How to transplant elongated cucumbers. How to plant elongated bushes in a permanent place

As you know, seedlings of any vegetable plant allows you to reduce its development cycle in a permanent place (for cucumbers, this is a film greenhouse or open ground). Note that many inexperienced gardeners face various problems and they do not know what to do if cucumber seedlings are pulled out. According to experts, this phenomenon is caused by a lack of sunlight and an abundance of heat and moisture. Especially such problems arise when cucumber seedlings are grown on a darkened windowsill, especially when the weather is cloudy. In our article we will tell you what to do if the seedlings of cucumbers are very stretched.

Why cucumber seedlings are very stretched

The main question for beginner gardeners regarding pulling seedlings is whether it is possible to correct the situation or whether everything is already gone. We hasten to reassure: if the matter has not gone very far, then it can still be corrected. First you need to find out the cause, and then calmly, without panic, proceed to eliminate it. The reasons why cucumber seedlings are stretched are actually not as many as they might seem at first glance. Another thing is that they are not immediately possible to determine. They belong to one large group: this is the influence of external environmental factors. This is not a disease, but such a reaction of cucumber seedlings entails the most unpleasant consequences and you can lose the entire crop.

  • The first reason why the seedlings are stretched is the lack of light and fever. This is a completely natural reaction of the plant to such conditions. external environment. Under the influence of heat, it grows and reaches for the light. This is the most common cause, so if this happens, then you need to adjust the light regime for the plants in the greenhouse.
  • The second reason is wrong mode glaze. Most likely, it is too plentiful. It is from overflow, as a rule, that young cucumber seedlings suffer.
  • Another reason why cucumber seedlings can stretch is the cramped pots they grow in. As root system grows in breadth, there is little space for it and this affects the seedling itself. To avoid such a problem, it is necessary to select in advance a more spacious container for growing cucumber seedlings, thereby you will avoid many troubles, including this one.
  • Also among the reasons may be the quality of the soil. It can be overly acidic, in which case neutral soils are best. This is the most rare reason for pulling seedlings.

What to do if the seedlings of cucumbers stretched out

Do not rush to throw away the plants, as you can fix the elongated seedlings of cucumbers if you take action on time. Stretched out pale seedling- a common case when growing at home. To prevent this from happening, you need to change two modes of growing cucumber seedlings - temperature and light.

  • The air temperature should be reduced to about 15 degrees, and the seedlings should be additionally illuminated, if there is very little light, this will have to be done around the clock.
  • On bright windows, it is enough to install side and top mirrors that will reflect sunlight onto seedlings. Sometimes it is enough to arrange the cups with cucumbers away from each other, especially if they already have large enough leaves that shade each other.

It is also necessary to increase the amount of soil in order to stimulate the growth of roots and slow down the development of the stem. Very often, cucumber seedlings stretch out and fall due to the high density of seedlings. Seedlings need to be planted so that each plant gets at least 200 ml of soil. The more space there is, the better the planting material will turn out. Separate containers are also good because when transplanting to permanent place in seedlings, roots are less injured and seedlings continue their development painlessly.

Cucumber seedlings begin to bloom very quickly, even in cups the first buds are already forming. This does not adversely affect the quality of the strong healthy seedling, but the weakened can take away even small forces. For such seedlings, it would be better to remove the first flowers and give the plant the opportunity to take root well in the ground, improve health and form a strong bush. This plant will start fruiting a little later than the others, but will quickly make up for lost time and catch up in yield with the rest of the seedlings. Planted with buds or flowers, weak or elongated seedlings will be sick for a long time, can shed buds and even ovaries, and as a result, they will give much less fruit.

To prevent cucumbers from stretching, you need to feed them with potash fertilizers and spill the ground with a solution of ash. In a glass of water you need to add one tablespoon of ash and let it brew a little. You can also help the plant with immune preparations, which are sold in specialized stores.

How to plant elongated cucumber bushes in a permanent place

If the seedlings are too long, do not worry. Even these seedlings take root well. Prior to planting young seedlings in a permanent place of growth, it is recommended to obtain information on how the technology of deepening each individual seedling is carried out. Planting seedlings that have already stretched out is carried out in compliance with certain nuances. In the event that the cucumber seedlings have stretched out very much, while the cucumber bushes cannot hold their stems on your own, do not deepen them very much. Such plants do not like excessively moist soil, low temperature indicators. If the bushes are planted too deep, there is a possibility of a disease such as a black leg.

