Chinese cucumber - an unusual kind of familiar vegetable

Chinese cucumbers appeared on the beds of our gardeners not so long ago. Many reacted to them incredulously, looked closely for a long time. But the one who ventured to sow this miraculous vegetable, became his loyal fan and can not imagine the garden season without a couple of vines of an amazing variety of the usual cucumber.

Description of the plant, its features, advantages and disadvantages

Chinese cucumber is not just a well-known vegetable variety, but a separate variety. In appearance, the Chinese guest is similar to his usual brother, but at the same time has clearly advantageous distinguishing features:

• longevity. In length, one cucumber can grow up to 50 and even 80 cm;
• more sweet taste;
• the absolute absence of bitterness of the peel;
• dense, crisp flesh that does not coarsen and has no voids;
• small, soft seeds that do not coarse during the growth of the fetus;
• unusual aroma, causing association with melon or watermelon.

Chinese cucumbers are recognizable by the shape and size of the fruit: they are unusually long, have a prickly surface and pubescence in white

Chinese cucumbers have ripened, bear fruit for a long time and abundantly, both in a greenhouse or greenhouse and in open ground. The first crop can be harvested already 35-40 days after emergence, and this variety will bring the last fruits before the very frosts.

In addition to these features, Chinese cucumbers have other undeniable advantages:

• high resistance to major cucumber diseases;
• low light requirements. It does not play a decisive role in the yield of this variety;
• profusion of fruiting. Since the bulk of the flowers on the liana are female, moreover, several pieces are collected in bunches, there are many ovaries. With proper care, the yield can be up to 30 kg from one bush;
• excellent presentation. Even overgrown cucumbers do not turn yellow, remain dense, do not have large and hard seeds inside the fruit.

The fruits of Chinese cucumbers ripen most often in bunches of two or more pieces

When planting only 3-4 plants, you can meet the need of an ordinary family in this vegetable throughout the season

In addition to a large number of positive qualities, the Chinese cucumber has some disadvantages:

• it can be stored for a very short time. Almost the day after harvest, the fruit begins to lose its elasticity, may become soft;
• there are a large number of lettuce varieties of Chinese cucumber and much less - pickling and universal;
• most gardeners note a low seed germination;
• cucumber whip needs a mandatory vertical garter, otherwise the fruits will have an ugly, hook-shaped shape;
• some varieties have prickly spikes.

Experienced gardeners note that cucumbers whose spikes on the surface are painted in light shades are suitable for vegetable salads, and with dark spikes for salting

Types and varieties of Chinese cucumbers

The world of Chinese cucumbers is extremely diverse: among them there are thin and graceful, large and powerful, straight or fancifully curved, dark green and even milky white. Among the diverse assortment there are both varietal and hybrid forms.

Table: Popular varieties and hybrids of Chinese cucumbers

Photo gallery: popular varieties and hybrids of Chinese cucumbers

Reviews of gardeners on varieties and hybrids of Chinese cucumbers

Numerous reviews by summer residents and farmers indicate that Chinese cucumbers are amazing, they produce crops that cannot be obtained from cucumbers of other varieties.

Hybrids of the Chinese Sustainable series, namely cold-resistant, disease-resistant, shade-tolerant, there are others, are amazing. I haven’t seen anything like it yet. Two plants are enough for family food and neighbors, friends for distribution. We only eat these cucumbers all season, as they are sweet, juicy, tasty, crunchy, with a shallow seed chamber. Very unpretentious. Our early, long-fruited cucumbers do not even compare with the Chinese. Prickiness does not interfere at all.

dtr

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I have been growing Chinese cold-resistant since 2008, seedlings and 2 bushes in a greenhouse (along with tomatoes). Grow-sight for sore eyes! Strong, juicy, sweet, just have time to collect. Always help out if there is no weather. The whole family, neighbors, acquaintances are missing. At first they were surprised at the shape and size, but now they are waiting for the first cucumber to appear.

