Prematurely yellowed leaves in cucumbers are a problem signaling a plant disease, which will certainly affect its yield. To avoid plant death and save high yield you must first understand why the leaves of cucumbers turn yellow. And there may be several reasons for such an unsightly phenomenon. The most common of them, as well as what to do if the cucumber leaves turn yellow, will be discussed further.
Why do cucumbers turn yellow leaves - the main reasons
Experts identify several main reasons that can provoke yellowing of cucumber tops. One of the most common is not correct watering... Moreover, this can be, as a lack of moisture, and its excess. So, too little water leads to drying and yellowing of the leaves. And abundant watering washes away root system, the roots of cucumbers rise to the surface where they are exposed to aggressive external factors, for example, direct sunlight. In addition, the leaves of cucumbers turn yellow even if cold water hits the surface during watering on a hot sunny day and leads to a burn. Therefore, it is recommended to water the cucumbers in the early morning or evening hours, when the sun is no longer so aggressive.
The next reason why cucumber leaves turn yellow is also associated with the sun, or rather, with its lack. If yellowed is Bottom part tops in the middle of the garden bed, then, most likely, this is due to the banal withering away of leaves due to lack of light. This process is completely natural and does not require any action on the part of the gardener. But if the leaves of cucumbers are covered with yellow spots resembling rust, then this is already a reason to sound the alarm. As a rule, this is a sign that a fungal infection has struck the cucumbers, for example, pityosis or fusarium. In this case, the leaves will quickly turn yellow and dry, and then fall off.
The leaves of cucumbers can also turn yellow due to insect pests. For example, a spider mite sucks out all the juices from a plant, which first leads to yellowing of the tops, and then to the death of the plant. Also, the condition and color of the tops is strongly influenced by the lack of minerals in the soil, the lack of timely feeding. For example, a lack of potassium and magnesium is reflected in the yellowing of the leaf edge.
Cucumber leaves turned yellow - What to do
Now let's figure out what to do if the leaves of cucumbers turn yellow and dry. First of all, you need to establish the root cause, and then deal with its manifestations. For example, normalize watering if yellow leaves are the result of a lack of it. It is also important to consider the place where the plants grow. For example, cucumber leaves in a greenhouse often turn yellow and dry due to improper air exchange and impaired temperature regime... In this case, it is important to ventilate the greenhouse as often as possible, while avoiding sudden changes in temperature.
In addition, it is imperative to observe correct crop rotation... In other words, you should not plant cucumbers in the same place from year to year, as this provokes an accumulation in the soil. Also, you can not plant cucumbers in places where others have previously grown. pumpkin crops, for example, zucchini. Ideally, replanting cucumbers in the previous plot is possible no earlier than after 4 seasons.
How to feed cucumbers if their leaves turn yellow and dry
If the causes of yellow cucumber leaves lie in the lack of minerals in the soil, they must be "fed". For this, you can use both specialized feeding and folk remedies. Preference should be given to organic and mineral fertilizers. In this case, the choice of feed should depend on the lack of a certain mineral. For example, without potassium and magnesium, the edges of the leaf begin to turn yellow and dry. If only the upper leaves have turned yellow, then this indicates a lack of copper. But green veins against the background of a yellow leaf signal an iron deficiency. You can find out how to feed cucumbers if their leaves turn yellow and dry from the video below.
How to water cucumbers so that the leaves do not turn yellow: folk remedies
In addition, there is a number folk remedies that help fight yellowed cucumber tops. The simplest and effective method- water the cucumbers with herbal infusion with ash. Most often, for these purposes, a collection of several herbs is used: nettle, horsetail, chamomile, tansy. For the preparation of the infusion, you can use both fresh leaves of these plants, and dry herbs. Chopped herbs should be poured into a non-metallic container and poured 3/4 warm water, cover and leave for 3-4 days in the sun to ferment. The ready-made infusion for irrigation must be diluted with water in a ratio of 1: 9 and wood ash must be added.