If the cucumbers are stretched out, their transplantation to a permanent place is carried out no deeper than they grew in the preliminary containers. Holes are prepared with a distance of 30-50 in a row and 60 in a row-spacing. Add to the well complex fertilizer or superphosphate. Watered warm water or a weak solution of manganese. To help weak sprouts, it is recommended to stick nearby supports in the form of toothpicks, thin sticks, and carefully tie the seedlings. When the stems are a little stronger, the supports can be removed. When planting cucumbers in cold ground, the surface around the bush is mulched with a black film, which retains moisture in the soil, keeps the ground loose and prevents weeds from developing.

On a note. When choosing a place for planting seedlings in open ground, preference is given to well-lit areas. The best predecessors cucumbers - legumes, cabbage, tomatoes. The elongated seedlings are not watered before planting, they are dried a little so that the stem becomes more flexible. Carefully flip the plastic cup over or cut it open. Get the plant from earthy clod. You can not pull the stem - it can break.

Carefully monitor the condition of seedlings of cucumbers! These fragile and delicate plants after any illness recover for too long, losing the ability to develop normally in the future, and often bring few full-fledged fruits! In addition, a weakened plant will be susceptible to many diseases in the future.

Cucumbers are an integral crop of our ridges. Not a single gardener can imagine his plot without cucumbers. In fact, this culture is not whimsical, with a minimum of care high yield its fruits are guaranteed. Cucumbers are grown both in greenhouses, greenhouses, and in unprotected soil. To receive good harvest some vegetable growers are trying to plant cucumber seedlings in the spring. There are situations when cucumber seedlings stretch upwards - beginners do not know what to do in such circumstances. Having studied the material below, they will not be left alone with the problem.

Many gardeners who first encountered the cultivation of cucumber seedlings are interested in: cucumber seedlings have stretched out what to do in this case in the first place to correct the situation. Yes, everything is fixable, if the matter has not yet become irreversible. The first step is to try to find out the reason, that is, why cucumber seedlings are stretched out - how to fix it, after searching for the truth it will already be possible at a calm pace.

healthy and quality seedlings not difficult to determine by sight - it is strong and squat. Since cucumbers are considered a tender crop, they respond pliantly to external growth factors. Under appropriate conditions, seedlings grow prosperous, and under inappropriate conditions, they look sick, disproportionate. Pulling the stem is a trouble that those who have not created suitable conditions for growing cucumber seedlings. This reaction of seedlings can have a very deplorable effect on the amount of harvest in the future. So, let's consider the main reasons due to the influence of which the seedlings of cucumbers stretched out, began to exceed their natural size from the position and began to look non-standard.

The first reason why it is strongly drawn out concerns the wrong light and temperature conditions. Their deficit or, conversely, an overabundance. Light is the stimulant, under the influence of which the seedlings stretch upwards. Therefore, first of all, you should adjust the temperature and light conditions in the apartment or greenhouse.

Another reason why cucumber seedlings are stretched is the lack of volume of the container in which they are grown. Tight cups do not allow the root system to grow in breadth, it does not have enough space, which ultimately affects the seedling itself. To avoid such a misfortune, spacious containers (with a diameter of at least 8 cm) should be prepared. Thus, it will be possible to exclude the appearance different problems, which includes this one.

The quality of the soil can also be the reason why cucumber seedlings are thin and long at the same time. The soil should never be acidic. The best option- neutral ground. Despite the fact that this cause is rare, in combination with other negative factors it can affect the elongation of seedlings. And therefore, you will have to solve more than one task at once to eliminate the problem. So, if the seedlings of cucumbers are very stretched out - what to do will be described further in detail.

How to grow seedlings correctly?

To save pale and stretched seedlings, attention should be paid to changing the regime of light and temperature.

The temperature is lowered to +15 C, while applying additional illumination. With the strongest stretching of plants, ultraviolet lamps are kept on around the clock.

During the day, seedlings can be transferred to a balcony or loggia, where it is less warm and more sunlight. Before nightfall, planting in pots is returned back to the room.

What to do with elongated bushes when transplanting into the ground?

When it comes time to plant plants in the ground, but cucumber seedlings have stretched out - how to fix the situation? It is also quite possible to help seedlings during this period. To do this, it is necessary to apply a special technique when planting in the ground - deepening the root part of the plant with a clod of earth and part of the stem to the cotyledon leaves, filling everything with a loose layer of soil.

