Skinning cucumbers: instructions & explanation

If you keep a few things in mind, skinning cucumbers is not rocket science. For example, it can help prevent diseases in cucumbers and ensure an even harvest.

Everyone has heard of tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum) must be exhausted. But how does it look at Cucumber (Cucumis sativus) the end? Do you also have to exhaust cucumber plants and if so, how do you go about it? This article provides answers to questions on this subject and provides instructions on how to skim cucumbers. It also explains which types of cucumbers should be skimmed off.

Do you have to skim cucumbers?

Opinions are divided on the question of whether you have to prune cucumbers, and whether you actually achieve higher yields by pricking out cucumber plants has not been scientifically proven. Nevertheless, regardless of the question of the yield, there are some good reasons for skimming.

• Growth control: Especially in the greenhouse, where space is often limited, you don't want cucumbers growing in all directions. Pruning can help guide the plants upwards in a controlled manner on climbing aids.
• Disease prevention: Many diseases affect the plant from the ground. Also, most pathogens feel, for example mildew, most comfortable in warm and humid climates. If the lower side shoots are removed and the foliage is thinned out a little, you ensure better ventilation and faster drying of the plants. A lot has already been done to protect your plants from disease.
• Directing the growth energy into the fruits: What you want to harvest from the cucumber plant are lots of fruits and no long side shoots. It can therefore be worthwhile to stop the growth of too many side shoots so that the plant puts more energy into developing fruits.

Disadvantages of skimming

However, the advantages of stripping are also offset by some disadvantages.

• One could possibly remove fertile side shoots.
• Since wounds are always inflicted on the plant when it is cut, there are also entry points for pathogens. Therefore, if possible, you should max out in the morning and in dry weather. The wounds dry quickly and most pathogens have a hard time without water.

Ultimately, you have to find out for yourself whether the benefit outweighs the time it takes to remove it. There is good news, however, because unlike tomatoes, only one side shoot forms in each leaf axil of cucumbers. That means: One-time skimming is sufficient.

Skinning cucumbers: instructions

Once you have decided to skim it, the next steps are not difficult. You only need your fingers and possibly a sharp knife for side shoots that have already grown a bit larger. It is best to start with the pricking out from below. But which shoots should you remove from cucumbers?

1. You can completely remove all side shoots on the bottom 50 cm. Fruits that would grow there would lie on the ground. So you should regularly check your young plants for stingy shoots and remove them if necessary. If your cucumber plant is growing well and vigorously, after a while it can make sense to remove the lower leaves as well. Because the greater the distance between the ground and the first leaf, the more difficult it is for pathogens to penetrate the plant.
2. From 50 cm you should regularly check the leaf axils for side shoots and cut them off behind the first one or two fruit sets.
3. If your cucumber literally grows over your head and you don't know where to direct the plant to, it can be worthwhile to cut off the main shoot at the top at the end of the season. Fruits that the plant would now set would no longer ripen anyway and so it can remaining growth energy put into the remaining fruits still on the plant will.

Tip: If the side shoots are still small and fresh, they can simply be broken out with your fingernails. From a length of about 5 cm, however, it is advisable to use a sharp knife. Because the larger the wound, the more the plant is weakened and the larger the entry point for pathogens that are left behind. It is also important that, in the best case scenario, the knife is disinfected after each plant, this can prevent you from transmitting diseases in your cucumber stock yourself.

Which cucumbers have to be skimmed is less of that Cucumber variety, but more dependent on the type of cultivation. Basically, it can be said that cucumbers can be skinned as soon as some kind of climbing aid is available and space is tight. Skinning cucumbers in the greenhouse therefore always makes sense. It is also advisable to trim the lettuce and snake cucumbers, as these are usually diluted. On the other hand, it is usually not necessary to skim free-range cucumbers. Pickled cucumbers and pickled cucumbers grow on the floor anyway and have more space outside. Whether mini and snack cucumbers should be exhausted also depends on the cultivation. If they are grown in pots on the balcony, pruning is usually not mentioned as a maintenance measure, as already said, but it can make sense in a narrow greenhouse.
Often, cucumbers are also split into two branches. The lowest side shoot is also selected and directed as the main shoot. With this method, all other side shoots can then be removed and only the fruit sets in the leaf axils of the main shoots can be left, as there are two fruit shoots.

Tip: Cucumbers are among the heavy eaters. That is why sufficient fertilization is particularly important for a rich cucumber harvest. In addition to various home remedies such as Nettle manure or Coffee grounds ours, for example, is also suitable Plantura organic tomatoes & vegetable fertilizer excellent for adequately supplying the cucumber plant. It also has a higher potassium content, which is optimally adapted to the requirements of cucumbers and is produced and packaged in a resource-saving manner.

So you don't necessarily have to use cucumbers. However, it looks completely different with most types of tomatoes. If you want to achieve high yields here, the plants should definitely be maxed out. How to do this is explained in more detail in our article Skinned tomatoes explained.