Why do cucumber leaves turn yellow? What to do? With such questions, gardeners turn to search engines when the problem is already clearly visible. But wait to raise a panic. After all, everything is often fixable, and cucumbers can still be saved.
The only difficulty is an accurate diagnosis of why the leaves turn yellow. Sometimes it's hard to define the real reason... Well, you have to act by elimination and periodically turn on your head. Then everything will work out for sure.
Below we will consider the most common options for changing pigmentation and tell you what to do in such a situation.
Improper watering
Since childhood, many people know that cucumbers are very fond of water. So they pour it to the point of stupor and how much is not a pity. But such an elementary procedure as watering should be carried out in accordance with all the rules.
The plant is thermophilic. In the regions of origin of cucumbers, there are rarely cold rains. Basically, warm water is pouring from the sky. This means that our cucumbers need to be watered with warm water. And then some will lower the pump into the well and let's pump ice streams onto the beds. Try to stand under such a shower yourself. It is unlikely to like it.
So the cucumbers turn off the small feeding roots so as not to get cold. And the leaves and fruits require water. It turns out that even being in an icy slurry of soil and water, the plants dry out. The leaves turn yellow with this care quickly.
Another situation. The water for irrigation is warm, but it is not enough. Instead of high-quality drinking 3 times a week, the owners sprinkle a little from the watering can every day. The topsoil is moist all the time. And at a depth of 8-12 cm, where the bulk of the roots is located, there is dryness. It turns out dried cucumbers again.
Or the other extreme. Cucumbers are poured with warm water, often and a lot. Well, it would seem, what else is needed? Air access to the roots is necessary. They cannot work constantly for wear and tear, they also need to be periodically ventilated. But what if the "legs" are swimming in a warm swamp?
All sorts of sores of the root system begin, insidious rot attacks. The roots gradually die off. The leaves turn yellow, the owners think that the plants do not have enough water, and pour even more. The problem is getting worse.
What to do? For a start, water properly. Nobody will tell you the exact amount of water per plant or the frequency. And don't listen to all those "25 liters of water per bush for every watering." How can counselors know what the weather or climate is in your area? On what kind of soil and under what conditions your cucumbers grow - they also do not know.
The best landmark is your garden. They came, parted the tops, looked. If it is not clear, then you can pick a piece of land. Wet? Leave to water! Dry? So it's time to give the cucumbers a drink. That's all science.
Sunburn
Continuing the theme of water, let's talk about the great delusion. Absolutely all sources categorically prohibit watering cucumbers from above in the heat. Allegedly sprinkling provokes sunburn and massive yellowing of leaves.
Sorry, but the yellowing of the leaves provokes your negligence and unwillingness to work with your brains. Look at your cucumbers at 14. What does it look like? That's right, on sagging rags. This sun evaporates the remaining moisture from them, and then dries to the state of straw. Hence the burn.
What to do? Save! Urgently help the cucumber plantings to endure solar bullying! Directly on top of the leaves by sprinkling, it is necessary to refresh the plantings. This lowers the temperature of the leaf, saturates it with liquid and increases the humidity around it.
And no need to talk about drops-lenses. If the burdocks are saturated with water, and their temperature is low, then your scary lenses need a lot of effort to damage the surface of the leaf. By the way, the sun often fries after the rain. How many plants blazing from lenses have you seen in your life?
Pests
These little enemies suck out all the nutritious juices from the leaves of cucumbers, gnaw at the root system, and eat the stems. As a result, the plant becomes weak, there is a lack of nutrition, the leaves turn yellow.
Additional feeding will do nothing. First you need to identify the insidious guests, then get rid of them, and only after all help the cucumbers to recover.
What to do? Each type of pest needs its own control method. There is no doubt that you can hit them heartily with a decent dose of insecticide. But how can you then eat cucumbers? After all, they ripen quickly, they will not have time to get rid of the poison for sure.