The use of this technique is advisable because the buried stem in the hole will take root in addition to the existing ones, and from this the plant will only add to strength and health. The main indicator of the survival rate of elongated seedlings is warm and moist soil.

When planting cucumbers, potash fertilizers help well. The use of additives that stimulate the growth of the root part of seedlings is recognized as effective in caring for planting material. Care in the greenhouse for seedlings includes ventilation of air and soil environments, ensuring a sufficient level of lighting.

How to transplant flowering elongated cucumber seedlings?

Cucumber plants quickly form flowers, often they appear even at the stage of seedlings not planted in the ground.

Such early flowering- this is not bad, besides, it does not affect the quality of future cucumbers. But in the context of stretched seedlings, things change radically - flowers are able to take away from the plant the strength that it lacks. In this regard, it is recommended to remove the first buds from seedlings, giving the opportunity to reanimate the bush.

Such a plant will enter the phase of active fruit formation a little later than its counterparts, but will be able to quickly catch up with them. If you plant seedlings with inflorescences, the seedlings will be overwhelmed for a long time. And then it will get rid of flowers and ovaries. As a result, the yield will be reduced.

Every farmer wants to get planting material Harvest earlier and in greater quantity. And each of us contrives in every possible way to obtain desired result. Many farmers plant in early spring cucumber waiting for early harvest. But then the seedlings are pulled out and they wonder what to do in this case.

When planted in early spring, seedlings often stretch

Proper cultivation of seedlings

There are different causal relationships for pulling seedlings:

  • insufficient lighting;
  • small watering;
  • wrong feed.

These three factors negatively affect the planting material, disrupting the harvest time and damaging the seedlings. If the seedlings of cucumbers stretched out. it means you have not watered the plant enough, or vice versa in excess. Elongated seedlings can be saved, so you should not take drastic actions and rush to get rid of it.

There are measures to solve the problem:

  1. Increase illumination, using artificial light as needed.
  2. Exposure period ultraviolet rays the plant should not be less or more than eight hours.
  3. Seedlings will grow if you plant them too tightly. Increase the amount of soil and make sure that two hundred milliliters of soil is enough for each seedling. It is best to grow seedlings in separate cups. This allows you to reduce damage when transplanting into open ground, and allow each seedling to fully grow.
  4. Helps avoid pulling seedlings, use potash fertilizers and ash. There are specialized drugs that affect the growth of the plant.

Seedlings need sufficient lighting, otherwise they will stretch towards the light.

Transplanting seedlings into the ground

The transfer of stretched planting material to open ground is carried out in compliance with strict rules. If the planting material is stretched high, deep planting is not a suitable method for planting. Cucumber does not tolerate low temperatures and excess moisture, it is impossible to plant deeply because it will cause a species disease.

They are planted at the level at which they grew before planting. To prevent the trunks from falling over, they are attached to a support. If you are growing cucumbers in a greenhouse, then after growing them you will need to make a vertical support. In open ground, they grow by crossing each other with antennae.

Proper care is timely watering and quality fertilizers. Saltpeter is not a suitable fertilizer for planting material. If you are going to plant cucumbers, then use potash fertilizers.

Why not use saltpeter? It provokes the growth of the green part of the plant and then the cucumber stretches even more.

An effective way to care for planting material is to use fertilizers that stimulate the growth of the root system. In a greenhouse, it is important to maintain ventilation of the room and good lighting.

Even if the seedlings are stretched out, they will still be able to give a good harvest.

The stretching of the crop is not a reason to refuse seedlings; this situation can be corrected if proper care is provided and a rich harvest is obtained.

An effective way to grow cucumbers is to plant seedlings. But this culture does not like transplanting, so you need to be careful about planting and caring for the plant in order to avoid pulling seedlings.

Many use the soil sold in specialized stores. Due to the high content of peat, this soil is not suitable for cucumbers. It dries out quickly and requires constant monitoring by the farmer to avoid damage to the planting material.

Well suited earth mix for indoor plants due to its composition. Seedlings are grown a month before being transferred to open ground. if you grow them in a greenhouse, you can choose any time, the result will not change much.

Cucumbers love careful care and timely watering with a sufficient level of illumination.