Marmi

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They advised the Chinese miracle variety in the store with these words: “Once you try it every year, you will plant it.” I’m not inclined to blindly believe other people's opinions, but this time the advice turned out to be one hundred percent. They planted this variety in the second wave, believing about frost resistance, around July 10 After 5 days, they saw seedlings of 10 seeds of 8 shoots. Heat resistance for our climate is also very important, since we live in the south of the country and in the summer our temperature rises to 40 degrees in the shade and by the end of July the cucumbers turn yellow and the vine dries up. Cucumbers are miraculously attractive: they reach a length of 45 cm, a dark green thin and delicate peel, juicy, practically seedless, tasty, pulp without any bitterness, suitable for salads, and for salting whole or chopped. Excellent taste in all For pickling, we tore out cans long in size.

mysi80

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After three years of cultivation, I was convinced that the varieties of Chinese cucumbers germinate rather poorly in the soil, so I prefer to plant seedlings. I warm the seeds in a thermos and plant them in technical pots. I’ve been preparing a bed for them in the fall, digging it up, picking out weed roots and taking it away from the beds, adding humus or compost (if ripened), bringing in superphosphate, since it decomposes for a long time, a bit of ash. When I pinch the lashes to the top of the trellis I pinch, in general, the Chinese practically do not give lateral shoots, so I plant them at a shorter distance from each other than ordinary cucumbers. I buy seeds all the time since there is no such area to grow cucumbers separately, different species. These cucumbers, the whole family simply loves their excellent taste, and most importantly, they are never bitter, even in extreme heat.

Danced

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I planted under the name "Chinese snakes" because I didn’t have a greenhouse, and last summer, too, I just put two seedlings together in the ground without shelter. Cucumbers were hooked, but very sweet, this year the husband is collecting a greenhouse and I will plant them necessarily.

Agaf

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Features of planting and growing Chinese cucumbers

It is not difficult to grow Chinese cucumbers; the agricultural technology of planting and caring for this variety is almost identical to the requirements for growing cucumbers of traditional varieties. Good illumination, constant humidity and sufficient soil fertility - these are the main conditions for obtaining a plentiful crop.

When growing Chinese cucumbers in a greenhouse, fruiting will be most plentiful, because here it will not depend on regional climatic features and the vagaries of the weather.

Growing Chinese cucumbers in sheltered ground in seedlings - a guarantee of an early harvest

Soil preparation

When choosing a place for planting Chinese cucumbers, preference is given to well-lit and blown areas where tomatoes, legumes, potatoes, carrots or cabbage were grown in the previous season. Undesirable precursors are eggplant, squash and squash, as these vegetables have the same pests. The soil for future beds should be prepared in advance, preferably in the fall, because most substances introduced as fertilizers take 4-5 months to decompose to the level of trace elements. In the autumn digging on 1 square. m beds recommended:

• 4 tbsp. tablespoons nitrofoski;
• 2 buckets of manure;
• 300 g of wood ash.

In spring, ammonium nitrate (1 tbsp.spoon per 1 sq. M) and superphosphate (2 tbsp.spoons per 1 sq. M) must be added to the soil.

Seed and seedling preparation

It is advisable to grow Chinese cucumber through seedlings. One of the disadvantages of this variety is the low germination of seeds, therefore, it is recommended to carry out pre-sowing preparation of seed material. It is as follows:

• seeds are placed in saline (1.5 tbsp.spoons of salt per 1 liter of water). After 5-10 minutes, high-quality seeds sink to the bottom, and empty seeds remain on the surface. Selected full seeds must be washed with clean water and dried;
  

  Seeds must be thoroughly mixed to remove all bubbles from the surface of the seeds
• It is recommended to warm up the selected planting material. This can be done in a thermostat. The heating temperature should not be higher than +50 degrees. The exposure time is 3 hours;
• to destroy fungal and bacterial infections, the seed material is soaked in a disinfectant solution. It can be a pink solution of potassium permanganate, in which the seeds must be kept for 30 minutes, or a solution of streptomycin (50 g per 1 liter of water), in it the seeds are soaked for a day:
  

  Before sowing, the seeds are disinfected in a solution of potassium permanganate: in a gauze bag, they are lowered into a saturated pink solution of potassium permanganate, taken out after 15-20 minutes and washed under running water

• to increase germination energy, seeds are treated with growth stimulants. You can use ready-made drugs: Athlete, Benefit, Epin-extra, the processing of which is carried out according to the attached instructions. Common home remedies in this area are boric acid (4 teaspoons per 1 liter of water) or baking soda (1 teaspoon per 1 liter of water). In these solutions, the seeds must be kept for a day.

After pre-sowing preparation, it is recommended to germinate the seeds, and then plant them in separate containers filled with nutrient soil. When planting seeds for seedlings, the following points should be considered:

• seedling containers must be placed on a pallet. This will greatly facilitate the process of caring for young plants;
• at the bottom of each tank there should be a drainage layer that will prevent moisture stagnation;
• it is recommended to use purchased soil mixture as soil;
• hatching cucumber seeds are buried in the soil by no more than 1.5 cm;
• The pallet is placed in a warm place. To create a greenhouse effect, it can be covered with glass or a transparent covering material, which is removed after the appearance of the first shoots. They should be expected approximately 7-8 days after sowing;
• cucumber seedlings will actively grow and develop on a well-lit window sill with a complete absence of drafts. The temperature in the room where the seedlings are kept should be in the range of 23-25 ​​degrees Celsius.

