Content
Processing cucumbers in a greenhouse is not only a desirable procedure, but also a mandatory one. In an enclosed space, where it is always warm and humid, ideal conditions are created for the reproduction of all kinds of insects, mites, bacteria and fungi. In addition, they always have food in the greenhouse in the form of fruits, leaves or roots.
Preventative treatment
The processing of any vegetable, fruit and berry and ornamental crops is understood as a set of actions aimed at improving growth conditions, destroying pests and pathogens, as well as creating protective barriers of a preventive nature.
A greenhouse is a closed space where pathogens and pests enter mainly with the soil or when opened for ventilation, therefore preventive measures should begin with treating the soil and the greenhouse itself.
The largest number of pathogens and those who like to feed on cultivated plants are hidden in the top layer of soil - at a depth of 5 - 10 centimeters.
You need to start preparing the greenhouse for the new harvest in the fall. This is the case if you are not engaged in year-round cultivation of crops. If winter is the same busy time as summer, then preventative tillage should be done in the period between planting seedlings or seeds.
Soil cultivation consists of the following procedures.
- Remove all plant debris from the soil surface. If they are not infected with pathogens, then they can be placed in a compost bin. If there are obvious signs of damage, they should be burned.
- The next stage of soil preparation in the greenhouse is treatment with a solution of 7% copper sulfate. It is necessary to spray not only the soil itself, but also the space around the beds.
- After two weeks, dig up the soil, turning the layers over to a depth of 20-30 centimeters.
- Treat the soil again with copper sulfate.
This completes the main cycle of the preparatory period. Further processing is carried out as necessary.
For example, before planting seedlings, the hole can be filled with boiling water or a weak solution of potassium permanganate.
Both methods have their pros and cons. Boiling water warms the soil well, increases the survival rate of seedlings, and creates the opportunity for rapid growth. However, its effect is limited to a small space and time. Within an hour, the place of dead harmful and beneficial microorganisms will be taken by bacteria, fungi and multicellular animals from untreated areas of soil.
In addition, the soil will be enriched with manganese, which is of great importance for ensuring the successful growth of cucumbers. You can combine these two processing methods by pouring boiling water with a solution of potassium permanganate.
The preparatory stage also includes the process of disinfecting the greenhouse premises itself.
This should be done using a solution of copper sulfate of high concentration. The entire inside of the greenhouse needs to be treated regularly.
Periodic painting of wooden and metal structures, of course, will create unfavorable conditions for dangerous organisms, but painting every six months is difficult, and treating with vitriol is a quick and cheap process.
There is one subtlety in preventive treatment before planting cucumbers in a greenhouse. Despite the fact that the measures are preventive in nature, it is necessary to influence pathogens and pests at the moment of their transition to active life.
Nowadays, all pesticides are produced for environmental safety purposes with a short period of action, so by the time microorganisms and arthropod larvae wake up, all your products will have weakened their effect. It is best to carry out treatment after thawing ten centimeters of soil during the period of warm sunny weather, but ten days before planting crops.
Preventative measures also include seed treatment. Often, you can use the same products for this as for treating adult plants. In this case, you need to combine both antibacterial and antifungal agents.
Main diseases of cucumbers
Cucumbers are a popular crop, but troublesome. This visitor from the tropics is especially susceptible to local pests and diseases. This is especially true for greenhouse cultivation, where everyone lives well, both cucumbers and those who like to feast on their juicy leaves and fruits.
Cucumbers in a greenhouse can be affected by the following diseases:
- fusarium;
- ordinary mosaic;
- anthracnose;
- olive spot;
- powdery and downy mildew;
- gray, white and root rot.
All these diseases can appear at the most unexpected moment. Activation of pathogens may be associated with improper care of cucumbers.
This means that preventive measures should include not only pre-treatment of everything in the greenhouse, but also ensuring an optimal regime for growing cucumbers.
