[BabyStar]

After a rocky start my cucumbers were looking pretty good and had a couple of good sized ones that were edible. Another two got yellow spots which went through to the flesh.
We noticed white mouldy looking patches on the leaves and then they all dried up and went brittle. All the other new cucumbers shrivelled up and died, even ones which were growing beforehand. We don't want to use any chemicals and weren't sure what to do so they have been thrown away now but does anyone know what this might have been and how to treat it?
Will try them again next year but would they be better grown outside instead of in the greenhouse? I'm thinking it possibly got too hot for them although it's not been an overly hot summer and doors and windows are always open during the day...

[mumofstig]

I don't know about the yellow spots in the flesh
But the mouldy and then crispy leaves sounds as if they got powdery mildew, you can grow varieties that are resistant or at least tolerant of powdery mildew.

[Springlands]

Hi Babystar - I would agree with MOS, it sounds as if your cucumbers have powdery mildew. Cukes are notoriously difficult to grow - if they do not have the right conditions they just give up and die.

Although you said that you kept the greenhouse doors and windows open another problem could be that the atmosphere in the greenhouse was just too dry for the cukes - they like a humid atmosphere. During the summer I try to hose down the staging and the flooring of the GH a couple of times each day to create a more humid atmosphere. Cukes also need a lot of water to grow but you also need to ensure that you do not get the stems wet or they can rot away (having said that I have ignored that rule recently and my cukes are doing well).

I know that sounds like a lot of work but if you are successful home grown cukes taste much better than shop bought ever will.

I have grown outdoor cukes in the past and it really depends on how good a summer that we get - some times they grow well and other times not so good but probably worth a try.

[BabyStar]

Thanks, I'll look into the different varieties for next year to find one that is more resistant. It was a shame as it didn't hit until they had all just got going. Grr!
On a side note, is growing courgettes similar to growing cucumbers? I want to do these next year as well. Do they grow outside best?

[mumofstig]

courgettes are much easier than cucumbers, that's for sure..and yes they grow outside

[lazydog]

courgettes are much easier than cucumbers, that's for sure..and yes they grow outside
[/quote]

Grow outside GROW OUTSIDE dont make the mistake i made the first year i grew them i did a row of 12 and had courgettes coming out off my ears daily!!

[BabyStar]

Lol, I'll try and remember! Thanks for the advice!

[ermck1]

1st greenhouse year n never again will I grow indoor cucumbers. Powdery mildew.

I would grow the cucumbers outside as well as courgettes (only a couple of each mind )

Mike

[Patty Pan]

I must have had beginners luck with my cukes this year then - they were coming out of my ears 

I grew 4 Beth Alpha plants in my polytunnel, they are the mini kind and I must have been taking 10 - 12 each week in total and they tasted wonderful  Have today harvested the last one , have flowers still but they don't seem to be coming to much now.

They were sown indoors in a heated propagator in early March then grown on a sunny window ledge till mid April when I planted them in the tunnel. I grew them up strings of baling twine and hand pollinated with a little brush, just to make sure, though probably wasn't necessary...

I have a central paving slab path in my 8' wide tunnel and this was wetted down daily to increase the humidity levels and doors at both ends were open daily on sunny days. They were fed every 4 days from when the flowers first appeared, alternating with tomato food and homemade comfrey tea. A courgette close by sucumbed to powdery mildew but they weren't affected so perhaps this variety has a little resistance? Hopefully this regime will have the same success next year with luck!

Incidentally, I found the best way to store them was to wrap them tightly in cling film and keep in a cool dark kitchen cupboard, they were still good in there after a couple of weeks and I have loads of jars of pickled cucumber and cucumber chutney to see me through the winter 

[shokkyy]

Ooh, that's exactly how I want to lay out my tunnel. Are those gravel boards around the beds? And how did you fasten the end of the string to the ground? I've never heard of that cuke variety before, but I did want to find a good one with small cucumbers so I'll give those a try.

[Patty Pan]

They are scaffold boards Shokky and the strings were 'planted' under the rootball of the plants as they went in. I grew cordon toms, melons and squash up the strings too, it worked very well!
I was feared to death of using long canes in the tunnel in case I pierced the film but I won't take credit for the idea - I copied it from Mark Gatter's excellent book 'How to grow food in your polytunnel all year round', it is my polytunnel bible! 

[shoozie]

I also grew Beth Alpha and while I can't say whether it's any more resistant to Powdery mildew, both plants proved prolific throughout summer - and will be lifted this weekend.  A few leaves developed mildew on their edges  over the season, but when clipped off no further effects continued.  The leaf symptoms you describe sound similar to the early signs I experienced.

Mine were grown in the greenhouse - but also inside an upright blow away (with door rolled up) in the far corner of the greenhouse away from the main door.... basically they thrived.  I grew 6 plants in total, giving 2 away - one adopted plant thrived with its new family - in a blow away. I tried 2 in the garden and, as the books agree, they are inside varieties .... they sulked for the entire 'summer'.   Will definitely try this variety again - inside .. And will probably have a spectacular failure!!

Don't know anything about the yellow spots - sorry.  But, I would describe this variety as lunch box size - which very much suits our needs.