Cucumbers can be known as a vegetable that comes from the Cucurbits family. And I think you will agree when I say cucumbers are more likely to be planted in warm weather conditions. But if you have an opportunity to plant them in a container in winter, do growing cucumber plants in containers good for winter?
Cucumber plants need at least 13 C temperature to a well-growth. Because the temperature goes down in the winter season, growing cucumber plants in recommended containers good for winter.
Usually, cucumber plants like warm weather with sunlight. In fact, they prefer if they have sunlight with them for 8 – 10 hours a day. But I guarantee you that you are still able to overwinter cucumber plants in containers.
Let’s see the cool data that I have gathered for you about growing cucumber plants in containers during the winter!
Table of Contents
Types of cucumber plants that grow in containers good for which winter
When we considering the types and varieties of cucumber plants, they are so many.
Here there is some of them.
- Ashley
- Bush champion
- Diva
- Fanfare
- Dasher II
But we can categorize all of these varieties into two main types. Those are bush cucumbers and vine cucumbers.
(1) Bush cucumber plants
Bush cucumber plants usually not growing for too much height. Averagely it grows only 3 to 4 feet tall.
So these kinds of cucumbers are awesome to grow in containers in the winter. Even you won’t need to worry about trellis with these types of cucumbers.
(2) Vine cucumber plants
Vine cucumber plants generally provide a better crop than bush cucumber plants.
But the thing is they are growing much taller unlike bush cucumber plants.
Vine cucumber plants grow up to an average of 9 feet even it’s been planted in a container.
In these kinds of cucumber plants, their roots are spreading on a very large area. So growing vine cucumber plants in containers good for winter if your container width is at least 18 inches.
Also, you must give support with a trellis to these vines, if you need a successful cucumber plant after the winter.
So what type of cucumber plant are suits for growing cucumber plants in containers during the winter?
If we summarize the above information, from my point of view, bush cucumber plants are good to go with containers.
What size containers to grow cucumber plants in winter
This is a very important thing to know before growing cucumbers in containers.
Actually, you will be needed a big container that you can put enough soil onto it.
The least recommendation is a basket with 5 gallons.
If it’s bigger than recommended, your cucumber plants in containers will grow better even in winter.
A big container helps to drains the water ineffectively and has enough space to scattered well for roots.
Tips to follow growing cucumber plants on containers in winter
Here are some of the things that I have learnt by growing cucumber plants in containers, which are still good for winter.
(1) Moisture
You need to be careful of the moisture of your cucumber plant especially when you grow them in containers.
If it’s too low, the plant is going to die without enough water. If it’s more the plant tends to be rotted.
But this doesn’t mean you should water the plant consistently.
Don’t water the plant until the soil is drained. You can check the moisture of the soil easily from your finger.
Also because you are growing cucumber plants indoors because of the winter and getting a low amount of sunlight, you need to have extra careful about this matter.
Note – Don’t water these plants at night even it’s drained. It can bring you some bad issues.
(2) Qualitiness of soil
You are growing the containers in the winter. So the way it can grows is restrictive.
And your cucumber plant’s roots cant outside from the pot to have the soil it likes.
So you have a huge responsibility to provide the soil it needed.
That soil should be healthy, rich with nutrients while it manages the watering system well.
Also, feed the cucumber plant with the correct fertilizers during it grows in a container on winter.
However, try to feel your cucumber plant is don’t grow in a container.
(3) Use trellis
I have mentioned at the beginning, bush cucumber plants don’t need trellis while they growing in containers.
But now again I advising you to use trellis when you planting cucumbers in containers for over-winter them.
Here’s the reason.
Cucumber is just another vegetable among 975 others in the Cucurbits family.
Most of Cucurbits have the same qualities which are generally on most vines.
So using the support of a trellis to cucumber plants in a container is good whether it’s a bush cucumber or a vine.
By using trellis when growing cucumber plants in containers is good for winter and you can have a better result from your plant on the next summer.
Recommended conditions to grow cucumber plants in containers on winter
There are some of the main conditions and requirements that every plant needed.
So cucumber plants also have some required conditions that experts recommend.
You need to follow these recommendations from the best you can because you are growing cucumber plants in containers which is a good solution for winter season.
Let’s dive into the deep to find how to grow cucumber plants as to the correct recommendations.
Best soil conditions for growing cucumber plants in containers
cucumber is a type of vegetable that could provide a large amount of crop per harvest.
So the soil is doing an outstanding job in helping the cucumber plant to provide more fruits and make the plant stronger.
Because of that, you can’t get satisfied with putting some soil you have found on your garden on to the 5 gallon basket of your cucumber plant.
They can’t give the strength to the plant for the process of fighting against the cold.
The soil that you put on your plant should be healthy, nutrition-rich. Also, it should manage the water well and should well-feeding the plant.
Instead of just adding normal garden soil, you can mix some potting soil with them.
You can find some valuable information about homemade potting mix from here.
When we digging deeper into this topic, I able to find that cucumber plants like the neutral soil which is around 6.0 to 7.0 Ph value.
So you can also use composts to treat cucumbers with much better soil. But not only with compost.
Mix composts with your garden soil before you put them on your plant. This can cut down the acidness of the compost and make the soil suitable for cucumber plants.
Best light and temperature conditions to grow cucumber plants in containers
Temperature for cucumbers
As you completely know, cumber is a warm loving plant.
How much of temperature will they loving to have?
Actually, they prefer to have 18 C to 24 C temperatures around them. The soil temperature of a cucumber plant should be around 15.5 C.
Cucumber plants being able to hurt when they going to have a temperature of 13 C or below.
The sad thing is, even when you growing cucumber plants in containers at indoors, they are expecting even minimal conditions.
If you won’t able to provide these conditions while you growing cucumber plants in containers which is a good solution for winter, you are going to do well in the summer crop.
Sunlight for cucumbers
Now this is a main condition that many gardeners miss when they growing cucumber or any of plant in a container at indoor.
Actually, cucumber plants love to have sunlight on their trunk and leaves for 8 to 10 hours a day.
But it’s pretty fare that many of gardeners will fail this step.
Because, how they can give sunlight to a plant in a container in their house in winter?
No worry. There is a solution.
Use a fluorescent light or an LED growing light. Various kinds of grow lights for indoor gardening have become on the market.
The thing is they provide the light and the heat as same as the way the sun is doing it. They don’t feel the plant an unnatural feeling.
Conclusion
Growing cucumber plants in containers is good for winter at indoors. Because they hard to live in lower conditions than 13 C
There are two main types of cucumber plants. They are,
- Bush cucumbers
- Vine cucumbers
Both of these kinds can be planted in containers during the winter season for caring.
When we consider the container that we planting cucumbers should be planted in a container at least having 5 gallons of capacity.
Your cucumber plant should have correct moisture on the soil. It shoul be well ballenced.
The soil should be notorious, healthy and well-drain.
Cucumber plants like 8 to 10 hours sunlight a day and it grows well on between 18 C – 24 C.