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Is separating cucumber seedlings while potting up a fool's errand? (lemmy.ml)
submitted 6 months ago by to c/gardening@lemmy.world
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I saw some tips around sowing multiple seeds per cell so at least one seed germinates in each cell, and then one either thins the weaker seedlings or carefully separates them while potting them up. I'm still very early in my gardening education, so I thought that's cool, I'll take this approach for my cucumber starts b/c hey why not, and since the thought of thinning seedlings kinda kills my soul, I'll just carefully separate them when I pot them up; however, everything I'm now reading about cucumbers is that they don't transplant well and they're more sensitive to root shock than other crops like tomatoes and peppers. Is thinning each cell down to one the way to go for these cucumber starts or is there hope for my soul? Not that I even have enough pots to move them all into anyway, but where there's a will there's a way...

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[–] 5 points 6 months ago* (2 children)

If there's more than one sprouted, I pick the healthiest of the group and prune the rest right down to the soil. I don't like disturbing the soil and would rather they build strength for transplanting.

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  • [–] [S] 1 point 6 months ago (1 child)

    You do this for all crops or just cucumbers?

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  • [–] 1 point 5 months ago

    I do container gardening in fabric pots mostly, so I group my seeds pretty close. I'll cull extras carefully with all of my seedlings because it's easier than trying to separate them, whether I'm starting in cells or direct sow. This way, their little roots are unaffected and can continue to grow shock-free. The remaining roots of the culled will quickly wither and be reabsorbed.

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    • [–] 4 points 6 months ago

    If it makes you feel better you can eat the ones you cull. They are edible at this stage.

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    [–] 4 points 6 months ago (2 children)

    Yep,I plant 3 and keep one alive, cutting the others at the base

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    • [–] 2 points 6 months ago

    Try half one way, half the other, see what works for you.

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    [–] 1 point 6 months ago

    For most people, transplanting cucumbers is a waste of time. Reason: you generally don't make the harvest any earlier than direct seeding. Cucumbers are finicky to transplant and it's generally isn't worth it unless you are geowinf them in a greenhouse and know what you are doing. Commercially almost 100% of open field production is direct seeded (100% of greenhouse production is transplanted).

    If it is warm enough outside, transplant them immediately. Don't worry about thinning them, give them a little bit more space per hill and they will do fine. Make sure to do it in the evening and water them well.

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