Outlet 3, both harmless to humans and animals:
- Use all kinds of decoctions and infusions of strong smelling natural ingredients... These are onion peels, tansy, mint, valerian, marigolds, garlic peels. You just need to periodically spray the affected cucumber leaves with a diluted liquid. It is advisable to thoroughly moisten the underside of the leaves. It is there that the largest concentration of uninvited guests is observed.
- Traps. It is possible with a poisonous bait. The pests will gorge themselves and safely throw back their paws, and the cucumbers will definitely not eat. You don't want to use the poison, so you just collect insects in traps and give them to your neighbors or your chickens. Take it out of the area and destroy it. You bury it very deep in the ground. There are plenty of ways.
- New in the insecticide market. With prefix bio. It can be used to get rid of all types of harmful insects. It is a conglomerate of spores of a fungus and a predatory nematode. The small predator attacks pests and infects them with fungus. That, in turn, quickly grows along internal organs insect and kills it. Everything about everything takes from 4 hours to a day.
The only drawback of option 3 is strict adherence to the instructions. It clearly states the conditions and storage time of the drug, as well as the temperature range in which the bioinsecticide works most effectively.
Cold
The banal reason is temperature jumps during the day. For example, during the day it is hot, and at night it is already cold. This usually happens in August. The roots of cucumbers cease to function normally in the cooled soil. And the overgrown tops and pouring fruits require nutrition in the usual dose. What remains for the plant? That's right, take stock nutrients from the leaves. The lumps begin to turn yellow, then dry up and die off.
Enhanced feeding will not bring the desired result. No matter how much food is added to the soil, the cucumber is not able to assimilate it.
What to do? Make foliar feeding, preferably with nitrogen, and build new roots. This is done very simply. First, almost all the lashes are added to a length of up to 30 cm. The whole thing should be sprinkled with moist, loose soil. It is recommended for the first time to water the digging site with a solution of a root formation stimulator. This will allow the cucumber to grow new roots faster, which will help the bush to absorb the proper amount of nutrition.
And on the leaves you will need to carry out 2 dressings, with an interval of 5-7 days. For this 10 l pure water take Matchbox ordinary urea (no top) or 2 tbsp. l. pharmacy solution of ammonia. The resulting liquid is thoroughly mixed and the plantings of cucumbers are sprayed from the heart.
Lack of food
By the way, about fertilizers. Their lack can also cause yellowing of cucumber leaves. Some gardeners are categorically against the use of chemicals in their personal plot... Of course, biological liquid green manure is a good thing. Cucumbers take it with a bang. But for normal growth and development, the menu must be complete.
Agree, it's hard to constantly eat only one nitrogen. Other trace elements are also needed. For example, potassium, manganese, iron, boron, phosphorus, molybdenum, zinc. In small quantities, but still, a cucumber cannot exist normally without them. And a person cannot provide natural feeding the right amount nutrition. And on nitrogen alone from greens, the plants will be loose, watery and the fruits will grow tasteless. The leaves will be lush, green at first, but not for long. Then they quickly lose their attractiveness and turn yellow.
What to do? Feed. We go to the store. We choose any complex mineral fertilizer. We read carefully the content of trace elements. We choose the one where there is less nitrogen and a lot of other substances. We buy, we carry it home. Once again, we carefully read the instructions for use, especially the manufacturer's recommendations. We strictly follow all the requirements.
We deliberately do not include the dosage and frequency of use here. mineral fertilizers... Because each complex of microelements has its own, and it is impossible to guarantee something remotely. But believe me, your cucumbers will answer you for such care with gratitude, a large harvest and beautiful green leaves.
Diseases
This is the most common cause of yellowing of cucumber leaves. None of the above species do as much harm as spores of pathogenic fungi and pathogenic bacteria. They lie in wait for your plants at every step and stage of development.
