Nothing says summer like home-grown, crispy cucumbers. Behind that mouthwatering fruit are months of nurturing, protecting, and, most importantly, pruning cucumbers. Without proper cucumber pruning, your vines won’t be able to grow and produce fruit. In this article, we’ll answer all your questions about how to prune cucumber plants – plus more!
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Before we get started, you have to know how cucumber vines grow. One main stem has nodes, or joints, along its length. Each node grows one leaf, fruit, tendril, and a new stem. When pruning, we’ll remove the new stem. This is referred to as the growth point, shoot, or lateral runner. The flower and leaf may also be pruned, but only in certain situations.
Pruning is very important but not the only necessity for growing cucumbers. For more information on planting cucumbers and making it to harvest, check out our articles on growing cucumbers vertically and cucumber plant care. For now, though, we’ll dive into all the details of pruning cucumber vines.
Our Favorite Pruning Tools At The Epic Shop:
- Felco 2 Classic Hand PrunerFelco 6 Ergonomic Hand PrunerFelco 9 Ergonomic Left-Hand PrunerFelco 14 Small Hand PrunerFelco Light Grafting & Pruning Knife
Is Pruning Cucumbers Necessary?
Whether or not you pick up the clippers depends on the type of cucumber plant you have. Bush varieties don’t grow much laterally so they require little, if any, pruning. They only need a trim if they’re getting too friendly with the neighboring plants. Pruning isn’t as important for cucumber vines that sprawl on the ground without vertical support.
Climbing vine cucumbers are the real targets here. Because they depend on vertical support, they have to be kept in line. Pruning is necessary to keep the vines growing in the right direction.
You’ll also find that proper pruning helps the plant produce more, higher-quality fruit. When you cut off a vine, the energy that was going into its growth is redirected elsewhere. So, if your cucumber vine is putting all its energy into growing lots of stems and leaves, it will not be focusing on fruit. Reducing the attention-demanding branches gives the plant a chance to get going on those cukes.
When Should Cucumbers Be Pruned?
Prune your cucumber plants throughout the growing season. Watch for new growth points and eliminate them while they’re under 2” long. Additionally, be on the lookout for damage and disease, which should be removed immediately.
Young cucumber plants may get ahead of themselves and flower while they’re still small. Clipping off the lower flowers redirects the energy to stem and leaf growth, leading to more fruit in the future. Additionally, you’ll be cutting back wayward branches as part of training young vines.
How To Prune A Cucumber Plant
Before getting started, clean your garden shears. Otherwise, they could easily spread plant diseases not only to your cucumbers but to other plants as well. If possible, use bypass pruners instead of stem-crushing anvils.
As we mentioned, cucumbers grow from a leader stem. This is the lifeline of the plant and won’t regrow if cut. So, we’ll only prune the shoots coming from that main leader stem. Usually, you’ll stick to pruning the base of the plant. This keeps it to one leader vine but allows the top to fill out its trellis.
Find the lowest 5-7 nodes on the base and pinch off the shoots. If they’re already more than a couple of inches long, prune them with clippers so as to not damage the main vine. Make a clean cut as close as possible to the main vine. If the shoots are so large that they’re already hooked to the trellis, leave them alone and focus on newer stems instead. Remove any flowers so the plant will bloom on top.
Next, look for and remove any leaves, vines, or fruit that are severely damaged or showing signs of disease. Prune vines that just won’t grow in the right direction as well. If the leaves are getting super bushy in one place, thin them out so there’s good air circulation. If you want to redirect energy, prune the excess fruit or leaves.
Once you’re finished, wash any tools you used and remove fallen debris from the ground. When watering, avoid getting the cucumber vines wet so bacteria doesn’t infect the cuts. Return to your cucumber vines a few times each summer to spruce them up as needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Should I pinch off cucumber flowers?
A: This is a great strategy when your cucumber plant is young. It redirects the plant’s energy into vine and leaf growth.
Q: Can you cut cucumber tendrils?
A: Unless they’re in the way, leave the tendrils alone. The main vine needs them to hold on to the support.
A: Pinch off the flowers if you want more stem and leaf growth – especially if the plant is young. You can remove flowers on the bottom so the plant will focus more on the top cucumbers (this will also keep cucumbers off the ground).
