Potting up cucumbers?

[Caro]

Hi,

I'm growing cucumbers for the first time. They'll soon need their first potting up ... my question is, if they seem a bit leggy, can you re-pot them "deeper" as you can with chillies and tomatoes?

Many thanks

[Flummery]

Many do. I find they tend to rot. They don't root from the stems like tomatoes do, which is really the point of burying toms deeply.

[Tomatoking]

Hi Caro

As Flummery said, I would be careful planting it too deep. I am sure it will soon balance out after it has been re-potted. Mine were a little leggy before I re-potted them and they are fine now.

Mr TK

[Jillyreeves]

I would advise against if for the reason stated above, possible rotting of stem.

[SarzWix]

I've potted mine up to the seed leaves before, and they were fine. But I was very careful with watering from the bottom etc. You could try potting one deeply, and do your own trial?

[mogs]

I've had them rot before now, so am now always careful to plant on a mound and create a 'moat' around them to avoid them touching wet soil - it's heartbreaking to have nurtured them for weeks, just to open the greenhouse door one morning to see they've croaked overnight

[falkon]

plant deeper but dont cover the stem with compost , instead put a stick up to the first leaves to support the stem then as it grow and the stem thickens then the rotting risk will be lesser and lesser and you can start covering the stem..

[Sanjo]

I grew melons and cucumbers in the greenhouse last year. Open ended pots on top of bags of homemade compost.
When we went on holiday I rigged up a watering system but was worried about the rotting of the stems as I couldn't keep my eye on them.
I cut the bottoms off small yoghurt pots and slit up the side. I was able to open the pot and slip it around the stem of the plant, just anchoring into the compost. I was trying to avoid the feed/water going too close to the stem and it worked. I had a good crop of cucs, and a few melons.

[sewer rat]

To stop water rotting the stems, when you plant out your cukes, sink a 3" pot into the ground / growbag alongside them and water and feed them through this - it means the water goes straight to the roots, the stem stays dry and so does the soil around the stem. I've done this with my cukes forever and I very very rarely lose one to stem rot - and I grow a lot of cukes.

[selfraising]

I have always planted mine deeper as I understood that they produce more roots from the stem???

[Flummery]

I have always planted mine deeper as I understood that they produce more roots from the stem???

That's toms!

[selfraising]

That's toms!

I'm confused now because I just found this

For Cucumber growing in the open greenhouse border use a good general liquid feed at the recommended rate. When grown in a grow-bag feed once a week at the same rate. Cucumbers will benefit from mulch of peat-based compost around the stem and over the surrounding roots; they will very quickly make more roots out of the stem, giving the plant an extra boost.

[Flummery]

Never seen it happen. You can see the new roots at the base of a tomato stem. I also wouldn't use a peat based compost. - Or a grow bag!

[selfraising]

Ahh well perhaps I'll do both and see which fairs better I do use growbags but not for my cucs, they go in large pots as I don't have the space in the garden

[Flummery]

I always used to take the compost out of grow bags and use it in the big flower bucket things. I find growbags filthily difficult to water properly - they bake or drown!

Always useful to try things both ways. I'm doing that with some of my peas and beans - half soaked and half not.