How long is the root of a cucumber and why is it important for a gardener to know?

Far from being an idle question - why should the average summer resident know how the root system of cucumbers works? The health of a plant's roots determines its development and productivity. In the case of this culture, it is important to take into account all the features of its structure, so that labor and other costs will more than pay for themselves.

The structure of the root system of cucumbers

The main root of a cucumber is a stem that extends into the soil. The depth of root penetration depends on the climate. For example, in the Middle Lane it rarely exceeds 30 cm, in the south - a meter, in especially arid regions it reaches one and a half meters.

The primary feeding roots are located in the near-surface layer - at a 20–30 cm level. They extend radially from the main root along its entire length. But the deeper the rod penetrates, the less the number of lateral roots becomes, and their length decreases.

The intricate interweaving of first-order nourishing roots keeps the vine in the ground, and also collects the necessary nutrients. With a strong rod, the supply network is quite fragile - it breaks easily with careless loosening, dies at temperatures below 13 ° C. Deficiency of moisture causes a halt in its development, in exchange the rod that produces water is strengthened.

The high absorption capacity of the root system, the specific gravity of which is only 1.5% of the mass of an adult liana, is explained by the huge surface area of ​​the roots - main, main and secondary. It is several times larger than the leaf area!

To keep the roots of cucumbers strong

The fragility of the root system of the cucumber is the main reason why the plant is considered capricious. However, it is enough to follow the rules of cultivation so that "whims" do not cause much trouble.

Sowing

Although the roots of cucumbers are quite long, small cups are enough for seedlings for their formation and primary growth. In the general seedling capacity, sowing is not carried out - during the pick, a large number of weak lateral roots are damaged, which not only slows down growth, but also creates an additional threat to the development of diseases.

Often summer residents grow cucumber seedlings in common seedling containers, using steamed sawdust as a substrate. Their structure contributes to the rapid development of the root system, slightly grown seedlings are planted without damaging the thin roots.

Transplanting

Carrying out preparatory measures before planting seedlings, take into account their features:

• How long is the root of a young cucumber - usually a three-week-old plant has a stem more than 10 centimeters. This is taken into account when forming holes.
• What is the temperature of the soil - more often it is lower than that to which the seedlings are accustomed. That is why hardening of seedlings is required.
• The size of the feeding area of ​​each plant - feeding roots are able to master the soil at a distance of up to half a meter from the main stem. This factor determines the distance between the vines. To ensure the correct development of the root system and sufficient supply of nutrition, the distance between the planting points is observed - at least 40 cm in a row in the greenhouse, 30 cm - in the open field.

The lateral roots, although weak, are "gluttonous" - they rapidly draw nutrients from the soil. That is why only one plant is planted in one hole: if you plant even two seedlings, competition will lead to the weakness of both.

Care

Since the lateral roots are equally bad at resisting various adversities, regardless of age, caring for a borage also has its own nuances.

Loosening

The procedure is carried out extremely carefully: the restoration of damaged roots occurs within a week, if the soil moisture is at least 80%. During this period, the vine receives an insufficient amount of nutrients, that is, the gardener collects the crop later, and the fruits will be of inferior quality.

To avoid such troubles, after planting the seedlings, cucumber beds are covered with a layer of mulch.

Suitable organic material is determined according to the following criteria:

• the level of illumination of the garden;
• moisture capacity of the soil;
• temperature regime of growing;
• pH value and degree of soil salinity;
• the amount of organic matter in the substrate.

Hilling

As a rule, when growing cucumbers, hilling is rarely carried out, although it is this procedure that increases the volume of the root system and is especially useful for increasing the yield of early and mid-early varieties.

Usually, two methods of increasing the root mass are used for seedlings:

1. Substrate is added to the seedlings in pots as they grow. The technique is suitable for varieties that form adventitious roots. If you look closely at the stalks of the seedlings, you can see small tubercles on them - the future lateral roots.
2. Seedlings that have released two leaves are transferred into a higher container - milk bags, plastic bottles cut to 2/3 of the height, etc. As in the previous case, soil is added as the bush grows.

When transplanting such seedlings to the beds, the holes are dug deeper than with standard cultivation.

To increase the number of roots of cucumber bushes directly in the garden, the seedlings are planted in a trench. A plant with a lump of earth is placed in a groove, covered with a layer of straw 8-10 cm, then with soil.

A number of varieties are capable of forming additional roots in the leaf axils. In this case, hilling is a guaranteed way to increase the yield of lashes. This feature is used when growing crops in heated greenhouses: the fertile lower part of the stem is rolled up in a ring and covered with soil. The formation of new roots stimulates the further growth of the vine, its fruiting. Such plants can be harvested within 10-12 months.

Top dressing

Attention should be paid to the peculiarities of the development of the roots of cucumbers with a lack of basic elements.

• With a lack of nitrogen, the growth of lateral processes is reduced or stopped.
• With a phosphorus deficiency, the length of the roots responsible for the absorption of nutrients decreases.

Bare roots immediately fall asleep with earth, in the light they stop branching. The general lack of lighting in cucumbers also inhibits the development of the feeding system.

Unusual ways of growing

Summer residents, preoccupied with good protection of the root system of cucumbers from diseases, often invent the most unusual methods of growing crops.

Successful experiments on growing tomatoes in buckets, suspended so that the tops are looking down, extended the idea to other crops - they successfully grow cucumbers growing upside down. The technique is very simple:

1. Large containers (from 5 liters) are selected, rather large holes are made in the bottom - 3-5 cm.
2. The bottom of the container is lined with two-centimeter thick foam rubber, the nutritious soil mixture is poured.
3. The containers are suspended.
4. Cucumber seedlings are planted in holes punched in the bottom of the containers.

This technique is usually used when growing cucumbers at home - on a loggia or veranda.

Maintaining conditions for the normal development of the root system of cucumbers is an important component of crop care. Experienced gardeners say: "What are the roots of cucumbers, this will be the harvest."