2nd Farm 12XL (Cukes, Zebras) ENDED

[lynnee]

The Mini Munch cuke has flowers! They were hiding under the leaves. The blooms are nearly 2-1/2" across, which was a shock.

maskedsonnet , am I correct that the Mini Munch doesn't require any pollinating by me?



The Burpee Lemon cuke (back right in the photo) probably will have male and female flowers and require pollinating. I found an online article about cukes that says that the all-female and male-female cukes shouldn't be grown near to each other because cross-pollination can cause bitter fruit. I hope that doesn't happen, but we'll see.



The cukes and tomato were using a lot of water, so I connected one of my Aerovoirs to the Farm 12 XL this afternoon.

[Shawn]

What a wonderful and pretty surprise

[maskedsonnet]

Nope, don’t have to do anything to the mini munch pollination-wise! I loved how big and cheerful the flowers were. Not every single one of the baby cukes it put on grew into a full cucumber, especially while the plant was still relatively young, but I’d say a large majority did. Exciting to see the first ones!

As for cross pollination, I doubt it’ll happen indoors unless the plants get totally tangled together. Which is completely possible with how poorly behaved climbing vines can be if you’re not paying attention to what they’re climbing lol!

[lynnee]

maskedsonnet, your warnings about the Mini Munch tendrils getting cozy with the lights were spot on! It's a good thing you had me watching closely, or I might have missed the one that attached to the cords going into the hood yesterday.

The cukes seem content with the strategically placed soft tie trellises along the side supports of the Farm 12 XL.

[maskedsonnet]

It’s good that they’re happy with the ties! I’m going to have to try those with my kratky experiment, if it gets that far along

[lynnee]

At Day 35, the Mini Munch cuke is thriving, with quite a few blossoms and 3 or 4 separate branches. The Burpee Lemon cuke is healthy and starting to bud (I think), but has no blossoms. The Burpee Green Zebra tomato is also healthy, with leaves only.

I decided to remove the Lemon cuke and the GZ tomato. The Farm XL was too crowded, and this way I can try to train the cukes along my makeshift trellises.  I may pinch off the tip of the tallest stem, if it won't grow downwards from its current position.



Day 35 Before and After:

[lynnee]

Day 39 The Mini Munch cuke is accepting some vine training, and has several branches. There are little cukes developing, I think, but nothing is anywhere near to being edible size.

For now I'm leaving it alone, but maybe some of the branches will need to come off later so that the plant will concentrate on fruit.  The seed packet says 55 days.  

[Sher]

That is so exciting, lynnee!

[lynnee]

The weather cooled off some, and all of the plants in the room that gets hot in the afternoon have started to grow again.

However, the Mini Munch cucumber still hasn't produced any harvestable cucumbers. It has lots of flowers, and looks very healthy, but the little cukes-in-waiting behind the flowers aren't enlarging.

I gave the plant some KoolBloom, and am now thinking it may have been a mistake. Perhaps cucumbers don't need encouragement when it comes to flowers? Any suggestions will be welcome.  

[maskedsonnet]

I’m not sure on the KoolBloom, as I’ve never used any supplements outside of the AG nutes. But my first harvest was just a few days over the 2 month mark, so keep checking up on it over the next week and hopefully some of them will start getting bigger. Fingers crossed!!

[lynnee]

A few of the blooms are starting to show some cucumber-like growth. It can't have helped to have the room at 82 degrees in the afternoons, that's for sure. Fingers crossed here, too!

[lynnee]

Feb 19, 2022 3:28:43 GMT -5 maskedsonnet said:

I’m not sure on the KoolBloom, as I’ve never used any supplements outside of the AG nutes. But my first harvest was just a few days over the 2 month mark, so keep checking up on it over the next week and hopefully some of them will start getting bigger. Fingers crossed!!

OK, you're right, maskedsonnet, I'm too impatient.    It's only Day 56, and the left-hand cuke (about 1-1/2") is rounding out, while the right-hand cuke has lengthened to 1-1/2".  There are lots of still-developing cukes on the plant, too. 

[maskedsonnet]

Totally understand the feeling of staring at that 2-month mark, having a big beautiful plant, and wondering if it's just going to sit there and look pretty or reward you for all that time, water, and nutrients!! Glad you're seeing some progress on some of them now

[Sher]

I tried to grow cucumbers twice and terminated both projects because the baby cukes would not develop.

I am wondering now if I just didn't give them time.

So glad yours are starting to develop, lynnee!

[lynnee]

Feb 20, 2022 0:55:14 GMT -5 Sher said:

I tried to grow cucumbers twice and terminated both projects because the baby cukes would not develop.

I am wondering now if I just didn't give them time.

So glad yours are starting to develop, lynnee !

It helps a lot to know that maskedsonnet grew the Mini Munch so successfully! The Mini Munch doesn't require help with pollination, either.

[lynnee]

Day 59, and there will be many edible cukes soon!

[maskedsonnet]

The first is always the most exciting!!!

[Shawn]

It is a beauty

[Sher]

lynnee, you have encouraged me to try cucumbers again someday.  I had given up on them.

[lynnee]

Feb 23, 2022 9:13:30 GMT -5 Sher said:

lynnee, you have encouraged me to try cucumbers again someday.  I had given up on them.

The all-female flowers on the Mini Munch make it easy to grow! I want to try some cukes that require pollination now.

Ray and I split this one today. (First harvest at Day 60.) It tasted great, but maybe left a bitter aftertaste. The ones that come later may taste different, because I adjusted the pH partway through. The water was quite acidic, and cukes prefer something more basic if you don't get an ideal pH.