Rules and features of fertilizing cucumbers with hydrogen peroxide

Fertilizing cucumbers with hydrogen peroxide increases the fussy crop's resistance to temperature fluctuations, pathogenic microorganisms, and pest infestations. Despite the wide range of commercial fertilizers available, gardeners prefer formulas made using traditional recipes. This is because chemicals, even when used correctly, accumulate in plant tissue and can trigger an allergic reaction. Hydrogen peroxide, a medical product, does not accumulate, is safe for humans, and is inexpensive.

The benefits of hydrogen peroxide in the garden

Hydrogen peroxide is a clear, colorless liquid that releases carbon dioxide upon contact with protein compounds. Despite its non-food use, its taste can be described as metallic. It is used medicinally for its properties: suppressing pathogenic flora, stopping inflammatory processes, and accelerating blood clotting.

In garden plots, hydrogen peroxide is used for cucumbers according to the following indications:

1. Preventive treatment prevents infection with true and false powdery mildew, gray and white rot, and late blight.
2. Saturates the soil with oxygen when watered, loosening it by releasing carbon dioxide.
3. Suppresses the development of pathogenic flora in the soil and the spread of rot through the root system.
4. Increases plant immunity and increases crop yields.
5. Protects against spider mites and aphids.

Hydrogen peroxide is used to disinfect seeds, feed seedlings, and relieve stress during picking.

Using a medicinal product for cucumbers

There's no need to look for special hydrogen peroxide for the garden—cucumbers can be fed and sprayed with a regular 3% medicinal solution purchased at a pharmacy. Safety precautions must be observed—undiluted hydrogen peroxide contact with mucous membranes can cause a burn, and inhaling the vapors can trigger an asthma attack.

The medicinal substance is most effective when grown in a greenhouse. However, peroxide also exhibits its beneficial properties when planted outdoors, especially with removable frames.

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Soil preparation

Soil cultivation allows the plant to receive more oxygen, improving the soil structure. Stable air exchange reduces the risk of root rot. It's difficult to loosen the soil under mature cucumber plants, so pre-cultivation helps prevent stagnation.

The solution proportions are 20 ml of 3% hydrogen peroxide to 1 liter of settled water. Water the roots of the vines and between rows.

Germination of seeds

There are 2 methods of processing seed material:

1. To speed up germination, immediately before sowing in pots or open ground, pour a 3% solution for 1 day (you can limit it to 18-20 hours).
2. For disinfection. If you have any doubts about the quality of cucumber seeds, for example, if you purchased them from an unknown seller or if they had to be dried additionally during storage, it is recommended to soak them in a 10% sanitizer. Soak them in the container for 15 minutes, then rinse with running water and dry.

There's another way to use the substance for seed. To boost the immunity of future plants, soak the seeds in a low concentration of the solution—1%. Leave them for 12 hours. In this case, there's no need to rinse or dry them—they're sown directly into prepared soil or a peat pot.

For seedlings

In this case, all application methods are used—as a fertilizer, for top dressing, and spraying. The working solution is 1 tbsp. of 3% H2O2: 1 liter. For greenhouse seedlings, use 1/4-1/2 cup of liquid per plant; in open ground, use 2 cups (0.5 liters) per developing cucumber plant. Thanks to this treatment, open-ground seedlings become less sensitive to weather conditions, photosynthesis occurs fully, and leaf turgor is not lost when growing conditions change.

In extremely dry conditions, spray twice a day, reducing the concentration by half, i.e., 0.5 teaspoon per 1 liter of liquid. Before beginning, prepare the soil and plantings thoroughly with settled water. When watering, direct a stream of hydrogen peroxide solution at the roots of the seedlings, avoiding the root collar. It's best to use a spray bottle (or a broom) for spraying.

Root treatment

Not only seedlings but also plants often need to be repotted to restore their vitality. Dilute the solution as described for outdoor irrigation, and immerse the exposed roots of the seedlings in the solution for 30-40 minutes. The survival rate after this treatment is up to 87%.

Prevention and treatment of diseases

To prevent plants from being damaged by infections such as downy mildew, powdery mildew, fusarium, anthracnose, and peronosporosis, dilute hydrogen peroxide at a ratio of 2 tbsp. to 1 l.

