WHY YOU SHOULD PRUNE CUCUMBER PLANTS

 Why should you prune cucumbers?

Pruning cucumber plants is a common gardening practice that can have several benefits for plant health and overall productivity. This mainly applies to cucumbers that depend on vertical support but there are many other benefits or pruning cucumber plants.

• More manageable plants. Pruning vining cucumbers prevents them from spreading aggressively and makes the plants much easier to maintain. 

• Space savings. Growing cucumbers vertically on trellises is a great way to fit cucumbers in a small garden space. This is especially if you do square foot gardening.

• Reduced diseases. Pruning helps increase air circulation, reducing the risk of diseases like powdery mildew.

• Earlier ripening. Pruning cucumber suckers funnels the plant’s energy toward its fruit instead of leafy growth, which can result in an earlier harvest. Topping the cucumber plants is particularly useful as the end of the season nears.

• Larger fruit. Just as pruning helps cucumbers ripen earlier, pruning can also boost the size of cucumber fruit. Plucking away some of the plant’s leaves and extra cucumbers redirects the plant’s energy toward the remaining cucumbers.

• Easier harvesting. I am guilty of missing cucumbers until they’re overripe and turn yellow. If you prune some of the plant’s leaves, it’s much easier to see cucumbers and harvest them at the peak of freshness.

• More productive plants. Pruning cucumbers helps your plants produce more prolifically too. By removing extra leaves, your cucumber vines can focus their energy on growing more cucumbers.

 Pruning Tips

Don’t prune too early. Pruning cucumbers too early limits the size of the vines and reduces fruit production. Instead, wait to prune cucumber vines until they are about three to five weeks old and measure 1 to 2 feet high.

Disinfect your tools. To avoid spreading diseases when pruning, disinfect your pruning tools between plants with isopropyl alcohol.

Find the plant’s main stem. Cucumber plants consist of one main stem and multiple branching stems or clusters of leaves that extend away from the main vine. Don't prune the main stem of cucumber vines, as this can halt the plant’s growth.

 Remove the lower lateral stems and leaves.  Clip away the lowest four to six lateral stems around the base of the cucumber vine. These lateral stems, also known as suckers, can draw energy away from the plant’s main stem. Removing the lowest stems helps the cucumber vine maintain a vertical growth habit on your trellising system.

 Remove any damaged or diseased leaves.  After removing the lowest suckers from the vines, inspect your cucumber plant for any damaged, yellow, or diseased leaves and cut them away. Diseases, like powdery mildew, can rapidly spread throughout a plant, but you can limit this by removing any diseased plant tissue. I also snip off any leaves near the soil line as they are more likely to develop diseases due to poor airflow and rain splashing soil-borne pathogens onto them.

Snip away extra suckers.  Next, inspect the plant for additional suckers, which often appear in the crook between the plant’s main vine and some leaves. Suckers are usually recognized by their bushy appearance and small leaves.  Pinch away young suckers with your fingers if they are small and cut larger branches with pruners at a 45-degree angle to avoid damaging the plant. You’ll want to remove the suckers around the bottom of the plant but leave at least two to three suckers at the top section of the vine. These suckers can branch and fruit and are usually productive because the top of the plant receives lots of sunlight.

Remove fruit as it grows. As the cucumbers grow, continue to remove any damaged plant leaves and be sure to harvest cucumbers as soon as they ripen. Leaving cucumbers on the plant too long can sap the vines of energy and reduce your harvest.

At the end of the season. You may want to “top” your cucumber vine at the end of the growing season to encourage the remaining fruit to ripen faster.  Do this by cutting off the top of the main stem with your pruners. This encourages the plant to focus its energy on the fruit remaining on the vine.