How to determine when you can sow cucumber seeds in the open ground without fear that they will not rise because of the cold or will damage the young shoots? Experienced gardeners know that it is necessary to wait for optimal weather conditions, when the weather is set above +15 ° C, and the soil temperature at a depth of 5-10 cm will not fall below +12 ° C. As a rule, such conditions occur in the 20th of may. The first sowing usually lasts until the first days of June, and summer residents who want to provide themselves with a crop for a long time, conduct repeated sowings after.
Soil preparation
Cucumbers are very fond of good cultivated soil, so the preparation of the landing site begins in the fall — with digging and applying phosphorous-potash fertilizers and dolomite flour. Even if the soil was not treated in the fall, a deep digging is carried out in the spring, during which 8-15 kg/m² of rotted manure, 40-50 g of superphosphate, 20-30 g of potassium sulfate and 70-100 g of dolomite flour per square meter are applied.
Manure is added only when it is well rotted; but if there is no ready-made fertilizer, it does not matter. Instead, you can use a ready-made substrate based on peat.
All these mixtures contain easily available food elements, fertilizers, and dolomite flour. Peat substrates improve air exchange, promote better penetration of moisture even in drought. For growing vegetable seedlings, ready-made mixtures are often used in pure form, and when sowing and planting in the open ground, they are mixed with garden soil on the bed.
The scheme of sowing
Sowing seeds in the open ground can be carried out according to different schemes. Very often use the option when between the rows leave 50-60 cm, and between the beds – from 70 to 120 cm. Plants in a row are placed at a distance of 20-30 cm, depending on the type of growth of the variety or hybrid.
On ridges, furrows are formed with a depth of 2 to 5 cm, depending on the type of soil: on heavier ones, the furrows are made smaller, on lighter ones — deeper. After forming the furrows, they must be shed first with water; 2-3 days before sowing – with a solution of a disinfectant drug to prevent diseases.
Sow with dry seeds or sprouted ones? This question is asked by every gardener, but everyone does it differently. However, there is one fundamental point that will help you decide. It is believed that if the weather is cold, it is preferable to sow dry seeds, if warm — sprouted. Also remember that processed (for example, draped or inlaid) seeds can not be soaked, otherwise they will wash away all the useful shell. Specially processed seeds have an unusual color — green, blue, etc.
When sowing in the furrows, two seeds are sown, when sowing in the nest method — 3-4 PCs. The decomposed seeds are sprinkled with a substrate and lightly pressed to improve contact with the soil. To prevent moisture from evaporating from the surface too quickly, crops are covered with a film or non-woven material.
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