God I love growing our own

[JamezF]

but they don't usually pair up until the New year

Indeed. This sounded really nasty and clearly neither participant was in the mood to back down. I'm wondering if it was some sort of territorial dispute.

James

 

[Sutty]

Can any of you clever gardening folks advise?
I bought a couple of cucumber plants a couple of months or so ago, transplanted them into bigger pots & fed. They are in a mini-greenhouse, though they may not be getting as much light as they would like. The plants have grown/are growing well and have flowered. Now have around 8 small fruits each, around 3-4cm long, but the fruits aren't getting bigger!
It's a small fruit variety - supposed to be 6-8 inch.
Any idea why they aren't enlarging?
Thanks for any help!

 

[fian]

Can any of you clever gardening folks advise?
I bought a couple of cucumber plants a couple of months or so ago, transplanted them into bigger pots & fed. They are in a mini-greenhouse, though they may not be getting as much light as they would like. The plants have grown/are growing well and have flowered. Now have around 8 small fruits each, around 3-4cm long, but the fruits aren't getting bigger!
It's a small fruit variety - supposed to be 6-8 inch.
Any idea why they aren't enlarging?
Thanks for any help!

Good morning Sutty.
To reduce external factors you could provide some more information. Specifically:
A. Although they are only two plants and I suppose they are in different pots, how far apart are they? Do any plants cast shadows on them?
B. Are plants of the same variety and self-pollinating?
C. Frequency and quantity of irrigation.
D. Frequency and mode of greenhouse ventilation. Related to this greenhouse temperature at 8 in the morning and at 14:00 in the afternoon.
E. Pot capacity?

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

greenhouse cucumbers don't need pollinating - unless you want a cucumber packed full of big seeds. so what variety have you planted?
I've found this year, probably due to the unsettled weather that cucumbers are a bit slower in developing, I've been a bit disappointed in the tardiness in development of our mini cucumbers although SWMBO hasn't complained about only getting a fat six inches
ensuring they get plenty of water helps - although remember, that especially when young they don't like to 'have their feet permanently wet'.
The weird thing I have had this year is that one cucumber plant, although bouncing along has only developed male flowers!

 

[Sutty]

Good morning Sutty.
To reduce external factors you could provide some more information. Specifically:
A. Although they are only two plants and I suppose they are in different pots, how far apart are they? Do any plants cast shadows on them?
B. Are plants of the same variety and self-pollinating?
C. Frequency and quantity of irrigation.
D. Frequency and mode of greenhouse ventilation. Related to this greenhouse temperature at 8 in the morning and at 14:00 in the afternoon.
E. Pot capacity?

greenhouse cucumbers don't need pollinating - unless you want a cucumber packed full of big seeds. so what variety have you planted?
I've found this year, probably due to the unsettled weather that cucumbers are a bit slower in developing, I've been a bit disappointed in the tardiness in development of our mini cucumbers although SWMBO hasn't complained about only getting a fat six inches
ensuring they get plenty of water helps - although remember, that especially when young they don't like to 'have their feet permanently wet'.
The weird thing I have had this year is that one cucumber plant, although bouncing along has only developed male flowers!

Thanks both. Variety is "Passandra" supposedly an "outdoor" variety, I understand with female only flowers which appears to be the case. I have them both in an el-cheapo flexible plastic "greenhouse". Not sure of temperatures but they are in 9" pots and have been kept moist and fed.
I left the door rolled up initially for max light - there's a green thread woven through the plastic creating a 1cm mesh within it. With the weather being so poor I've had it closed for the past couple of weeks & it does get pretty warm. I've just put a min-max thermometer in to see.
Light may be the issue as they are in shade until about 1pm, though the plants are growing well. Perhaps I should pinch the growing point out now?

 

[Goran]

Let me know when you get one over a kilo

Almost, 0,85kg ( last digits on display not working). When I have again over a kilo will try to take a pic..

 

[Sutty]

Rats. Given up with the traps. Stuffed poison down the holes.

Air rifle works a treat - peanut butter on a good backstop eg paving slab as bait.
Or one of these
https://www.electricfence-online.co...r-yAJc_MiP1JwTPGkgzXh2SPl0Uwo19oaAhjiEALw_wcB

 

[fian]

Thanks both. Variety is "Passandra" supposedly an "outdoor" variety, I understand with female only flowers which appears to be the case. I have them both in an el-cheapo flexible plastic "greenhouse". Not sure of temperatures but they are in 9" pots and have been kept moist and fed.
I left the door rolled up initially for max light - there's a green thread woven through the plastic creating a 1cm mesh within it. With the weather being so poor I've had it closed for the past couple of weeks & it does get pretty warm. I've just put a min-max thermometer in to see.
Light may be the issue as they are in shade until about 1pm, though the plants are growing well. Perhaps I should pinch the growing point out now?

