Characteristics and description of the variety of Zozulya cucumbers, their yield
More recently, Zozulya F1's cucumber was a favorite among summer residents. Now the variety has slightly lost its popularity due to the abundance of new hybrids, but it still remains one of the most reliable and productive. With a clear conscience, you can recommend it to a novice gardener.
Characteristics and features of growing Zozulya cucumber
The creation of Zozulya F1 cucumber for indoor cultivation was carried out in the 70s of the last century. Today, the variety is still relevant as an early maturing crop for protected ground.
Zozulya F1 is a parthenocarpic plant that does not require pollination; the percentage of fruit set in protected ground is high.
Fruit
The description of the variety says that the medium-sized Zozulya cucumber fruits do not contain bitterness, their size is from 15 to 25 cm, respectively, the weight is from 140 to 300 g. The shape of the fruit is cylindrical, there is a slight ribbing at the end. There are few thorns, they are white, which speaks of the salad purpose of Zozul's cucumber.
Although if you read the reviews of summer residents on the forums, it becomes clear that the fruits are successfully used to prepare salted and pickled blanks for the winter. Zozulya cucumbers when grown in a greenhouse give 12 kg / m² at the initial fruiting period, and 20 kg / m² at the peak of fruiting.
Fruiting
According to the description, the Zozulya cucumber begins to bear fruit after 45 - 50 days after germination. When growing cucumbers by seedlings, an early harvest in a polycarbonate greenhouse can be removed from the first days of June.
A distinctive feature of the hybrid is a smooth increase in the number of fruits formed on the bushes by the end of the first month of fruiting. The average fruiting period is 2 months.
Growing cucumber seedlings from seeds
You can accelerate the germination rate of Zozul cucumber seeds using the old proven method. Take regular toilet paper, roll it up in several layers, put it on a saucer with a little water. When the paper is completely saturated with moisture, spread the cucumber seeds on one half, and cover them with the other half. Place the saucer closer to the heater, preferably in a bag so that the toilet paper does not dry out. After 3 - 4 days, if germination is good, the seeds will crack open, a sprout will pop out.
Zozulya F1 cucumbers, like other varieties, do not like transplanting. To grow a full seedling, you need to take care of separate pots for each seedling. Many gardeners choose peat pots, believing, not without reason, that this is the most gentle way of growing cucumber seedlings.
Let's highlight the necessary conditions for obtaining healthy seedlings:
- Loose, fertile soil containing an optimal amount of peat and humus.
- Keeping the soil moist.
- Watering only with warm (22 - 25 °) water that has settled during the day.
- Artificial highlighting.
- Lack of drafts.
- At least two dressings with liquid fertilizers for cucumber seedlings.
Vegetable growers living in country houses prefer to grow seedlings in a greenhouse, filling it with fresh cow dung. Manure spilled with hot water begins to actively rot, thanks to which the soil is ready at the beginning of April.
Transplanting seedlings
The Zozulya F1 cucumber variety is planted in the greenhouse from the end of April to the end of May, in the ground later - early to mid-June. It is important to remember: cucumber seedlings are ready for transplanting at the age of 25 days. By this time, a full-fledged root system and 3 - 4 leaves are formed. The stem of healthy seedlings is short, strong, the leaves are bright green.
The description on a pack of Zozulya cucumbers contains all the necessary recommendations for planting seedlings in a greenhouse made of film or polycarbonate. When marking the planting rows, maintain an interval of 50 cm between them. Place the holes in the rows at least 30 cm from each other. It is not forbidden to increase the distance upwards.
Planting seeds in the ground
Planting and caring for Zozulya cucumbers does not differ much from breeding them in a greenhouse. The landing pattern is the same. 3 to 5 dry cucumber seeds are planted in one well spilled with water. Wells with cucumber seeds are sprinkled with a layer of compost (humus) 2 - 2.5 cm thick. The entire ridge is covered with a layer of non-woven covering material and PVC film.
The shelter is removed after germination. In cold weather, you can put arcs, stretch covering material on them. In the open field, cucumber seeds are sown at the end of May, but in the conditions of the Urals and Siberia, frosts are possible in early June.
Planting care
How to pinch cucumbers - the first question that appears in the head of a novice vegetable grower. The question is reasonable, since only by correctly forming the cucumber bush, the fruit yield declared by the manufacturer is obtained.
In the greenhouse, pinching of the tops of the central stems of the cucumber can be omitted. The formation of side shoots in this variety is weak. In order not to thicken the greenhouse space, the side shoots that have appeared near the bush need to be pinched over 2 - 3 leaves. Attach the central stem to the trellis.
For those who are engaged in breeding a hybrid in the open field, it is necessary to form the bushes in a different way. Be sure to pinch the top of the central stem when the 5th leaf is formed. Such a pinching will provoke the active growth of lateral shoots. In the open field, cucumbers can be grown without trellis - the more side lashes there are, the greater the yield.
To pick the first cucumber from the garden, the summer resident needs to work hard:
- Before fruiting, water at least once every 4 days.
- Use only warm water (20 - 25 ° C) for irrigation.
- Carry out at least one root dressing with ammonium nitrate - a heaped tablespoon on a 10-liter watering can.
- During flowering, spray the cucumber ridge with an aqueous solution of boric acid: 2 g per 10 liters.
- From aphids and other pests, sprinkle young plantings of cucumbers with onion or garlic infusion, and dust the ground around the stems with sifted wood ash.
Zozulenok F1 - growing in a greenhouse
The new cucumber Zozulenok was bred specifically for polycarbonate film greenhouses and greenhouses. The hybrid was successfully tested, registered in the State Register in 2008. Fruiting occurs 40 days after germination. Zozulenok is an early ripe hybrid with a female type of flowering that does not require pollination. In internodes, 3 female flowers are formed.
Zozulenok F1 is a parthenocarpic hybrid, which is very good for greenhouses, you don't need to plant pollinating plants, the fruits set well in any case.Cucumbers are harvested when they reach a length of 16 - 20 cm. Cucumbers have few seeds, there is no taste of bitterness.
The shape of the cucumbers is elongated-cylindrical with slightly noticeable ribbing. Spines are rare, white. The color of the cucumber peel is dark green with separate, weakly expressed stripes at one end.
Cucumber bushes grown according to all the rules give up to 15 kg of high-quality greens for salad purposes per square meter. The output of marketable products is high. About 90% of all harvested cucumbers meet quality requirements. In the open field, the yield of the hybrid is lower.
Opinions of summer residents about the Zozul hybrid
Irina, Minusinsk:
“Zozulya's cucumber variety was my first successful experience in growing cucumbers. Seeds were sown dry in 3 - 4 pieces in one hole, covered with a layer of humus 1 - 2 cm thick. The ridge was closed first with agrospan, then with a film, removed after the shoots appeared. With good germination, she planted cucumbers in other holes. She tied the growing cucumber lashes to a crossbar attached to two supports. I planted it on May 26, began picking cucumbers in the first decade of July. The description says that this is a salad variety, but this characteristic did not bother me. I marinated them: I cut large cucumbers across into several parts. The jars have never exploded, the pickles taste great. "
Marina, Saratov:
“I plant Zozul in open ground. One row of cucumbers is enough for a family of four. We eat fresh cucumbers and pickle. Zozulia's pulp is tender, aromatic, and has no bitterness. The skin is dark green, not coarse. From overgrown cucumbers I make a spicy snack "Korean cucumbers".
