5

I have a few cucumber plants growing in my raised bed. Instead of training them and providing a vertical trellis, I am allowing the cucumber to grow horizontally in the soil. Is that a fine approach or not recommended? If that is a fine approach, do I protect the cucumbers that are lying in the soil by putting some mulch or other material so it does not touch the soil? This is all organic gardening so no chemicals in the soil.

JStorage
  • 7,844
  • 6
  • 32
  • 72
  • 1
    if it's in a raised bed, couldn't you just let them fall off the sides of the bed? – black thumb Jun 14 '16 at 23:04
  • I could but they will eventually get to the ground. Also, some of them are in the middle of the raised bed so the cucumbers will end up in the soil unless I train them on a trellis – JStorage Jun 14 '16 at 23:30

1 Answers1

4

On the past I left the cucumbers to grow horizontally. Possibly they get more water (using the adventitious roots).

But I found two problems:

  • it is more difficult to remove the weeds.
  • hidden cucumbers (it is much more difficult to find them and harvest before it is too late)

I never had rotten cucumbers (without using mulch). Anyway mulch could help on both problems.

Giacomo Catenazzi
  • 14,039
  • 3
  • 19
  • 44