The best cucumbers in the garden are those that are grown on their own. Unfortunately, quite often gardeners make serious mistakes when growing cucumber seedlings. The stems of young plants are strongly elongated, which further negatively affects the state of cucumber bushes. It is not difficult to get healthy planting material with a strong, full-fledged stem if the basic rules for growing seedlings are followed.

Reasons for pulling cucumber seedlings

For normal growth and development of seedlings of vegetable crops, including cucumbers, a number of conditions are required. Violation of at least one of them can affect the quality of cucumber seedlings. Consider the most common mistakes and signs of growth disorders:

How to grow good cucumber seedlings

The quantity and quality of the future harvest directly depends on the planting material - seeds and seedlings. To avoid mistakes, you should create optimal conditions for growing seedlings of cucumbers, namely:

  • proper lighting;
  • suitable temperature regime;
  • moderate watering;
  • compliance with seeding density standards;
  • good soil quality;
  • sufficient volume of a seedling glass.

To get seedlings of cucumbers good quality, it is necessary to adhere optimal conditions cultivation

Organizing the right lighting

The growth of seedlings is affected by the intensity and duration of the lighting period. To prevent pulling cucumber sprouts, you need:

  • put boxes with seedlings on the southeast or south windows. When the plants are tilted, turn the containers in the opposite direction;

    Cucumber seedlings need to provide optimal light conditions

  • immediately when the first shoots appear, turn on additional lighting;

    Backlight provides good illumination of seedlings in short day conditions

  • do not allow a break between the periods of solar and artificial lighting. The total time of plant illumination should be at least 12 hours;
  • At night, turn off the lights completely for at least 6 hours. Plants also need a night's rest;
  • cover seedlings from direct sunlight to prevent burns;
  • use fluorescent lighting instead of conventional lighting. Incandescent lamps emit a lot of heat, and their color spectrum does not contain radiation. of blue color, so necessary seedlings. In indoor greenhouses, LED lighting sources and phytolamps can also be used;

    Seedlings of cucumbers under a phytolamp receive a sufficient amount of light

Optimal temperature

When the seeds are still at the germination stage, you need to make sure that the soil temperature is 25-30 degrees. But as soon as shoots appear, the thermal regime must be adjusted as follows:

  • The thermometer in the room should always remain at the level of 20-23 degrees.
  • The temperature difference between daylight and nighttime should not exceed 5-7 divisions.
  • Seedlings need to be ventilated, and on warm days they can be taken out to the balcony for a short time.

Watering and feeding cucumber seedlings

When watering seedlings, the following rules must be observed:


Cold water and wet leaves are among the main causes of fungal diseases in cucumbers.

It would be useful to feed the seedlings at least once, combining this procedure with watering. There are several types of top dressings:


Fertilizers should not be abused. Too lush seedlings of cucumbers will not take root well in the garden.

Soil preparation

  • leaf ground - 1 bucket;
  • humus - 1 bucket;
  • ash - 1 glass;
  • potassium sulfate - 10 grams;
  • superphosphate - 20 grams.

All components must be mixed well until a homogeneous mixture is obtained.

The soil for seedlings of cucumbers can be prepared independently by mixing leaf ground and humus in equal proportions

Seedling containers

Can be used plastic container but the best cucumber seedlings grow in peat cups. When planting on a garden bed, such seedlings are placed directly in the hole, without removing the plants from the container.

Seedlings of cucumbers in peat cups can be planted in the ground without removing them from the container

As the seedlings grow, the cups should be set aside so that the cucumbers do not interfere with each other.

Video: transplanting cucumber seedlings from a cassette into cups

How to plant stretched seedlings

If the plants are still stretched out and nothing can be fixed, then you should not throw away the results of your work. There is a way by which you can still save the elongated seedlings of cucumbers, and it is as follows:

  1. In the ground, you need to dig a hole - a little deeper and wider than usual.
  2. Bend the long stem into a ring and place horizontally in the hole.
  3. Sprinkle carefully with earth so that the cotyledons remain on the surface.
  4. Video: planting elongated seedlings of cucumbers

    Pulling cucumber seedlings is a very unpleasant and undesirable phenomenon. But even if this did happen, you can correct the mistakes and get good quality seedlings. In the future, fulfilling all the requirements of agricultural technology, you will get a good harvest during the season.

What to do if the seedlings of cucumbers stretched out and became unhealthy in appearance? Councils of agronomists and experienced gardeners help you figure out the reasons the right technique work with the bushes and correct the situation.

