Cucumber variety "Son of the Regiment": cultivation from sowing to harvest

The "Syn Polka" cucumber is a hybrid variety developed by S.V. Dubinin and M.I. Kirillov, breeders at the Sedek agricultural firm. Back in 2003, the hybrid passed the State Variety Commission and was approved for use, and today it is well known among gardeners and farmers. The fruits ripen quickly, the flowers are pollinated by bees, and the cucumbers are delicious both fresh and pickled. They are grown both in open beds and greenhouses. And, according to the producers, this variety maintains its productivity in any region of the country.

What do the bushes and fruits look like?

The plant has a prominent main stem, while the side shoots are short and sparse. When grown in a greenhouse, the bush reaches a height of 1.5-2 m; outdoors, it grows shorter, reaching 1-1.2 m. The leaves are normal-sized, light green, and slightly wrinkled.

Son Polka is a gherkin variety. The cucumbers grow to a small size:

• 7-9 cm in length;
• 2.5-3 cm in diameter.

Moreover, they have the unique characteristic of not growing larger than this size or turning yellow, even if they remain on the plant after ripening. Therefore, the harvest consists of uniform, neat, oval-shaped cucumbers.

The skin is dark green with medium-length light stripes, slightly ribbed. The surface is bumpy:

• the tubercles are quite large;
• rare;
• with light brown spines.

The skin is firm, crisp, and free of bitterness. The juicy flesh has a pleasant, rich flavor. Each cucumber weighs no more than 100 g on average.

Variety indicators

The first fruits can be picked from the bushes 40-45 days after the seeds have germinated. With proper care, nutrition, and adequate access for bees to the flowers,² Up to 10 kg of cucumbers are harvested from plantings.

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The reason for such high yield figures of the Syn Polka variety is its:

• cluster type of flowering;
• immunity to common diseases;
• a characteristic feature of fruits that do not ripen.

Advantages:

1. High yields with beautiful, even cucumbers.
2. They can be harvested within a month and a half after sowing, which is a suitable time for northern regions where summer is short.
3. The fruits do not outgrow their 9-10 cm height and do not turn yellow.
4. The variety is well suited for collecting and preparing gherkins and pickles.
5. Cucumbers can be grown both in open areas and in greenhouses.
6. The variety is unpretentious, including to changing weather conditions;

The hybrid has inherent resistance to frequent viral and fungal infections.

The variety has no significant drawbacks that affect yield. The only drawback is its reliance on bee pollination, specifically the need to attract bees to greenhouses and hotbeds.

Pollination type

The "Syn Polka" variety exhibits a predominantly female flowering pattern. This means that most of the flowers blooming on the bushes have only pistils. These pistils, after pollination, are what form the cucumber fruit, hence the name "ovaries." Three ovaries form in the axils of each leaf of this hybrid variety. The proportion of male flowers (sterile flowers) on the bushes is small, but without pollen from their stamens, no fruit will develop. Pollen from the sterile flowers is transferred to the ovaries by bees and bumblebees.

Thus, full fruiting of plantings is possible under the following conditions:

• planting a pollinator variety together with the main one, that is, a hybrid with a male type of flowering;
• attracting bees and bumblebees to the planting area.

Typically, producers of bee-pollinated hybrids add a few seeds of the pollinator variety to the packaging. These seeds are colored compared to the others. They also add special markings to the packaging: a yellow seed in a small pink square and the words "colored seeds – pollinator."

If none of these are available, you can always purchase a pack of pollinator seeds yourself. Suitable varieties include:

• Gladiator;
• Hercules.

Their seeds are planted together with the Syn Polka variety so that their share is at least 10%.

Open windows, greenhouse doors, and the ends of plastic tunnels are often insufficient for bees to pollinate all the ovaries. To ensure that every flower has enough buzzing pollinators, experienced gardeners attract them by irrigating cucumber bushes with syrup and planting honey-producing flowers and aromatic herbs nearby.

Pest and disease control

The creators of the Son of the Regiment variety grafted the plants with immunity to several specific cucumber diseases:

• scab;
• cucumber mosaic;
• powdery mildew;
• downy mildew.

And here it is insect pest control – This is the gardener's responsibility. You can use ready-made insecticide solutions or herbal decoctions and infusions. The former are best applied before fruiting.

However, you can try to cope on your own:

• the smell of garlic or mint planted next to cucumbers repels ants, and the aroma of cilantro drives away mole crickets;
• ants can be poisoned with a mixture of boric acid and sugar;
• Spraying the leaves with an infusion of garlic or red pepper, or a decoction of celandine will help against aphids;
• You can “smoke out” the mole cricket from the ground to collect it by hand by watering the ground with a soapy solution;
• Potassium-phosphorus fertilizers and wood ash, rich in potassium, repel slugs.

When preparing the land for sowing, any anthills you find can be doused with boiling water, and once the harvest has been collected, use a solution of copper sulfate.

Sowing, growing, care

One of the advantages of "Son of the Regiment" cucumbers is their low maintenance. However, the plantings still require attention. Traditional care for growing bushes includes:

• loosening the soil and removing weeds;
• general measures for the formation of bushes;
• regular watering;
• fertilization.

Seeds are usually sown directly into open ground in regions with a southern climate. In northern climates, it's best to grow seedlings first. You can begin sowing in mid-April. Prepare containers with enriched soil. Seeds are best:

• pre-soak in potassium permanganate to get rid of bacteria;
• then soak for several hours in a honey solution, which is a natural growth stimulant.

