What to Do About Cucumber Plants Going Dormant? Cause Analysis and Remedial Methods
Cucumber plants going dormant is a very common occurrence. Many growers, in order to increase cucumber yields, do not control the number of cucumbers left on the plants. This causes the plants' nutrients to be unable to be supplied evenly and normally, hindering cucumber growth and leading to problems that affect both yield and quality, such as weakened growth, yellow leaves, and deformed cucumbers. If not managed in time, it can even result in total crop loss. So what should be done if cucumber plants go dormant? Let's take a look below!
1. Light Management
Light is relatively important for cucumber growth. Sufficient light can enhance cucumber photosynthesis and increase the plants' nutrient accumulation. Even when encountering continuous rainy weather, the covers should still be opened for a period of time. Many friends think that opening them without sun is useless and will also lower the temperature, causing discomfort to cucumber growth. But this is wrong. On rainy days, pulling back the covers still allows cucumbers to carry out photosynthesis, because scattered light exists in the sky. It can also appropriately raise the temperature for the plants.
2. Plant Adjustment
Everyone should be relatively familiar with lowering cucumber vines. When lowering cucumber vines, we should note that they cannot be lowered too far down; too low affects nutrient absorption and is not conducive to plant growth. After successfully lowering the vines, control the plants at around 1.4-1.6 m, and the leaves on the plants must not be fewer than 15, so as to enhance photosynthesis and promote plant growth. Timely fruit thinning is key. Many causes of dormancy are because the number of cucumbers has exceeded the plant's load. Control the cucumbers on the plants within the range the plants can bear, and harvest them in time to provide sufficient nutrients and growing space for new cucumbers. Leaves that have aged and turned yellow on the plants should also be removed in time to reduce unnecessary nutrient supply.
3. Fertilizer and Water Management
When encountering low-temperature and weak-light weather, the frequency of watering should be reduced. Especially in winter, the watering frequency should be controlled to about once every 3 weeks, and when watering, use a small amount of water to prevent cucumber cold damage. After watering, do not ventilate immediately. Wait until the greenhouse temperature rises to about 28-32°C before ventilating. When ventilating, pay attention to the vents; do not open all the vents at once. They should be opened slowly so the cucumbers can adapt. When fertilizing, mainly mix with water and apply as a flush application. When fertilizing, be careful not to apply a single nutrient excessively or over-apply.
4. Disease Control
Diseases are also one of the main causes of cucumber plants going dormant, such as brown spot disease and downy mildew. These are diseases that commonly occur in cucumbers. We should follow the principle of giving priority to prevention, with control as a supplement, inspect the cucumber greenhouse regularly, observe the condition of the plants, and ensure there are no diseased plants in the greenhouse and no signs of disease. Once found, promptly pull out the diseased plants and take them out of the greenhouse. Spray the greenhouse with chemicals for control, and ventilate promptly after spraying, otherwise pesticide damage may occur. When using chemicals, control the concentration well; if too high, it will also have a certain inhibitory effect on cucumbers.
The above are the solutions for cucumber plants going dormant. In fact, it also requires us to do a good job of prevention in our daily work. After cucumber plants go dormant, they cannot be treated; the diseased plants can only be pulled out. That is why we need to do all this prevention work well, and disease control work should also be given special attention, because if it is not managed well, not only will diseases occur and cause dormancy, but pesticide damage and other problems that are even more harmful to plant growth may also occur. This article is for reference only. Thank you for reading and supporting.