https://www.suttons.co.uk/vegetable.../cucumber-organic-seeds-passandra-f1_MH-49087https://greenvegetableseeds.com/product/cucumber-passandra-f1/https://www.simplyseed.co.uk/cucumber-seeds/passandra.htmlOf these three pages I would recommend:
A. Relocate in the greenhouse to a position of full sun, possibly removing the plant from the greenhouse to the outside for a couple of weeks (the anticyclone situation around French Brittany augurs a few days of warm weather in the south of the UK).
B. Cut the tips of the branches.
C. Remove half of the fruits on each plant (thinning) to promote productivity.
D. Keep the greenhouse open for an hour at noon. Before closing, water the plants*. Also wet the greenhouse floor to increase humidity.
* Gather basil leaves and dill. Macerate in water. Spray the plants with this water.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Air rifle works a treat - peanut butter on a good backstop eg paving slab as bait.
Or one of these
https://www.electricfence-online.co...r-yAJc_MiP1JwTPGkgzXh2SPl0Uwo19oaAhjiEALw_wcB

That looks really interesting.

 

[Sutty]

That looks really interesting.

Don't stick your finger in it!
Interesting to poke the trigger with a bit of straw or similar though! You are rapidly convinced it will be a clean kill!
Try to arrange it so a killed rat falls away so the next one can try his luck.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Air rifle works a treat - peanut butter on a good backstop eg paving slab as bait.
Or one of these
https://www.electricfence-online.co...r-yAJc_MiP1JwTPGkgzXh2SPl0Uwo19oaAhjiEALw_wcB

Trouble is that the rats are wary of the traps and have plenty of food dangling from the tomato vines. At the entrance to one hole hidden under a section covered by weed suppressant we found a cache of Sungold tomatoes.

 

[Bryang]

Thanks both. Variety is "Passandra" supposedly an "outdoor" variety, I understand with female only flowers which appears to be the case. I have them both in an el-cheapo flexible plastic "greenhouse". Not sure of temperatures but they are in 9" pots and have been kept moist and fed.
I left the door rolled up initially for max light - there's a green thread woven through the plastic creating a 1cm mesh within it. With the weather being so poor I've had it closed for the past couple of weeks & it does get pretty warm. I've just put a min-max thermometer in to see.
Light may be the issue as they are in shade until about 1pm, though the plants are growing well. Perhaps I should pinch the growing point out now?

9 inch pot is too small for cues. I only grow Marketmore 76, smallish fruit and gives a good crop. Cues do like a good "feed" and water.

 

[Sutty]

9 inch pot is too small for cues. I only grow Marketmore 76, smallish fruit and gives a good crop. Cues do like a good "feed" and water.

I did wonder if I should have used a bigger pot - hard to change now they are attached to everything in sight with tendrils!

 

[Erichalfbee]

They like a spray with water too.

 

[Bryang]

They like a spray with water too.

I never spray mine. In the past I found spraying incourages mildew. To help them pollinate I give the "supports" a couple of taps. I also pour water over the paths to increase humidity on hot sunny days.

 

[Bryang]

I did wonder if I should have used a bigger pot - hard to change now they are attached to everything in sight with tendrils!

If they are "cheapo" plastic pots, cut/break the bottoms off the pots, loosen the soil at the bottom of the plant and slide a grow bag under.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I never spray mine. In the past I found spraying incourages mildew. To help them pollinate I give the "supports" a couple of taps. I also pour water over the paths to increase humidity on hot sunny days.

Ours are in a polytunnel with both ends open so plenty of ventilation. It’s Stans job anyway. I plant the seeds and raise the plants and he looks after them. It’s more than my life’s worth to criticise what he’s doing in there. I did get my way over the strawberry bed, though. Everything is in large pots sunk into the ground.

 

[CLB]

Our six Burpless Tasty Green cucumber plants have been really prolific this year. In the last month I’ve had 25 cucumbers in the fridge most of the time, despite giving them away in pairs to friends and neighbours.

I think several factors have contributed;

1) Because of a series of family issues earlier in the year I didn’t sow the seeds as early as I normally would. I think this is significant as the seedlings were kept in growing mode without retardation. I had more interesting varieties to plant, but had to rationalise my planting due to the lateness of sowing.
2) They’re in 14” pots, with a good depth of compost. The larger pots have not dried out as quickly, or become too hot for the roots.
3) I cut a grow bag in half, then mixed home compost and a small amount of soil together per plant.
4) I tried harder not to over-water. In previous years the leaves have sometimes dripped after watering.
5) The weather has been helpful. In previous years it’s been too hot and sunny in my greenhouse to keep the conditions right. One year I had to put umbrellas above them to prevent them from frazzling!
6) When we had the hot weather, I religiously wetted the greenhouse floor to cool/moisten the air a couple of times a day.
I don’t suppose next year will work out as well!

 

[Amari]

although SWMBO hasn't complained about only getting a fat six inches

 

[Amari]

Dug two rows of main crop spuds today. Best yield that I can remember despite drought of April-June during which I watered weekly. Planted in rows of ten, each row pre-manured with horse dung in November.
Caledonian Rose (a new variety for us) = 15kg, Maris Piper = 21 kg. Desirée still to be dug.