How to Grow Cucumber at Home

Cucumber is a type of vegetable that can be easily grown at home. You do not need any elaborate set up to grow your cucumbers in your home.

I have seen a lot of people who have successfully grown cucumbers at home. Though, some of them do not optimally grow this crop at home.

The essence of this article is to show you how you can optimally grow cucumber at home and achieve a decent yield.

Steps to be taken before growing cucumber at home

• Find a suitable place; this may be your backyard, garden or rooftop etc.
• Get the right planting medium, this may be soil mixed with compost, coco peat or perlite etc.
• Ensure that the pH of the soil or planting medium is between 5.5 and 6.5
• Ensure that the temperature is warm enough. Cucumber likes tropical conditions
• Get all the inputs needed, seeds, fertilizers and pesticides
• Get the irrigation system set up

Growing Cucumber in Sacks

To grow cucumbers at home, you may want to use sacks. Cucumber sack farming is becoming popular in Nigeria because of the ease of set up.

Using sack farming for the growing of cucumbers at home is quite easy. To grow cucumbers in sacks at home, you need the following:

Sacks

Sacks can be made from jute or polythene. The sacks must be perforated at the sides. The side perforation will serve as planting holes where cucumber seedlings or seeds will be planted.

The perforations will also enable water to easily drain from the sack.

Planting Medium

Soil, coco peat or perlite etc. can be used as the planting medium for cucumber sack farming at home, though soil is better, because it is easier to get.

The soil should be treated so that the harmful pests and microbes in it can be destroyed.

If soil is used as the planting medium, small stones or pebbles should be mixed with it so that water can easily drain from it.

Pebbles or small stones

Pebbles or small stones are usually added to the soil in sack farming. The stones enable water to go round the soil in the sack. They also enable water to drain freely from the sack.

Seeds

Cucumber seeds are needed if you want to grow cucumber at home. You should decide on the variety of cucumber seeds you want to plant.

Hybrid seeds are high yielding than open pollinated seeds; they are also good for sack growing of cucumbers.

Fertilizers

Fertilizers like NPK 15:15:15, manure and composts should be used when growing cucumbers in sacks at home.

The soil is advised to be mixed with compost or manure before the seeds are planted.

Pesticides

Fungicides, insecticides and nematicides etc. are some of the pesticides which may be needed if you want to grow cucumbers in sacks at home.

Organic pesticides may be better if you want to grow cucumbers at home.

Water Supply

Irrigation may be needed for your cucumber growing project at home.

Watering can also be used for watering the cucumber plants in the sack.

Staking nets or ropes

Staking ropes or nets may also be needed for trellising the cucumber plants.

Staking of cucumber plants can help in reducing the incidences of diseases and also increase yield.

Growing Cucumber in Pots

Cucumbers can also be grown in pots at home. The pots can be made of clay or ceramics or any other suitable material.

There should be draining holes in the pots.

To grow cucumbers in pots at home, you will need the following:

• Pots
• Cucumber Seeds
• Water Supply
• Pesticides
• Fertilizers
• Staking Ropes
• Soil or any other planting medium

Growing Cucumbers in Bags

Bags can also be used for the growing of cucumber at home. Planting bags are usually made of polythene.

Planting bags are perforated the sides and sometimes at the bottom of the bags. The perforated holes ensure the free draining of water from the bags.

Planting bags should be well spaced so that there will be good aeration.

Growing cucumbers at home can be fun.