If, despite good treatment, your cucumbers still get sick, then you need to:
- optimize irrigation;
- thin out too dense plantings;
- ensure warming of the greenhouse during a sharp drop in air temperature;
- Water only with warm water;
- provide automatic ventilation.
To prevent cucumber diseases from taking you by surprise, stock up on ash from burning organic residues in advance. You can simply add some of the ash to the soil, and put some of it aside as a reserve - it will be useful for sprinkling leaves damaged by diseases and pests.
Features of treatment for different lesions
The experience of many generations of farmers and the work of scientists have created a wide range of means to combat diseases and pests of cucumbers.
- Infusion of red pepper with tobacco dust, ash and soap. It is necessary to grind 30 grams of fresh capsicum, add 200 grams of tobacco dust, and add 10 liters of hot water. The mixture must be kept for 24 hours, after which add one tablespoon of a concentrated soap solution of 72% laundry soap and 3 tablespoons of wood ash. A space of approximately 10 square meters can be treated with this amount of solution.The product is effective for controlling small organisms that drink plant juices. If you don’t have pepper, you can get by with a solution of soap and ash. Its presence on the leaves creates a caustic protective layer that is irresistible to small organisms.
- Karbofos. Add 2 tablespoons of karbofos to 20 liters of warm water. This solution can be used to treat not only the cucumbers themselves, but also the entire greenhouse.
Karbofos is used against all multicellular animals that damage the leaf blade. It is effective in the fight against sucking and gnawing insects, mites and their larvae. - Inta-Vir. This is a product that is used to combat aphids, whiteflies, thrips and gnawing larvae of beetles and butterflies. Cypermethrin, which is the main active ingredient in Inta-Vir, does not kill insects, but paralyzes them, as a result they stop eating and die from exhaustion.
The dosage of the drug is 1 tablet per 10 liters of warm water. You can only use a fresh solution, as its effect does not last long. The danger of Inta-Vir is that it also negatively affects pollinators, so it is better to use it during the absence of flowers or at night, processing it at dusk, when pollinating insects no longer fly. Overnight, the drug will lose its strength and will not cause significant harm to beneficial insects. Prophylactic use of Inta-Vir is not advisable. Spraying with this preparation should be done only if you see those boogers that bite into your cucumbers.
Use of fungicides
In greenhouses there is a high risk of developing fungal diseases. This is due to the need to maintain high levels of temperature and humidity.
Fungicides that can be used in a greenhouse are divided into the following groups:
- Copper-based preparations. These include the copper sulfate mentioned here - the most popular and cheapest remedy. In addition, in the fight for the cucumber harvest, it is advisable to use Bordeaux mixture, Oksikhom, Kurzat, Ordan, Abiga-Pik. A distinctive feature of copper-based preparations is their versatility.
- Sulfur-based preparations. These include such well-known fungicides as garden sulfur, Thiovit Jet, Cumulus. Sulfur has long been used to fumigate all rooms where fungal infections could develop. If signs of fungal diseases appear in the greenhouse, then it is necessary to treat not only the cucumbers, but also the entire greenhouse with sulfur-containing preparations.
- Carboxins. This group includes drugs such as Vitaros and Previkur. They are usually used in the fight against rot and downy mildew.
- Topaz. This drug is known to everyone as an effective means of combating powdery mildew. It can be used both to treat an already manifested disease, and as a preventive treatment if there is a suspicion that cucumbers may be infected. Plants must be treated at least three times with an interval of 10 - 15 days.
Fungal diseases are common in any agricultural area where high levels of humidity are maintained.
The use of sulfur-containing drugs is especially effective. Firstly, they are, as a rule, not dangerous, and secondly, at the same time they are fed with sulfur, which is not always contained in the soil in the required quantities.
Any spraying of vegetative plants must be carried out carefully, treating the leaves from all sides. And one more rule - before planting, be sure to treat the seedlings with some preparation that does not have a strong effect on the environment. Carry out repeated preventive treatment after the young cucumbers produce their first whiskers. You may not have to resort to emergency measures after this.
