Cucumbers are the most common plants you can grow in your backyard. They have a variety of species which are more beneficial to gardeners. Those types include bush, slicing, and vining cucumbers. Slicing cucumbers are super larger and longer. And they’re ideal for smoothies and salads. Then wild cucumbers are found in many countries around the globe. Then the main cucumbers have been argued to be from India and other parts of Southern Asia.
Although cucumber is the most beneficial plant, sometimes growing it comes with challenges from the day of planting up to maturity (especially if you’re clueless on how to care about those plants) fortunately, the leaves of cucumbers act as reporters. When something takes place in your cucumber plant, leaves are the first to alarm you. You can notice cucumber leaves turning yellow or wilt
So the primary gist of this post is to identify why cucumber leaves turning yellow. We’ve researched and compiled everything you should understand about changing the colour of your cucumber plants.
General Functions of Leaves
Leaves are not just flattened organs of vascular plants that shoot from the stem of a plant. Their primary function is generally photosynthesis and gas exchange. Gas exchange is broken down into the regulation of oxygen and carbon dioxide. They are instrumental in the transfer of water vapor with the atmosphere. And they are dutiful in manufacturing food and temperature regulation.
Cucumber Leaves Type
Cucumber leaves differ in shapes, sizes, and textures depending on the regions they are accustomed to. As a vine plant cucumber has an option of being grown on poles or trellis. Its leaves (foliage) shoot alternating on the stem, and they serve the general functions aforementioned. Their texture is hairy, which is used to defend the plant from insects/herbivores or regulate temperatures. A healthy cucumber leaf in its prime is green, and thus if there is any color deterioration before time, it is a sign of unhealthiness.
Causes of Yellow Leaves
Once one sees cucumber yellowing leaves, there is a range of problems at hand. Yellowing of leaves is not a minor problem as it causes stunted growth, and in some cases, the plant may prematurely die before producing anything. Here are several issues cause the yellow color of cucumber leaves:
Light
Lack of light which is highly instrumental in photosynthesis may hugely affect the leaves color and deter the whole plant life. Cucumbers require a minimum of six hours of light, natural or fluorescent. If they are deprived of view, they cannot capture light for photosynthesis and suffer from chlorosis.
Temperatures
Temperatures affect the color of the leaves, high or low heat affects the leaves. Cucumbers’ yellowing leaves can be a result of temperatures inconsistent with the plant. Cucumber plants grow best in temperatures of 65 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit. Thus erratic temperatures cause moisture stress, which is mostly seen by yellowing of leaves.
Nutrition
Cucumber plants turning yellow due to malnutrition. Lack of very important nutrients like iron, magnesium, nitrogen. A pale or yellow color is a sign of lacking of nitrogen in cucumber leaves. This can actually lead to stunted growth or even death depending on the severity of the condition.
Magnesium is a metallic chemical that assists the chlorophyll to capture sunlight for chlorophyll, and it is vital in plant growth. Heavy rains or lack of organic matter in the soil leads to a lack of magnesium, which makes plants degrade chlorophyll, and leaves start yellowing.
Iron chlorosis is the lack of iron, which cucumber plants are identified by the yellowing of leaves and the slow death of a plant.
Insects attack
They are sap (chlorophyll) sucking pests that may stick below or on top leaves. Insects like leafhopper, aphids, whiteflies, and spider mites are prevalent. The sap is what blood is to human beings; in plants, two main types, which are phloem and xylem, they contain nutritional fluids of a plant like the sugars and mineral salts. Thus sap-sucking insects distort the color of the leaves, which subsequently leads to the cucumber leaves turning yellow, curling, and mostly dying.
Remedying the cucumbers yellowing leaves problems
The above list of problems related to cucumber plants turning yellow is not exhaustive but, there main problems that someone interested or already a cucumber farmer is supposed to watch out for. You may be asking yourself that since the issues have been identified, where are the solutions?
It is very wise for one to identify the root cause of the cucumbers plants turning yellow. To put the above-listed problems associated with the yellowing of leaves, one has to try these methods :
- Shortage of light in cucumber plants: if they are being grown indoors is to apply the fluorescent or LED supplementary lighting.
- Temperatures are inconsistent with cucumber growing and lead to moisture stress and oxidative stress, in which the yellowing of leaves identifies its first symptoms. Hence one has to be very aware of the temperatures of the region or if its greenhouse farming regulates temperatures to hospitable temperatures above mentioned. Covering of plants also regulates temperature.
- When it comes to cucumber plant nutrition use of complementary efforts of artificial fertilizers and compost is very important. Organic compost is very rich in magnesium. Epsom salts and chemical leaf spray are also very applicable to the improvement of magnesium-deficient soil.
- Overall,it very imperative to spray the plant with insecticides
Finally thought
Cucumber plant is relatively cultivable in different regions around the globe. Now it is cultivate worldwide for various purposes. Whether for consumption or botanical beautification purposes. Additionally, it has noted that cucumbers are vine crops that can be grown suspended on poles or just on the ground.
The mass-produced variety of cucumbers in the western countries are plant. In most cases, cultivated in open spaces but mostly in greenhouses suspended on poles and trellis. Therefore It is imperative to consult with the your local agricultural specialist on which appropriate chemicals and fertilizers to use when you have identified the above problems on your cucumber plants.
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