Reasons for pulling cucumber sprouts

There are few factors leading to seedling extension. It is mainly the effect natural environment and climate. Change in growth is not a disease, but it can lead to pathologies that destroy the plant, worsen its condition and reduce fruiting.

Why do cucumber seedlings stretch? Consider the possible reasons:

  1. low light. Cucumbers - light-loving plants. Therefore, for them it is worth choosing places where large quantity there is time natural light- Sun rays. When there is enough light, the plant does not tend to catch up to it and maintains normal growth. If the sun does not fall on the boxes with seedlings, then they begin to look for ways to access it - they stretch out towards the light. The lack of lighting in the room is usually filled with fluorescent or sodium lamps.
  2. Increased air temperature. Seedlings usually tend to stretch out to get enough cold air, this is their desire to escape from the heat.

These two reasons are considered the most common mistakes vegetable growers make. To prevent cucumber seedlings from stretching, you need to consider the light and temperature conditions.

Another reason - lack of space for the location of the roots. This often happens when seeds are grown in flower pots. Close capacity does not allow the root to strengthen.

Tips from agronomists: plant seeds in special containers, leaving a distance between them that will not become an obstacle for the comfortable development of the root system of seedlings.

Among the reasons explaining why cucumber seedlings stretched out, a special place is occupied by soil quality. The soil should be saturated with trace elements, loose and light. In addition, you should take care of the drainage holes at the bottom of the container - for air access to the roots.

Knowing the causes will help eliminate the problem, eliminate the factors of its manifestation. But the situation may manifest itself during the season and the disembarkation period.

Help stretched seedlings

Young shoots of cucumbers can be restored to a healthy appearance if its abnormal development is noticed in time. Start by providing enough light. Options for increasing daylight hours:


Such simple measures stop the extension of the stem. With a lack of space for the development of the root system, the seedlings are transplanted into large containers. And it is better to transplant immediately to a permanent place.

Move vegetable crop best once. The stress that cucumbers experience when changing places has a detrimental effect on their development.

How else can you fix the problem?

  1. Add ground. The soil is prepared according to all the rules for creating soil for cucumbers, heated, dried and spread over the root system. It will become an additional layer of thermal insulation and a new type of top dressing. The plant will be able to take root more firmly, and the elongated growth will return to normal.
  2. Feed the plants. The growth of seedlings depends on the presence of the necessary trace elements in its diet. Bring into the ground useful material- Another opportunity to help the bushes. Suitable in this case, a complex of fertilizers. On the packages, you should study the information about the composition, find those options that form a bush. Seedlings will grow to a certain height and will not become long, thin and weak.
  3. Pinch off the top and side shoots. If cucumber seedlings are very stretched, you can stop its growth by simple formation. Pinch the bud over the second or third true leaf. From this time side shoots will begin to develop. This method is suitable for growing short-fruited varieties of cucumbers.

Other reasons

Often, gardeners and owners of household plots want to get a varied crop according to the varietal set. They sow a large number of seeds, hoping that an impressive number of bushes will give bountiful harvest. Seedlings of cucumbers are located too close to each other, resulting in shading, air deficiency, interlacing of the roots of seedlings with each other.

Why are cucumber seedlings stretched? One of common mistakes vegetable growers is uneven or abundant watering and liquid temperature.

Water for plants should be warm. cold liquid becomes an activator of the appearance of fungal spores that affect plants. Cucumbers are watered in one way - under the roots, without affecting the leaves and stems. Do it once a day - in the morning or in the evening

The video below gives tips on how to stop the growth of cucumber seedlings.

Planting outstretched bushes

So, the cucumber seedlings stretched out, and there was no way to stop its growth - what to do? Everything can be fixed if the seedlings are properly planted in a permanent place.

Carry cucumber sprouts one at a time, gently straightening a thin stem to its full length. The root should not be lowered deep into the ground. Do not bury the stem to the first leaves. Deepening is better superficial. The cucumber itself will sink as deep as it needs. If you dig in hard, there is a danger of developing the disease - a black leg. Next, the top of the seedlings is fixed by pulling on a support or thrown over the crossbar prepared for tying. They try to place the stem not in tightness, also making additional fastening of the side shoots. This arrangement should help the plant keep future fruits. Supports and garters to strengthen the stem can be gradually removed or added.

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