how to grow cucumbers please?

my hubby never has any luck with his cucumbers. they germinate, grow an inch or 2 and then die. Or if he buys them, they dont last long.

can anyone please give me a step by step guide to germinating and growing cucumber plants please? :luv:

 

They are very very tasty plants for slugs and snails, so make sure they are protected.
I grow mine in a greenhouse (there are outside varieties, but they tend to have tougher skins!) also once the flowers have done their thing pick off any that dont have fruit...they are males, and useless once spent :wink:
The only other thing I would say about cucumbers is lots and regular watering, The fruit is mostly water and so they dont tollerate being dry at all. If they dry out the fruit can become very bitter.
Hope this helps and good luck

 

thanks, but they dont get that big! never had one flower, even when we bought them. yes we grow them in a mini greenhouse in the sun, protected from frost and slugs.

 

Greenhouse cues need to be kept very warm, so avoid planting too early and only buy plants that are indoors at garden centres, the ones on draughty shop fronts should be avoided.
Go for F1 hybrids that are all female.

Plant into a pot, (if thats how you grow them), of ordinary compost, perhaps with some slow release fertilizer.
Train the plant upwards, and feed with a high nitrogen feed in mid summer, and keep well watered, but dont overwater if its cool and cloudy.

Tricky things to start but once established it get easier, main thing is keep the plant warm during the early stages, so dont be in any hurry to plant out.

 

...... and the stems are prone to rotting off so form a mound around the stem (as if it is growing on a small hill ) so that the water can drain away from the stem.

 

I to had problems last year with my first attempt at cucumbers.
They where outdoor variety and nevr got past the first fruit stage,
This year I have two growing in the consevatory and at the moment all is looking good.
Theres some good tips in this thread that I shall be using.
Thanks guys.
Robert

 

thanks for thos tips, i shall try them. the mini greenhouse is in a sunny position and closed at night, so warmth shouldnt be a problem

 

They may still be attacked by slugs/snails, even in a mini greenhouse.
What happens? do the plants start to die or are the growing tips being bitten off?
Personally, I cover the soil around mine in slug pellets and they are also inside.

 

Robert, outdoor cues are a bit different, they are a bit hardier and need to be well hardened off before planting out.
But they also need to be pollinated, so leave the male flowers on and just let them get on with it.

 

they grow an inch or 2 out of the soil, then turn brown and rot. but im sure theyre not too wet. out of the 6 that germinated we only have one left and they are in the same segmented tray so have been exposed to the same conditions

 

RandRos.....please forgive me if you think I am highjacking your thread.
It seemed to be a good thread to update on how my cus are doing at this time after my first year of trying last year and the dismal failure they turned out to be.
This year I am growing just two plants in my conservatory and as you can see from the pictures, so far so good.
At this time its 26.9C out there and they seem to love it.
I mist them with water just about everytime I pass and I have started to feed them with liquid tomato food.
One plant has four well developed fruit and Im still waiting for the second one to flower.
This first picture is the best fruit so far.
The second picture you can see the framework I am training the plant to grow.
I really hope that no bugs get to them as they could be a problem to cure in the conservatory.

 

oooo ur having some luck then

we have one plant left out of 6. its about 4 inches high and ive just transplanted it into a bigger container. heres hoping i havent killed it!