What to do with hollow flowers on cucumbers?

At the beginning of the period of active fruiting of cucumbers, there are cases of significant predominance of male flowers, which are called barren flowers.Often, female flowers in the garden are missing. If urgent measures are not taken to eliminate the causes of the abundant formation of empty heap on a cucumber planting, this can lead to a breakdown of the plans for early harvest and a serious reduction in overall yields. Other causes of barren flowers can destroy all cucumber plants in a matter of days. Therefore, it is important to respond to this process in time.

Flowers and a significant quantitative inequality of their ratio in favor of the male or female type of flowering is the most accurate indicator of the state of the culture. It happens that on the same bed of cucumber empty flowers prevail, and on the other - female flowers. Bad and the first and second. The yield of both beds will be small, unless they pereopilyatsya among themselves. But not always the owner of the site will be pleased with the re-grader, especially in cases where he plans to get not only a quantitative crop, but also high-quality seed material.

Identify male flower is easy: it is attached to a thin stalk. A female flower appears in a thickened area, resembling a miniature cucumber in appearance. Flowers and an internal structure differ, but for beginning gardeners, determining the sex of a flower by its leg is the easiest and fastest way. The main causes of barren flowers lie in the wrong agrotechnology of cultivation of crops, conditions of detention (microclimate), the wrong selection and preparation of seeds.

Consider more.

• Poor selection of seeds and varieties - One of the main causes of cucumber barren in home gardens. Few gardeners know that cucumber seeds for sowing should be at least 3 years old, better at the age of 4 years. Last year's seeds need to sow as a last resort and after heat treatment. Plants grown from fresh, untreated seeds are almost always doomed to barren flowers. The same expects those plants of cucumber, the variety of which does not correspond to the area of ​​cultivation (the climate does not fit).
• Malnutrition - Another common reason for the delay in the formation of female flowers. The unbalanced content in the soil of nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus disrupts the normal development of cucumber. Especially the phenomenon of barren flowers manifests itself with a lack of phosphorus and an excess of nitrogen. "Excessive" nitrogen gives the rapid growth of lashes and leaves of cucumber, as well as abundant male flowering.
• Insufficient lighting in dense plantings or in shady places of the plot leads to the absence of female flowers on the cucumber bed. Cucumbers need a lot of light for normal reproduction. It is necessary to withstand the scheme of planting seedlings or sowing seeds in order to prevent crowding and interweaving of plants, and choose a site for cucumbers far away from high plantations.
• Watering cucumber plantings with cold water sprinkling method harms plants. Water should not be colder than the soil temperature at the time of irrigation. Such watering can not only upset the balance of tying female and male flowers, but also lead to other plant diseases.
• High air temperature exceeding +27 degrees, is sterile for fruiting cucumber. The optimum temperature of reproduction for this culture is in the range from +22 to +25 degrees.

There are other reasons that novice gardeners may not pay attention due to the lack of information about them. This applies to the technique of pinching the main stem after 6 or 8 leaves, the selection of seeds only from the “female” cucumber during their independent harvesting, as well as the correct treatment of the seeds before sowing. Any reasons in the aggregate (and even one) of the above can cause hassle to an inattentive gardener, throwing empty cucumber plantings.

Male flowers for fruiting are needed no less than female ones, since they pollinate the latter.Breaking barren flowers in the absence of females does not solve the problem of their new appearance, but reduces the protective functions of the plant and causes stress. Only cases of pollination of those beds where mostly female flowers are present make sense of breaking off. It is better to use the time spent on the meaningless disruption of wastewater to use it to identify and eliminate the causes from which cucumbers do not grow. And also the fact that female flowers die off without a sufficient number of males is noticed.

Self-pollinated cucumber varieties are planted in greenhouses. The reason for this - the lack of wind and a small number of insects, through which the pollination of female flowers. But even when growing self-pollinated varieties, it is necessary to move the cucumber whips more often, shake them for a stable process of selfing.. The most effective for a good harvest is the ratio of different sex flowers, this is when they bloom in equal quantities. Only then the bed blooms, small cucumbers are tied, and the harvest looks solid.

So that the bed does not become overflowed from the very beginning, you should get rid of the reasons causing it. To combat the abundance of male flowers can be the following folk remedies.

• Using the method of pinching the main stem in early cucumbers in the area between 8 and 10 leaves, and in the later - between 6 and 8. This method allows the bush not to grow, which would lead to its thickening and a new reason for the formation of barren flowers, and also contributes to the regrowth of the side branches, on which exactly female flowers like to be tied. Pinching is a simple cut with the scissors of the top of the stem at a chosen location, stopping further growth of the stem. With this operation, you can not hesitate, pinching is better to do before flowering.
• Extra root treatment of cucumber beds with boric acid solution. Processing has a positive effect on the setting of female flowers. The solution is easy to prepare: you will need 5 g of boric acid, mixed in 10 liters of water.
• Choosing the right mode of watering cucumber planting in cases of barren flowers. Experienced gardeners recommend watering as follows: before flowering - moderately, 2-3 times a week, during flowering - no more than 1 time. If hollow flowers are noticed, then stop watering completely before the lower leaves dry. Such a measure often leads to the abundant appearance of female flowers. Just do not bring to a strong drying out of the soil.

To prevent the formation of empty cucumber, it is best to make a competent selection of varieties and seeds, which must be certified and purchased from reliable producers, as well as their mandatory presowing treatment. If the seeds are yours, then you need to take them from the "female" fruits, which differ from the "male" ones by the presence of four seed chambers (the "male" cucumbers have three chambers with seeds). It is necessary to soak the seeds before sowing in a solution of potassium permanganate and treat with means that improve the growth and immunity of future plants (for example, Novosilom or Zircon). Landings, the seeds of which were treated with the aforementioned agents, showed an increase in yield and decrease in barren flower.

Seeds are selected dense and large. As noted, the age of the seeds is at least 3 years. Fresh seeds need to be dried by prolonged heating in a bag on a radiator.By moderate heating for 1 month, the seed protein loses moisture and activity, so the cucumber will grow without haste, and begin to bear fruit at the right moment of development of the plant. To prevention should include the frequency of planting on the garden. There should be at least 45 cm in the row between plants, and at least 80 cm between rows. Landings should be calculated so that no more than 4-5 plants fit 1 m2. Harvesting should be done 1 time in two days.

Pustula of cucumber is a frequent occurrence in the garden, but this problem is solvable and preventable in the period of seed preparation, plant development, flowering and fruiting. It is necessary only to notice the trouble and to get rid of it correctly.

In more detail about what to do with empty flowers on cucumbers, you will learn from the following video.