Comfortable temperature, proper lighting and competent watering - these are 3 basic principles on which good care for cucumber seedlings is based at home

Experienced gardeners advise to plant low-growing bean seeds in each planting tank on both sides of the cucumber seed. It will retain nitrogen in the soil, and when planting seedlings in the soil, bean seedlings need to be cut at the root.

Landing

Before planting cucumber seedlings in the soil on the beds should be set trellis or supports for plants. When growing Chinese cucumbers, these designs are mandatory, since the bushes have a large vegetative mass, therefore, without supports, the risk of diseases increases, caring for plants is difficult, the fruits can take on an ugly shape. The root system of Chinese cucumbers is also notable for its power, so installing supports on a bed with well-developed plants can damage the roots, and this will cause significant damage to the plant’s health and future harvest. In general, the process of transplanting seedlings into the soil is carried out quite standardly:

1. Each plant is planted in a separate hole, which corresponds to the size of the root system. On 1 running meter of a bed it is possible to place 4 bushes of a Chinese cucumber. Plants will grow mainly upward, a small number of lateral processes will form on them, so they will not interfere with each other. If seedlings were grown in peat pots, then seedlings are not removed from them, but, together with containers, they are embedded in the soil.
   

   You can plant cucumber seedlings in open ground when the earth warms up to a depth of 11-12 cm to + 12 ... +13 degrees

2. After planting, seedlings are abundantly watered.

Cucumber seedlings are planted on an open bed or in a greenhouse about 25-30 days after sowing. By this time, it should grow to 15-20 cm in height, have several real leaves and a strong stem.

When the seedlings grow to 15-20 cm, it can be moved to open ground or a greenhouse

Sowing seeds in the ground

Many gardeners practice planting Chinese cucumbers with seeds directly into the ground. In this case, you should pay attention to the following nuances:

• Sowing can only be done after the soil has warmed up enough. Its temperature should not be lower than + 13-15 degrees, and for some varieties - not lower than +20;
  

  Some gardeners, choosing the time when to plant cucumbers in the open ground, use potatoes as a guideline: if the crop has released several stems, then strong night frosts are unlikely

• sowing is carried out in holes located at a distance of 5 cm from each other. Between the rows of holes should maintain a distance of half a meter. Given the poor germination of seeds, at least three seeds are placed in each well;
• seed embedding depth should not exceed 3-4 cm;
• after emergence, the first thinning is carried out, leaving one plant at a distance of 10 cm from each other;
• the second thinning is carried out after the appearance of several real leaves on the seedlings. As a result, a distance of 25-30 cm should be maintained between the plants.
  

  Please note that it is better not to pull out extra seedlings from the ground, but to pluck or cut so as not to damage the root system of neighboring plants

Care Rules

The main conditions for the proper care of Chinese cucumbers are sufficient watering and systematic feeding. Watering plants should be in the morning or evening with warm water from a watering can with a spray. Hose or bucket watering can expose the root system. Top dressing is carried out after watering or rain. In hot and dry weather, it is recommended to apply fertilizer under the root, and in cold and cloudy weather you can use the foliar feeding method, which is able to qualitatively provide the culture with the necessary nutrients.

Water temperature for irrigation of cucumbers should not be lower than air temperature

Table: Fertilizer Schedule

Cucumber planting is recommended to periodically inspect, paying attention to the appearance of leaves and fruits. Deviation from the standard will tell you what nutrients the plant lacks, what additional measures should be taken to eliminate the problem.

Table: possible problems when growing Chinese cucumbers and how to solve them

In addition to moistening the beds and fertilizing, planting should be periodically weeded, loosened to a shallow depth (not more than 4 cm), and when reaching a height of 30-35 cm, carry out the first garter to the trellis.

Garter Chinese cucumbers - this is one of the most important operations in the process of growing crops

How to grow cucumbers from the Chinese series

Chinese cucumbers are a healthy and profitable culture. It is able to please gardeners not only with its unusualness, but also with its wonderful taste, long fruiting, and plentiful harvest. If this vegetable has not yet taken a worthy place in your beds, pay attention to it. The result will not disappoint you!