Place two seeds per pot, planting them about 1.5 cm deep. When the first leaves emerge, remove the weaker-looking seedling for selection purposes. Place the containers with the shoots near a window, in full sun. Water regularly with warm water once every 4-5 days. Fertilize at least once. Maintain a room temperature of 22-24°C. ^OWITH.

• After 20-25 days of growth, when each shoot has 3-5 leaves, the seedlings can be transplanted into the garden beds. A week before, it is recommended to begin hardening off the seedlings, which involves:
• reducing the frequency of watering;
• reducing the room temperature by five degrees;
• transferring seedlings to the shade.

And after a few days, the containers are placed outside for a short time (starting with ten minutes).

The soil at the site of future beds is prepared in advance:

1. Choose open areas that are well lit by the sun.
2. They dig up, loosen, and enrich it with mineral mixtures or peat.
3. Before sowing, you can water the soil with a solution of growth stimulator with the addition of a fungicide.

Only after the earth warms up to a temperature of 15 ^OThe seedlings are transplanted to the garden beds or the seeds are sown directly. This usually happens in the second half of May when planting in greenhouses and in the first week of June when planting in open ground.

Add humus, compost, or peat to the holes first, then water with a small amount of warm water and plant the seeds to a depth of 2 cm. Leave 30 cm between holes and 50 cm between rows. For seedlings, plant 4-5 seedlings per 1 m.²Once all the seeds are in the ground, they are covered with plastic film. The film is removed as soon as the first leaves appear.

It's best to pull weeds out by the roots rather than tear them out. After weeding the soil, a thin layer of straw or rotted sawdust (called mulch) can be spread around the bushes to retain moisture and limit weed growth. This will protect the root system from temperature fluctuations and, when combined with peat, will provide nutrients.

Cucumbers are moisture-loving plants. However, excessive moisture will only be harmful: fungal diseases develop and root rot occur under such conditions. Therefore, the frequency and amount of watering should be adjusted depending on the weather and growth stage. During dry periods, it's advisable to water cucumbers daily or every other day, while during rainy periods they receive sufficient moisture. However, this doesn't apply to cucumbers grown in greenhouses. The frequency and amount of watering also increase during flowering and fruiting.

Recommendations:

1. Traditionally, warm water, settled in the sun or in the greenhouse itself, is used for irrigation.
2. The time chosen is either early morning or evening at sunset.
3. They try to avoid watering during the day because much of the moisture evaporates before it reaches the cucumbers. Furthermore, when droplets fall on the leaves, the sun during peak hours can burn the leaves where the droplets fall.

The "Syn Polka" cucumber variety ripens early, and typically requires 3-4 fertilizer applications per season. During the growing season before flowering, mullein, bird droppings, or compost are typically used. These are rich in nitrogen, which helps the plant develop foliage.

During flowering, fruit formation and ripening, the amount of organic nitrogen-containing fertilizers is reduced and potassium-phosphorus mixtures are added:

• potassium sulfate;
• nitrophoska;
• superphosphate.

Phosphorus is essential for root development, so superphosphate is often used to irrigate the soil around the roots. Some potassium supplements can be replaced with tree bark, which is diluted in water and then watered onto the plants.

Experienced gardeners also alternate methods top dressingOn dry days, apply fertilizer to the roots, usually after watering. On cool days, spray the leaves with a nutrient solution.

The cucumber bushes of the "Son of the Regiment" hybrid are characterized by moderate branching and medium height. This facilitates shaping the bushes as they grow. This is limited by the following measures:

• tying the bush with twine to a vertical support or trellis between the second and third leaves from the top without tightening the loop;
• pinching the top when it stretches to 50 cm from trellises;
• removal of lateral branches and ovaries of the four lower leaves;
• shortening the upper lateral shoots if necessary.

As with other early-ripening varieties, when harvesting "Syn Polka" cucumbers, it's helpful to follow the rule: the more often you pick cucumbers during the fruiting period, the greater the yield. During the active fruiting period, it's recommended to pick them every day or every other day.

Reviews

Tamara Viktorovna, 63 years old

I bought Son Polka seeds, thinking of sowing them in a greenhouse. Then I read that the variety is bee-pollinated. I was upset at first, but then I decided to plant them directly in the garden. I prepared the soil just right for full sun exposure, and I planted them through seedlings. They just kept growing, and of course, I fertilized them well. I struggled with the supports and ties, but the cucumbers grew so beautifully, they were perfect. Delicious little things. You could eat five at a time.

Igor N., 55 years old

We've been planting Son of the Polk cucumbers every year for about four years now. In the greenhouse, on trellises. I even moved the hive there a long time ago. As soon as the bushes bloom, the bees are buzzing and busy. My wife doesn't really like to mess with all those tendrils and vines, so I mostly do it myself. And I think Son of the Polk is very convenient here; it doesn't require any extra fuss. The cucumbers grow quickly, half a palm's width, and don't grow any further. They're just right for us. I picked them almost every day and gave them to my wife, and she canned them. Now we have neat and tasty gherkins all year round.

The high-yielding Son Polka variety produces attractive, smooth, miniature cucumbers with a pleasant taste that will grace the table both fresh in summer and as delicious pickled gherkins in winter.