It all starts with the infected planting material and spoiled soil. Then insect pests bring various viruses on their paws. Cool wet weather provokes the growth of fungi. In a greenhouse or greenhouse, bacteria from the last year may remain on the supports and walls. It is possible to list all the dangers for a long time. Describing the method of dealing with each disease - the book is not enough.
Before sowing seeds in the ground or for seedlings, they must be disinfected. Better a strong hot solution of potassium permanganate has not yet been invented. The planting soil is cleaned of bacteria by deep freezing or roasting in the oven.
In a greenhouse (greenhouse), at least the topsoil should be replaced with a new one every year. If it is impossible to do this, you should certainly shed the earth with potassium permanganate or phytosporin solution. Arcs, frames, supports, wall and ceiling material must be treated with a fungicide solution, or at least fumigated with a sulfuric smoke bomb. Tobacco is doing pretty well too.
The best protection against disease and fungal rot is prevention:
- Strict adherence to crop rotation. Many neglect this, but in vain. Bacteria tend to accumulate in the soil. And the constant, from year to year, planting of melons in one place is an indirect reason for the yellowing of the leaves.
- Periodically inspect the cucumbers for suspicious spots or streaks. And then most gardeners begin to beat the drums only when the cucumbers signal the massive yellowness of burdocks.
- Regular preventive spraying of bushes with any fungicide of biological origin. Modern industry offers a great variety of them. We will not name it here, so as not to advertise, but if you wish, you can find both the name and instructions.
Biofungicides are absolutely harmless to humans, animals and insects. They don't even require gloves when using them. And the benefits are invaluable.
If, nevertheless, they missed it and the disease has already begun its victorious march, then quickly get rid of the ailing cucumber or put it in quarantine. It is possible that the rest of the bushes have not yet had time to get infected. But it's better not to risk it.
The affected plant must be pulled out by the roots, taken outside the site and burned. The soil underneath should be disinfected immediately. Such a measure will allow you to sleep peacefully for sure.
After reading our article, you will no longer be concerned about the question of why the leaves of cucumbers turn yellow. What to do? - you know too. Take a closer look at your plants and your good harvests.
Video: what to do so that cucumber leaves do not turn yellow
Under unfavorable conditions, the first signs of illness or care errors the leaves of cucumbers begin to turn yellow... We can say that appearance cucumber leaves are an indicator of plant health. Why cucumbers turn yellow, how to determine the cause and correct the situation, read on .
The most common causes of yellowing of leaves in cucumbers are unfavorable conditions, which arise due to weather conditions or improper care.
From lack of lighting, cucumbers, the leaves at the base of the stem turn yellow, when the vines become lush, branched, the lower leaves do not have enough sunlight, so the old leaves die off. The yellowed lower leaves on the stems must be removed. In order for the cucumbers to lose as little foliage as possible due to lack of lighting, do not thicken the planting, tie up the whips and form a vine.
A common cause of yellowing in cucumbers is improper or insufficient watering.... In the heat, cucumbers require a lot of moisture, since a lot of water goes into the formation of fruits and when high temperature leaves evaporate moisture faster. On hot sunny days, cucumbers need to be watered every day so that the soil under them is always moderately moist. If it is not possible to do daily watering, then mulch the surface of the earth, then the moisture stays inside longer
It is important to water the cucumbers with warm water settled in a tank. Cold water leads to decay of the root system and causes stress in plants.
Massively, the leaves of cucumbers begin to turn yellow in late summer or early autumn, when the nights become cool or when the weather is cold. The cucumber is a thermophilic plant and when the temperature drops to +10 degrees, it stops growing, and at a temperature of about zero degrees it dies. To protect cucumbers from day and night temperature extremes, cover them with foil, acrylic, spunbond or other material attached to arcs.
Cucumber leaves turn yellow in different ways when there is a lack of any nutrient. By external signs, you can determine which fertilizer should be used in order to restore the strength of the plant and the growth of fruits.
