Forum home› Fruit & veg
This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.

Leggy cucumber seedlings

selinasallyselinasally Posts: 166
in Fruit & veg
Help!
these are 3 wks old on a window ledge 
can I bury the stems ?
can I put them onto an unheated GH yet ?
«1

Posts

  • Nanny BeachNanny Beach Posts: 8,719
    Did you post a picture? Answer to both questions,no
  • selinasallyselinasally Posts: 166
    sideways pic coming
  • selinasallyselinasally Posts: 166

  • Nanny BeachNanny Beach Posts: 8,719
    They are searching for the light, that is why they are leggy, turn them regularly, 4 times a day.its too late now,but I only put 1 in a pot,they are big seeds. Too cold for the green house
  • EmerionEmerion Posts: 599
    Unless you’re planning to bathe in cucumber juice, one or two plants can easily supply way more cucumbers than you want. So if you can bring yourself to do it, you could carefully pull out some of the shoots, whilst gently holding the soil down around them with the fingers on your other hand so that you don’t disturb the ones you’re keeping. This won’t fix the leggy problem, but it will make them more vigorous. Cucumbers can go out in a cold greenhouse after the last frost date, or a short time before if you’re feeling brave. I know you’d think that a green house would raise the temperature at night, and it does, but not reliably enough until later in spring when the soil is really warmed up. Sometimes temperatures go down more than the met office predict, and once is enough for a lot of plants, including cucumbers. I get round this light problem by putting some of my plants out during the day and bringing them in at night. It’s a pain, but they will come on much faster. If you decide you can be bothered to do it, set an alarm on your phone because it’s really painful if you pick the wrong night to forget. Some people use heat mats in their greenhouses, or hotbeds made from fresh manure (loads of work and only if you have a lot of space).
    Carmarthenshire (mild, wet, windy). Loam over shale, very slightly sloping, so free draining. Mildly acidic or neutral.


  • Nanny BeachNanny Beach Posts: 8,719
    Smoothies?
  • Nanny BeachNanny Beach Posts: 8,719
    I wouldn't risk putting cucumbers that size out in the day, not yet,mine have gone out just to be watered, merely because they are in Windowsill propagators, with the little modules different seedlings in there and it's the quickest way to water them ( and not ruin anything indoors)
  • selinasallyselinasally Posts: 166
    Thank you all - I had repotted them in the meantime - I simply don’t have the time i between school run and going to work and physio exercises...to put them all out and bring them in daily ..
    I have moved them in with the rest of the repotted seedlings .my sis in law had taken some of my expensive seeds - they are white cucumbers - and hers did not germinate so I will give her some
    but I ended up sowing loads in case some did not germinate and they all
    came up !!!!
  • Nanny BeachNanny Beach Posts: 8,719
    I sow 4 seeds with expectations of 2 cucumbers plants that is,not actual cucumbers, never mind, smoothies as I said before
  • tomhumftomhumf Posts: 65
    I've been putting tinfoil covered cardboard behind my seedlings. Seems to help with leggyness without having to turn them around all the time. I don't know why this forum always turns my photos around sorry.


Sign In or Register to comment.