Cucumber "Mumu f1": characteristics and yield of the hybrid

Cucumbers

The Mumu F1 cucumber is popular among vegetable growers in our country. This self-pollinating variety produces cluster-shaped ovaries. The fruits can be harvested at the gherkin stage. The cucumbers are crisp and delicious. For years, gardeners have been selecting the best varieties, and Mumu F1 has proven itself excellent for outdoor cultivation. The hybrid is listed in the Russian State Register and is approved for cultivation throughout Russia and in various regions.

Characteristics of the bush and fruit

Before planting, many gardeners research this hybrid variety. This cucumber has a female flower type. The hybrid is approved for spring cultivation in unheated plastic greenhouses on private farms. This variety can also be grown indoors.

Note!

The price of a non-bitter hybrid variety is higher than the price of ordinary varieties, which acquire an unpleasant taste and turn yellow when there is a lack of water.

Cucumber is a parthenocarpic, vigorous plant. The bush branches moderately. Determinate, short, and lateral shoots may develop. Foliage is medium and short.

One node produces 4-6 cucumbers, which ripen in approximately 43-48 days. Gherkin:

oblong shape;
bright green color;
with a faint light stripe;
with darkish edging.

The fruit is 100-120 mm long, weighs up to 90-110 g, and has a diameter of 35-40 mm. The fruits are covered with small bumps and have barely noticeable spots. These cucumbers are ideal for long-term storage; they retain their marketable appearance during long-distance transportation. This hybrid plant is versatile, but gherkins are primarily used for preserves.

Main characteristics of the variety

Cucumbers ripen relatively quickly. With proper, high-quality care, a large harvest of up to 7 kg per m is guaranteed.²The best time to pick fruits is July.

The positive qualities of a hybrid crop are its calling card; no vegetable grower would want to bother with a variety that has a whole host of negative qualities. The advantages of cucumber include:

High fruit yield throughout the season.
Versatility of use.
Resistance to common cucumber pathologies.
The ability to form ovaries in bad weather and external influences.

No downsides have been identified for the hybrid crop. Vegetable growers cite the high price of seed as a relative disadvantage.

Attention!

The plant is not afraid of root rot, powdery mildew, and other pumpkin pathologies.

The hybrid produces determinate shoots on the side, so the seedlings require regular watering. To combat other diseases, special preventative treatments are necessary. This will prevent the development of diseases and maintain the yield. Store-bought chemicals are used for treatment, but only before flowering. After that, traditional methods are recommended, which are safer for both the plant and humans.

Agricultural technology

https://youtu.be/NizECzxu46E

According to experts, growing cucumbers is quite simple. However, without understanding the intricacies, a vegetable grower will never reap a bountiful harvest of delicious, healthy cucumbers. Beginners planning to harvest at least several kilograms of cucumbers from each plant should know that this vegetable is very heat-loving, thrives on moisture, and enjoys ample light.

Cucumbers are undemanding when it comes to soil conditions, but produce fruit more vigorously in light, sandy, loamy soils with a lower pH. This type of soil is characterized by:

air permeability;
the ability to quickly absorb liquid.

The hybrid dislikes the presence of groundwater near its rhizomes. It also dislikes being planted in beds where the following plants were previously grown:

beetroot;
pumpkin crops.

Planting a plant in the ground has some important nuances. It's best to do this when the soil has already warmed up, reaching approximately 15–17°C. ^OC. It would be correct if the gardener prepares holes for sowing seed material at intervals of about 500 mm, preferably three rows.

A trellis can be used, requiring a 200 mm spacing between holes and 300–400 mm between rows. In this case, the seeding depth should be approximately 20 mm, with 4–5 seeds per hole.

A general rule: when using non-seedling methods, it's best to use pre-soaked seeds. Regular thinning of seedlings is essential to prevent weak seedlings from robbing stronger, healthier ones of moisture and minerals. Weak plants should be pruned rather than uprooted. This will prevent damage to the rhizomes of other seedlings.

It's important to carefully pinch off the top of the bud, but do so once 4-5 leaves have formed. This will significantly speed up the development of inflorescences and ovaries.

Without warmth, the hybrid crop will not develop fully. Cucumbers are sensitive to night frosts and temperatures dropping to 15 degrees Celsius. ^OWith heat, development slows down, and at rates of 10 ^OThey completely stop growing. To ensure normal conditions, cucumber crops require an air temperature of 25–30 ^OC, air humidity not less than 70%.

The subtleties of watering and fertilizing

https://youtu.be/HjmQ2fKHSJA

Watering should be regular. Before flowering, water moderately, using 3-6 liters per 1 m²This irrigation is necessary every 7 days. During flowering and cucumber emergence, water generously – approximately one bucket per 1 m²Every two days. Moisture is crucial for the bitterness of the cucumbers. If the soil dries out too much once, bitterness will develop in all subsequent cucumbers. When planting, it's important to use warm, room-temperature water after sunset.

Note!

Watering should be done using a watering can with a spray nozzle. Using a stream of water can damage the rhizome.

Towards the end of the growing season, there's no need to water the plants excessively, and the frequency should be reduced significantly. The hybrid needs to be fed. A good harvest cannot be achieved without fertilizer. It's essential to follow the feeding guidelines.

You can use wood ash for cucumber seedlings in a greenhouse or in uncovered gardens, starting with:

pre-sowing treatment of seed material;
refueling the soil during its preparation;
planting cucumbers.

Phosphorus-potassium fertilizers are applied at various stages of growth. The most important condition for using this beneficial vegetable fertilizer is that it should not be combined with other organic matter (especially fresh slurry and chicken manure) or minerals, but alternating them is permitted.

