How to grow cucumbers on the balcony from seeds to harvest?
In a megacity, we are forced to eat only those products that are sold to us in supermarkets. But for those who have an irresistible desire to enjoy fresh cucumbers of their own production, even in the city there is a great opportunity to grow this crop on their own balcony.
Content:
- How to grow cucumbers on the balcony?
- Cucumber seeds for the balcony
- Cucumber seedlings on the balcony
- Caring for cucumbers on the balcony
How to grow cucumbers on the balcony?
Not every balcony is suitable for this purpose:
- Firstly, it must be glazed. Cucumbers really don’t like drafts, and most likely you won’t be able to harvest any crops on a balcony exposed to the wind.
- Secondly, cucumbers need a lot of light. And even with additional lighting you will find it difficult to achieve good fruiting, if the balcony faces the north side of the house (the best orientation is east and southeast).
If these conditions are met, then you can safely begin choosing seeds.
Today you can find several varieties of cucumber seeds on sale, specially designed for growing in urban balconies. When choosing, read the label carefully. It should indicate that the variety is shade-tolerant, has small fruits, does not require pollination and can be grown on the balcony.
Such hybrids include varieties:
- "F1 city cucumber"
- "F1 Balagan"
- "F1 Courage"
- "F1 Balcony"
- "F1 Berendey" and others
You can start sowing cucumber seeds for “balcony growing” in the second half of April – early May. Planting seeds earlier can lead to the fact that buds form before the plant can be taken out onto the balcony, and this in turn threatens the ovaries falling off. In addition, the vines will grow too actively due to lack of light.
Cucumber seeds for the balcony
Balcony cucumbers can be planted in ordinary plastic containers for house flowers (80x25cm), which must have special drainage holes and a stand for water. Often, ordinary wooden boxes or pots for seedlings are used in this role.
The second important component of the process of growing cucumbers on the balcony is the soil. Cucumbers grow gratefully and bear fruit only in fertile soil, therefore, if we are talking about buying soil at the nearest flower shop, then it should be a universal option for growing vegetable crops (acidity pH 6.3-6.8), or even better, if you manage to get some garden soil from the dacha, and mix it with purchased soil in a ratio of 4:1:1 (another part of perlite).
One plant will need about 5 liters of soil, which must be additionally treated before planting the seeds using one of the most convenient options for you: pour it with a fungicide, steam it over boiling water or heat it in the microwave.
Cucumber seeds, due to the fragility of their seedlings, it is preferable to sow in a dry state. If the seeds you purchased have a colored shell, this means that they do not need additional treatment against pests. Otherwise, it is necessary to immerse cucumber seeds in a solution of potassium permanganate (1 g per 0.5 cup of water) for 20 minutes, then rinse under running water.
Prepared seeds can be planted in a container. In the middle, holes are made for seeds at a distance of 40 cm (you can plant two seeds in each hole to be on the safe side). At a depth of 1.5-2 cm, the seeds will feel very comfortable.
The crops should be covered with a plastic bag and placed in a well-lit place (preferably a warm windowsill). In this case, the overall temperature should not be lower than 24-26 degrees C.
Cucumber seedlings on the balcony
Cucumbers love moisture, so it is important to monitor the condition of the top layer of soil. Until the shoots appear, the soil is moistened with a spray bottle. In less than a week, sprouts should appear. During this period, you can get rid of the plastic film and keep the seedlings in a room at a constant air temperature of at least 20 degrees C.
If all the seeds sprout, the weakest ones are removed by cutting them off at the base of the ground. The rest are grown indoors until 2-3 leaves appear. Now the plant is ready for hardening. During the day, you can leave it with the window open, and in good, windless weather in the morning, you can accustom the cucumbers to direct sunlight.
The plant is transferred to the balcony when, according to weather forecasts, threat of frost will finally go away, and the street will become a constant +15 degrees C, not forgetting to water it as the top layer of soil dries out.
Once in the balcony conditions, your cucumbers will produce more and more leaves. When 5-6 leaves appear, the plant will need support. At first, this role can be given to ordinary trellises for climbing plants. But this measure will not last long - already 7-8 leaves will be difficult for the plant to hold even on a spatula, and a garter will be required.
In the balcony wall, next to which you will place containers with cucumbers, you need to drill holes at a height of 2.5 meters. Attach holders for clotheslines in them, and tie one end of a rope 1.5 meters long (the other end should hang freely). The cucumber vines are wrapped around the rope and loosely secured.
Caring for cucumbers on the balcony
Caring for cucumbers mainly consists of timely daily watering. The plant should not lack moisture. At the same time, it is necessary to moisturize not only the soil, but also the air. To do this, just put a bucket of water on the balcony and constantly replenish it. In the evening hours, the cucumbers are sprayed with water from a spray bottle. In addition, water must be added to the bottom pan, from where the roots that have grown through the drainage holes will additionally absorb water.
If it is too hot outside (more than 30 degrees C), the leaves of the plant must be protected from direct sunlight, otherwise they may burn.
As the vines grow, the location of the garter changes. As a rule, balcony hybrids do not stretch to great lengths and do not require pinching. However, if your plants are too long to grow, they can be pinched when they have 10-12 leaves.
You can fertilize plants 14 days after the first shoots appear. For such still small sprouts, use a weak aqueous solution with potassium (15g), ammonium nitrate (5g), superphosphate (3g) and magnesium (5g) per 10 liters of water. Water the cucumbers so that the solution does not get on the leaves.
When the plant grows a little, you can prepare another solution: take a mullein solution (1:10), add superphosphate (20g) and potassium sulfate (15g). Feeding is done once a week.
August nights are already cold enough for cucumbers, so at these hours the containers are wrapped in burlap. In this way, overcooling of the roots can be avoided.
Fruiting cycle balcony cucumbers lasts about 90 days. After this period ends, the vines are cut off and the rhizome is completely dug up. The remaining soil is not thrown away, but put into bags - it can be used next year as a base, adding half the volume with new soil. Containers and ropes will also come in handy. They can be removed for next season.
So simply and without any serious labor costs, you can independently get an excellent harvest of crispy cucumbers on your own balcony. Surely your family will support the idea of eating environmentally friendly food every day in the summer. So good luck to you in this endeavor!
Watch the video and grow cucumbers on your balcony with us:
Interesting information about the vegetable garden
