For many hobby gardeners, cucumbers are simply part of the kitchen garden. Driving, planting, caring for properly – the path from sowing to harvest is long. All the more annoying when the plants produce few fruits. Luckily, there is a trick you can use to increase your yields. You can remove the male flowers and encourage fruit production.
The role of male flowers in fruit formation
For now – there are two types of cucumbers. The varieties that produce only female flowers do not need to be pollinated. However, most cucumbers are male and female flowering and need help from bees, bumblebees and butterflies to be fertilized. For this purpose, greenhouses and winter gardens begin to be ventilated for hours in spring. After the Ice Saints (sometimes earlier) you also have to remove the antifreeze so that thepollinating insectscan get to the flowers.
Special features of varieties that produce male and female flowers
Most plants produce both male and female flowers. The male ones are used for pollination and fertilization, but do not bear fruit. Only the females can produce fruit. The number of female flowers can have a significant positive or negative influence on yields. Experienced hobby gardeners know this and therefore try to count the number of male flowersto be kept to the minimum.
Special case: only female-flowering cucumbers
In recent years, numerous new varieties have been bred that produce few or no male flowers. This means that a rich harvest is practically guaranteed because it does not depend on pollinating insects. These varieties are ideal for greenhouses and small balcony gardens in the big city, where pollination by insects is problematic.
Why do cucumbers only have male flowers?
1. For female and male flowering varieties it depends on the timing:Cucumbers produce male flowers first. The plants only begin producing fruit-producing flower buds when they have grown and become strong. So if your cucumbers only produce male flowers, it's not the plant's fault, but the timing.
2. For predominantly female-flowering varieties, cold weather is to blame.Even with only female-flowering varieties, it can happen that the plant also has male flowers. The weather in particular affects the type of flower and the number of flowers. As a rule, the first flowers of these varieties are male. These open at 15° to 18° Celsius. If the weather is bad, the flowering period may not begin until May. It still takes some time until the female flowers with ovaries appear. To speed up the process, the first male flowers can be removed.
3. In all varieties, weak plants do not produce female flowers.If there was stormy weather, if the temperature fluctuations in spring were too great, if the plants were attacked by pests, then fruit production stopped. Weakened cucumbers need extra fertilizer to help them bear fruit.
When should male flowers be removed?
Even exclusively female-flowering varieties can produce male flowers if the weather continues to be cool. Therefore, you should learn to recognize them and remove them early. This promotes further flowering, this time of female flowers. If the male flowers are not removed or removed late, the plant bears significantly less fruit.
How to recognize the fruit-producing flowers
The fruit-producing (female) flowers can be recognized by the fact that they have an ovary. Pollinating insects transfer pollen on their wings and legs. When these reach the ovary, the flowers are fertilized and the plant bears fruit. Of course, people can also help and pollinate the female flowers by hand.
The male flowers are grouped together, close to the leaves. They can also be identified quickly.
Incidentally, it is not a good idea to plant predominantly or only female-flowering cucumbers in the greenhouse together with the mixed-flowering varieties. The first ones do not need pollination. If they are pollinated, they produce weak fruits and seeds. The second absolutely need pollinating insects.
Also read:Pollinate cucumber flowers: With these tips, pollination works without any problems!
How are male flowers properly removed?
The best way to remove the flowers is to snap them off along with the stem. You can also cut off the flowers, then the cut will heal much faster. It is best to choose a cloudy day without rain for this purpose.
Cover photo: Shutterstock / LedyX
