What to do if cucumber leaves are wilting: how to treat them

Cucumbers

Many people are familiar with the problem of wilted cucumber leaves. The cause may be improper agricultural practices or a developing disease. The leaves dry out on both greenhouse and open-field plants. The condition can affect very young plants and those in the fruiting stage.

Watering

Drooping foliage is a sign that the crops are lacking something. It's important to correctly identify what exactly is wrong with the plant. Delaying treatment can result in a lost harvest. The most common mistake that leads to cucumber leaves are wilting In a greenhouse, improper watering is the cause. This includes both insufficient and excessive moisture.

Please note!

Cucumbers love water and require regular irrigation. If they don't get enough moisture, the plant's leaves will turn yellow and become soft.

If there's too much moisture, the soil can't dry out, and water stagnates in the root system. This creates conditions that are very favorable for the development of fungal diseases. Using cold water is a mistake when it comes to watering:

It promotes the development of root rot.
Due to this disease, the plant's root system stops functioning.
Water and nutrients are not reaching the leaves and stems. If left untreated, the plant may die.

Cucumber plants require sufficient nutrients to grow and develop. Providing them with mineral fertilizer is essential. Nitrogen promotes foliage growth, while potassium and phosphorus promote flowering and fruiting. If the soil is too low in nitrogen but high in potassium and phosphorus, the plant will produce abundant flowers and fruit. However, the leaves will wilt, becoming pale and soft. New leaves will fail to grow or develop poorly. If cucumbers in a greenhouse are wilting, it's time to reconsider your fertilizer.

Landing site and diseases

If seedlings were planted in the wrong location, this will affect the plants in the summer. There are two possible reasons why a planting site might be unsuitable, causing cucumber leaves to wilt:

Plants can be exposed to direct sunlight. Although they love light, direct sunlight is harmful to them. This is due to increased moisture evaporation from the leaf surface. Cucumber plants try to counteract this by curling their leaves into tubes, thereby reducing the surface area for evaporation. Cucumbers die in the sun, simply drying out.
The seedlings don't receive any sun and are in the shade. If the bed is densely planted, the vines shade each other. As they grow, a situation arises where some vines are completely deprived of light. The cucumber leaves turn yellow and wilt, as in the video.

Disease and insect infestation are another common cause of wilted cucumber leaves. This is a symptom typical of fungal diseases. The progression of the disease and the impact of pests quickly impact the crop. If left untreated, the plant can die completely within a few days. Cucumbers in a polycarbonate greenhouse are also susceptible to pests.

If cucumber leaves are wilting in a greenhouse, a thorough inspection of the cucumber plants will tell you what to do. Among the most common diseases are:

root rot;
fusarium;
white rot.

Cucumber diseases in greenhouses and garden beds are similar, and their treatments are identical. Root rot causes the lower foliage to wilt and dry out, as shown in the photo, followed by the death of the entire plant. Fusarium wilt causes the upper portion of the plant to wilt, and the lower portion of the stem to rot. White rot causes the foliage to become very soft, and brown spots appear on the stem. The foliage subsequently falls off. Fungal diseases are most common in cucumber plants grown in greenhouses. This is because greenhouse conditions favor the development of fungi in cucumber vines.

Please note!

The most active insect pests of cucumbers are melon aphids and spider mites. Aphids are secretive. They lay their eggs on the undersides of leaves, causing them to wilt, dry out, and die. Spider mites They also prefer the underside of leaves, where they construct their mini-webs.

Chemicals and the wrong neighborhood

Cucumber plants are very sensitive to chemicals, especially herbicides. Accidental contact with herbicides can cause the foliage to wilt and look lifeless.

If cucumbers in a greenhouse are wilting, it's important to understand that they are picky about their neighbors. Tomatoes are the worst neighbors for cucumbers. This is easily explained. Cucumbers absolutely do not thrive in the conditions necessary for tomato growth and development. To avoid late blight in tomatoes, ensure low air and soil humidity. If cucumbers are kept in these conditions, they will suffer from severe moisture stress and eventually wilt. If the greenhouse is small, it's best to grow only cucumbers, without adding other varieties.

What to do: cucumbers are wilting in the greenhouse and on the beds

First, you need to determine the reason why cucumber leaves are wilting in greenhouses and open ground, and then begin to combat it.

If the bushes are experiencing a lack of moisture, they need ample watering. This will strengthen the leaves and make them more toned. Regular watering (once every two days) is essential. However, it should not be too abundant. Cucumbers should only be watered:

warm;
with settled water.

If, on the contrary, the soil is excessively wet, watering should be discontinued and resumed only after the soil has thoroughly dried out.

By the way, if the cucumbers are overgrown, then you can make delicious preparations from overgrown cucumbers for the winter.

If cucumbers haven't been fertilized for a long time, it's recommended to add a nitrogen-containing fertilizer to the soil. It's important to remember that they respond much better to organic fertilizers and don't like chemical fertilizers. To enrich the soil with nitrogen, you can use:

urea;
yeast solution;
wood ash.

Cucumbers exposed to direct sunlight should be shaded. This can be accomplished using a number of readily available methods. The following are excellent options:

cardboard sheets;
branches;
bags.

You can buy special material to cover plants.

Advice!

Overly densely planted beds need to be thinned. This can be done by removing dead leaves and trimming overgrown vines. As a more drastic measure, you can remove any vines that are overly shading the remaining ones.

If herbicides come into contact with leaves, the plants should be bathed in water. This will wash the chemicals off the leaves.

If a plant has become infected with a fungal infection, the first step is to remove the affected leaves. If the damage is severe, the shoots and, in some cases, the entire bushes must be removed. The next step is to treat the plantings with specialized biological agents. Treatment options include:

Trichodermin;
Planriz;
Fitosporin.

Tracheomycotic wilt may have occurred on cucumbers, and the lower leaves may be affected. If the infection is severe, you'll need to resort to chemical treatments. Treatment options include:

Topsin-M;
Previkur.

Prevention

Preventative measures for the plants and soil are important. The following steps can help prevent cucumbers from wilting:

Maintain proper crop rotation. The location of cucumbers should be changed periodically (every two to three years). Choosing the right predecessor crops is important. Cucumbers grow well after eggplant, cabbage, legumes, onions, etc.
Choose a place for planting that is not shaded, but not exposed to direct sunlight.
Planting seeds or seedlings in a 0.5 x 0.5 m pattern.
Using a manganese solution for seed and soil treatment.
Mulching the beds after planting.
Regular watering with warm water.
Preventive treatment with insecticides.
Timely feeding.

Please note!

These steps will protect crops from wilting and help you get a good harvest of gardeners' favorite product.

Wilting cucumber leaves is the first warning sign of a problem. It's important not to delay, but to correctly determine what went wrong and begin correcting it. If the yellowed leaves were treated with chemicals, they should be cut off.