If the cucumber leaves begin to turn yellow around the edges, they have a bright border with dried tips, and the central part of the leaves is wrinkled or deformed, which means that the cucumbers lack potassium. With a potassium deficiency, the fruits of cucumbers grow pear-shaped. In this case, use any potash fertilizer chlorine free or wood ash.
If young leaves turn yellow on cucumbers, and their veins remain green, which means that the plants lack manganese or iron. Spray with potassium permanganate or iron chelate to quickly rebalance plant nutrients.
If old leaves turn yellow on cucumbers, they have a mosaic pattern of silt of pale green and yellow spots, which means that the cucumbers lack magnesium.
If the cucumbers have light or yellowish veins, and the shoots are thin, small, which means that the plants need fertilizing with nitrogen fertilizer.
It is important to distinguish signs of yellowing of cucumber leaves due to conditions of avoiding signs of disease or the appearance of pests in order to start treatment of plants as early as possible and save the harvest.
Downy mildew or pecospora causes the appearance of numerous pale yellow spots on the leaves of cucumbers, which gradually increase, turn brown and dry out, and a white powdery coating can also be seen on the leaves. False mealy growth appears when sharp drops temperature and humidity, more often at the end of summer, in autumn, when it is hot during the day, cool at night and dew falls in the morning.
For the treatment of false powdery mildew use drugs "Hom", "Oxyhom", Bordeaux mixture. During the fruiting period, it is better to turn to folk remedies, to combat downy mildew they use soap solution soda (30 grams of soda and 10 grams of soap are diluted for 5 liters) or a solution of iodine with milk (20-30 drops of iodine and 1 liter of milk are diluted for 9 liters of water). Effectively acts against diseases on the leaves of cucumbers, infusion of ash (2 glasses per 3 liters of water) and infusion onion peel.
Powdery mildew on cucumber leaves can be identified by the appearance white bloom, the leaves from above are as if powdered with flour. At the first signs of the disease, it is necessary to start treatment and continue prophylactic spraying for a month every 7-10 days. For the treatment of powdery mildew, the drugs Topaz, Fundazol, Skor, Previkur, Vitaros are used.... but chemical agents it is forbidden to use cucumbers during the fruiting period, so gardeners turn to safe folk remedies. Powdery mildew is helped by spraying with a solution of soda or garlic infusion.
If the leaves of cucumbers wither even after watering, later they turn yellow and dry out, then the roots of the plants should be checked. When root rot appears, the root collar turns brown, with dents, the diseased plant is easily pulled out of the ground. To protect cucumbers from root rot, a number of preventive measures should be taken, starting from disinfecting seeds and soil during sowing, and then maintaining the recommended distance between plants when planting and watering cucumbers only with warm water. Diseased plants with root rot should be watered with the preparation "Fitosporin", "Baktofit", "Fundazol", "Strekar"... To restore the root system, a root growth stimulator - "Kornevin" is used.
When pests appear on cucumbers, their leaves immediately begin to turn yellow., since insects mainly feed on sap from leaf plates. When the appearance spider mite, whitefly, thrips on the leaves of cucumbers at first light yellow dots appear, then the leaves turn completely yellow and dry out. Insecticides "Iskra", "Intavir", "Aktara" will help get rid of pests on cucumbers... Spraying with the drug is carried out above and below the leaves, since insects lay larvae on the wrong side. Carry out pest control in accordance with the safety instructions for the use of the drug.
Every gardener dreams of having a rich and high-quality harvest of cucumbers. And when they appear yellow leaves then this can have a detrimental effect on the yield. Before starting treatment, you need to understand what caused the development of this pathological process.
Causes of yellow leaves
If in your garden you find yellow leaves on cucumbers, then this may indicate such problems:
In the video - how to water the cucumbers so that the leaves do not turn yellow:
Effective feeding to fix the problem
So that a problem like yellowed leaves does not catch you by surprise, it is worth taking care of prevention in advance. This is what will be the main method of dealing with the problem.