Dry wood ash, in powder form, can be used for fall or spring soil treatment in vegetable gardens intended for cucumber plantings. To do this, add the powder to the soil after tilling, mixing it with compost at a ratio of 100 g per square meter of cucumber beds. Ash powder added to the soil:

will contribute to an increase in the activity of beneficial organisms inhabiting it;
will attract earthworms that process organic matter in the soil.

This makes the soil looser and enriched with nutrients. Ash powder can also be added directly to the holes when planting seeds or seedlings. To do this, add 2 tablespoons of the preparation to each hole and then mix it with the soil.

Note!

This organic matter can also be used on mature plants. To do this, simply sprinkle 100 g of dry ash per m under the cucumbers.² plantings, and then thoroughly water the beds with warm water.

Ash powder is not only a wonderful fertilizer, but also an excellent preventative and cure for scab and aphids, which often attack cucumbers in garden beds and especially in greenhouses. To do this, sift the ash through a sieve and sprinkle it over the cucumber plantings. It also works against slugs; sprinkle it on the surrounding soil.

In liquid form, in aqueous solution, ash fertilizer is also actively used to feed cucumber hybrids. To treat the seed, you need to:

take a tablespoon of ash;
dilute it in 2 liters of water;
leave to stand for 48 hours.

After this, filter the prepared mixture and soak the seeds in it for 5 hours. This will improve germination, and the cucumber seedlings will become strong and healthy, developing more vigorously. You can fertilize cucumbers with ash as early as the seedling stage, when they develop 2-3 true leaves, and throughout the growing season.

For the first feeding of Mumu, you need to make a nutrient solution. Take 10 tablespoons of dry ash, dissolve it in a bucket of warm water, and let it sit for 7 days. Then, strain the solution and water the plants, pouring a liter of the solution under each bush. Feeding with this solution should be done no more than once every 7 days.

Ash powder is diluted in the same proportions to feed cucumber seedlings when flowering begins. Once the plants begin actively producing fruit, another nutrient solution should be prepared. Take 3 tablespoons of dry ash, add it to 3 liters of water, and boil for half an hour. After it cools, filter it and add water to fill a bucket. Apply this solution to the plants using a spray bottle. This fertilization can be repeated several times throughout the season, approximately every week and a half, until the very end of the growing season.

Care

Weed control is essential. Both weeding and loosening the soil are essential for hybrid cucumbers. However, it's important to understand that the Mumu F1 rhizome is easily damaged, as it's located very close to the soil surface. Therefore, if the gardener is concerned about damaging the crop, simply applying mulch is an option. If done correctly, the yield will only increase.

Please note!

It's important to harvest the cucumbers efficiently—prevent them from drying out and harvest the gherkins as they ripen. This will increase the overall yield.

The ovaries on cucumber hybrid bunches often dry out because the plants can't support such a large number of them. To prevent this, it's necessary to follow these care measures:

A week and a half before planting the seedlings, prepare the bed by adding up to 15 kg of compost and 2 tablespoons of minerals per m2 during digging.².
Plants are planted when the soil at a depth of 100 mm warms up to +10 ^OC. 24 hours before planting, the bed is watered well.
Since bunch hybrids don't like crowding, they are planted in a single row at 400 mm intervals. Up to a liter of warm pink potassium permanganate solution is added to each hole before planting.
Water the seedlings 2 hours before transplanting. Plant them with the root ball in place, not deepening them. Lightly press the soil into the plant and sprinkle with humus and a peat mixture.
In the greenhouse, the air humidity level is maintained at approximately 95%. The temperature during planting is +22°C. ^OC, during flowering around +28.

The vines should be tied to the trellis by stretching two wires at a height of 2 m and 300 mm apart. Tie twine to the wire and secure it under the first pair of leaves with a loose loop. Tie one bush to one wire, the other to the second, and so on. Leave about 200 mm of free twine so that the tie can be loosened later. Wrap the twine around the plant, rotating it hourly. When the seedlings reach the wire, wrap the vine around it twice, then secure it with a figure-eight. Once a pair of leaves and a cluster of cucumbers have formed, pinch the top.

Please note!

Cucumber bunches are formed in a specific way. It's important to remove flowers and shoots in the axils of the first four leaves. Next, remove all lateral shoots almost to the trellis.

Two or three shoots with ovaries can be left nearby, pinched just above the second leaf. The key to shaping the bush this way is to harvest as many fruits as possible from the central stem.

Water on warm days with settled water, after which loosen the plantings:

until the fruits are born, once every 7 days;
every 3 days thereafter.

Every 14 days they are fed with organic matter:

chicken manure solution 1:20;
manure 1:10.

And complex minerals (one and a half tablespoons per bucket of water). Spray twice with Zircon and Epin to increase resistance to stress and improve cucumber development – at the beginning of bud opening and during flowering.

Reviews

Mumu F1 is a common variety in gardens. It's loved for its low maintenance, disease resistance, and good fruiting.

Katerina, Penza

I've been planting this hybrid for two years now. I cultivate it by direct seeding into the beds when the soil warms up to about 18 ^OS. I water in the evening and only with warm, settled water—this is crucial for this hybrid. This cucumber variety is excellent for canning—I recommend it.

Natasha, Kazan

I tried planting three cucumbers in my garden at once for the first time. The results were amazing. The cucumbers were especially delicious when pickled and marinated. I want to plant more next year.

Anton, Moscow region

I especially love this hybrid for its uniform ripening. The Mumu cucumber is easy to grow, and the fruits are excellent for canning; they're crunchy and very nutritious.

Positive reviews of the Mumu F1 cucumber are the best advertisement, as growers are more likely to buy a vegetable that is talked about than one praised by producers. However, when choosing a variety, it's important to consider not only the opinions of others but also your own preferences. Before purchasing seeds from a specific hybrid, you should first decide how you'll use the harvest.