Lettuce / Cucumber

[Ibroxblue]

Hi All,

Hare started quite unsuccessfully in my attempt to grow Lettuce and Cucumber as I have sowed both in pots and seed trays and they started to fall over (Cucumber) while the Lettuce looks like Water Cress.

Can I please ask what I might be doing wrong - I have some in seed trays and some in pots filled with multipurpose compost and to my knowledge have kept the soil moist.

Does anyone have any sound advice for starting both of these off in pots - i.e temperature / watering / soil / light / etc.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

[shirlthegirl43]

Hi there. first of all, lettuce looks like cress at first - takes a good while to look like lettuce. It is still quite early to start cucumbers but if you have good bright windowsills they should be okay.

Sow into damp, not moist, compost, and leave until they have appeared. Only water if the compost is really getting dry and then do so from beneath if possible. Lettuce will be fine in a cool but light place while cucumbers will need more warmth (seed packet should give temperature). You don't want them to grow too quickly and the lettuce will grow much more healthily if kept cool. Light is the most important thing for all seedlings.

[TEB]

I treat cukes the same as Toms for starting off, sow in trays (multi purpose compost) with lid/covered, keep on windowsill, remove lid when germinated, dont let dry off and transplant when big enough to handle into 3" pots of multi purpose compost, depending whether they are for outside or greenhouse - plant out when all risk of frost is gone.

For lettuce I just sow straight into the ground so not much help - sorry.