The following recipe is for disease prevention (can also be used against pests). The ratio of ingredients is 1 part ethyl alcohol, 2 parts peroxide, and 20 parts water. Spray on a cloudy but not rainy day, before sunrise or after sunset. Avoid exposing the spray to direct sunlight, as this will cause sunburn on the leaves. Water droplets refract light like a lens, and peroxide enhances the harsh effects of ultraviolet radiation. Direct the spray upward, moving from the base of the bush to the top of the shoot. Treat the underside of the leaves first, then the surface. A spray bottle is recommended to distribute the spray evenly.

Treatment is carried out with a less concentrated solution: 20 tablespoons of the medicinal preparation are diluted in a bucket of water (10 liters). Prevention is carried out once every 7 days, and treatment is carried out 2-3 times during the same period.

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Pest control compounds

According to some gardeners, the medicinal product is diluted as a preventative for various diseases. The spraying method is similar. However, the spray on the leaves is quickly washed away by dew, requiring repeated treatments. To avoid unnecessary work, it's best to add additives to the working solution to enhance the treatment's effectiveness. Dissolve not only one bottle (50 ml) of 3% peroxide but also 50 g of sugar (or 20 g of laundry soap) in a liter of water. These additional ingredients increase the durability of the resulting film. If detergent is not added, the remaining solution is used as a fertilizer by watering the soil.

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Spraying prevents spider mite, aphid, and whitefly infestations. Insects can't lay eggs on the film-covered leaves—they simply don't stick. Gradually, the plant will be free of pests. Although sugar and soap are listed as alternative ingredients in the solution recipes, soap is preferred. The sweetness attracts gnats and ants, which can damage developing fruit. If the pest colony has grown, peroxide won't help—chemical treatments are needed.

A reliable herbicide

Weeds trying to establish themselves in a garden bed with mature cucumber plants have virtually no chance of spreading and destroying the plant. However, they can choke out the seedlings by spreading from the spaces between the rows. Weeding at this stage is problematic—you could pull out a young, fragile-rooted seedling along with the unwanted weeds. Hydrogen peroxide will help stop the weeds from growing—just sprinkle a 10% concentration of the substance between the rows. No need to dilute it in water.

Treatment with a medicinal product is advisable in preparation for the gardening season - to improve the quality of seed and soil, to strengthen seedlings - if the stems and leaves are weak, turgor is low, and chlorophyll production is impaired.

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Cucumbers planted outdoors are watered and sprayed once every 7-10 days, depending on weather conditions. To feed a mature plant, prepare at least 1 liter of the working solution. Spraying and fertilizing in a greenhouse are carried out with the same formulas as in the open ground. However, the high humidity and special microclimate of a greenhouse should be taken into account. Due to the high humidity, treatments should be carried out no more than once every two weeks.

Reviews

Tatyana Ivanovna, 70 years old, Chisinau:

I'll give you another recommendation. To combat late blight and rot, I dilute 1 tablespoon of a pharmaceutical solution in 5 liters of water. I'm wary of using too high a concentration. But I'll give you another tip: treat not only the cucumber plantings, spraying them at the roots, but also the surrounding plantings, garden tools, and gloves. It's okay to soak tools in the pure solution, but it's expensive.

Vladimir Yurievich, 39 years old, Voronezh:

I was afraid to use undiluted hydrogen peroxide to disinfect planting material. But somehow, all the seedlings I planted died. I remembered my neighbor's advice, soaked the seeds for a day without rinsing, and planted them in a well-moistened, empty, dug-up bed. About three-quarters of the way up. I harvested the crop later, but I still had cucumbers.

Valeria Igorevna, 42 years old, Kolomna:

I grow and sell cucumbers. I'm very glad I followed the advice to use a medicinal product to disinfect the seeds and seedlings. To prevent resistance, I alternate it with potassium permanganate. But if you're not leaving your own cucumbers to seed, there's no need to alternate.

There are no definitive recommendations for diluting the hydrogen peroxide solution for treating cucumbers. Some recommend diluting 1 tablespoon per liter of water, 0.5 tablespoons per liter, or even 3 tablespoons per liter of water. Keep in mind that different varieties have different sensitivities. To avoid dosage errors, test solutions of different concentrations on 1-2 plants. Spray one plant, and water the other at the root, gradually increasing the concentration. This will help determine which method is more suitable. Repeat the spraying after rain. When fertilizing is planned, heavy rains, on the other hand, save time. Water at the root while the soil is still wet.

Don't water cucumbers with cold water straight from the tap. Whatever you do, let the water settle and warm up. In severe cases—when plants are heavily infested with diseases or pests—folk remedies are ineffective. In these cases, spraying with industrially produced chemicals may be necessary.