seedlings better harden a couple of times before landing in the ground.
To do this, you need to put it in a place with a low temperature a couple of times. Best of all cucumbers grow at a temperature of 24aboutWITH. At night, the optimum decrease should not be below 15aboutWITH. At too high temperatures, the plants die. Too high evaporation of moisture will lead to the oppression of the roots and the drying of the cucumber. The leaves will turn yellow and fall off. The resultant fruits will stop growing and dry out, after which they simply fall off.
Cucumbers require increased attention to themselves both during planting and subsequent care. They can be grown in a greenhouse (greenhouse), and in open ground. Greenhouses should be well lit so that the plant has enough light.Before you start growing them, you need to study all the nuances and determine your own capabilities.