But is it possible to feed cucumbers with urea, and how to do it correctly, is indicated
To do this, you must follow some rules and recommendations:
On the video - dressing for cucumbers:
Top dressing
To prevent yellowing of cucumber leaves, it is worth using the following effective dressing:
- Weeds, and best of all, nettles should be poured with 10 liters of water and infused for 7 days. Dilute the resulting product with water and use for watering the plant.
- As soon as 3-4 leaves are formed on the bushes, it is necessary every 10 days to spray the plant with a product obtained from 1 liter of milk, 30 drops of iodine, 20 g laundry soap... Dilute the resulting solution in 10 l of water.
- In order for the tops to remain green until the end of the season, it is necessary to use a mixture obtained from 10 liters of water, 20 ml of iodine as a top dressing. Before feeding, combine 1 liter of solution with 10 liters of water. The remaining composition can be stored in jars with lids. Feeding is worth 2 times a month.
- In the early days of summer, it is worth feeding using a soda solution. For 10 liters of water there are 20 g of soda. Such processing has a detrimental effect on some diseases of the culture.
- To prolong fruiting, it is worth adding fertilizing from urea, humus. Also treat the plant with an infusion of rotten hay. Pour it with water in a 1: 1 ratio.
On the video - making dressings for cucumbers:
Irrigation products
The following proven safe home remedies can be used to prevent yellow leaf formation:
The video shows the correct watering of cucumbers:
The leaves of cucumbers can turn yellow for a variety of reasons. This can be attributed as improper care and the low immunity of the plant itself. If the leaves turn yellow, then they urgently need to be removed. But you can prevent the development of such a problem if you complete a number of preventive procedures in time using folk remedies for feeding and watering vegetable bushes.
Cucumbers- an annual plant, therefore, by August, many borage become yellow. This is normal and it is difficult to prolong the life of such plants. But sometimes it happens that in young plants premature yellowing of the foliage occurs, and on a massive scale. It is necessary to understand the reasons for this phenomenon and take measures to correct the situation.
Causes of yellowing of borage leaves
There are a number of them:
If the leaves brighten during fruiting, the plants need to be fed. organic fertilizers, excluding manure. Excellent result gives the use of onion peel infusion. To prepare it, add a glass of onion husks to a bucket of water and boil. When the liquid is infused, filter the broth. Next, the infusion is diluted with water at the rate of 1 liter of onion dressing for 4 liters of water. This fertilizer contains a lot of microelements, as well as phytoncides that can destroy pests.
In order to prevent yellowing of seedlings during planting, herbal infusion with ash is poured into the hole. To prolong the life of cucumber leaves, once every 10 days, borage is spilled with the following composition: a liter of milk, a tablespoon of iodine and 20 g of shaved laundry soap are dissolved in 10 liters of water.
You can use kefir to stimulate the growth of young green leaves in cucumbers, in which the lower leaves have begun to turn yellow. 2 liters of kefir of any fat content is diluted in 10 liters of water. With such a solution, you need to spray the cucumbers over the leaves.
Even if the cucumber seedlings began to turn yellow, return green color and to stimulate the growth of lashes will help bread dressing. A loaf of bread is soaked in a bucket of water, leaving overnight. In the morning, knead the bread, add 10 ml of iodine and leave for a couple of hours. A liter of this top dressing is bred in a bucket of water and processed over borage leaves.
You can use baking soda to prevent premature aging of cucumbers. A spoonful of soda is added to a 10-liter bucket of water and the resulting solution is poured over the plantings. With an increase in the concentration of the solution (a teaspoon of soda per liter of water), you get effective remedy preventing the development of powdery mildew.
All products are easy to prepare and effectively cope with the situation when the leaves of the borage begin to turn yellow.