As a word of warning, make sure you do not over water your cucumbers since this can lead to certain diseases as we will discuss below. However, there are many ways you can conserve water consumption and still keep the soil around your cucumbers damp.
In most cases, the health of a cucumber is tied to the health of the vine itself. Cucumbers are susceptible to a whole bunch of different diseases, and there are several that can cause your cucumbers to yellow. If any disease is particularly bad in your area, consider growing a disease-resistant cucumber variety.
The Cucumber Mosaic virus is one disease that can lead to yellow cucumbers. When the Cucumber Mosaic virus attacks your plant, the cucumbers produced will be stunted and have yellow and white mottling.
There is no cure for the cucumber mosaic virus and any affected plants should be destroyed before they spread the virus to the rest of your plants. Do not put the disease plants into the compost. However, there is still hope. This virus is spread by aphids and beetles, so stopping the insects can stop the virus. Here are three ways to protect your plants from aphids and beetles and help prevent the Cucumber Mosaic virus. Bacterial wilt could be another culprit for your discoloured cucumbers. It is generally caused by the striped cucumber beetle.
Many fungal diseases can cause your plants to produce yellow cucumbers. Fungal diseases can usually be helped by improving air circulation around your plants. A cucumber will form behind a female flower.
If this flower is not pollinated, or if it is pollinated poorly, the cucumber will yellow, shrivel, and fall off the vine. The joy of vegetable gardening culminates in the abundant harvest, yet this joy will be tainted as you watch your cucumbers turn yellow and become inedible. Hopefully, this article has given you enough information to identify the cause of your unsightly yellow cucumbers, and you will be able to fight this battle naturally and make your garden a cornucopia of healthy, delicious food.
Updated on July 14, by Amber Noyes. Amber Noyes born and raised in a suburb Nebraska town, San Mateo. With experience working on an organic farm, water conservation research, farmers markets, and potted plants she understands what makes plants thrive and how can we better understand the connection between microclimate and plant health.
Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. If they are not too ripe, they can still be edible when turned into pickles or relish. If the yellow cucumbers are too bitter to eat, remember that they are becoming botanically mature.
The last option is to put them in the compost. The best solution is to start the year off right by adding lots of compost or well-rotted manure. Move the cucumber plant to a shady spot to prevent it from burning. You can also trim off the dead leaves to give the rest of the plant a better chance to recover.
There is not much you can do about cucumbers that have already turned yellow. Sadly, they are no longer safe to eat. Cucumbers that are so ripe that they are turning yellow taste very bitter. They are also full of seeds, leaving little of the crispy juicy flesh. Yellowing leaves is a sign of lack of nitrogen which means you might be able to save the plant with a fresh dose of nutrients. Look for a cucumber specific plant feed and use it per the product instructions. You can also try to make your own nettle tea for cucumbers but this can several weeks to make.
There is no treatment for CMV. Since this is a disease that easily transfers to other plants, it is best to remove the affected cucumber plants as soon as possible. Trim off the infected leaves, vines and cucumbers and then spray down the plant to get rid of any remaining aphids. Afterwards, sterilize all the tools that you used.
If it is the plant and not the fruit that is turning yellow, over watering is still the most common cause. The leaves on a cucumber plant should be kept dry. It is best to water cucumber plants by filling up the dish underneath their container. You want the roots to have first access to water so that they can then transport it to the leaves. To learn more, read on! As cukes get older, the chlorophyll responsible for their usually green color begins to fade, revealing the yellow pigment beneath — just like green leaves that change to red, orange or yellow in fall.
Cukes also become yellow from:. Knowing when to pick your cucumbers prevents the major cause of yellowing:. Expert gardeners tip: Once the female cuke flowers are pollinated, check the progress of your baby cukes daily. Most will be ready to harvest in 8 to 10 days. Oddly enough, cucumbers are considered a fruit. They are classified this way because they contain tiny seeds in the middle and grow from the flower of the cucumber plant.
Cucumbers are a vining plant and need a lot of room to grow. Growing cucumbers vertically is one way to maximize space if you have a small garden. One of the common cucumber growing problems is ending up with yellow cucumbers. There are many reasons for cucumbers turning yellow. Waiting to harvest too long, overwatering, and lack of pollination could be the causes.
Viral diseases could also be at play. Also, gardeners take note: some cucumbers are supposed to be yellow! These cucumber varieties naturally produce yellow fruit that is perfectly fine to eat and never bitter.
The products shown below are affiliate links. I earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you if you purchase through an affiliate link. One of the most common reasons for cucumbers turning yellow is that you have waited too long to harvest them. As cucumbers mature, their deep color begins to fade, revealing a yellow or even an orange color. These cucumbers are normal shaped but often very large. Leaving cucumbers growing too long on the vine also limits the production of more fruit.
Regularly harvesting cucumbers encourages the plant to grow new fruit. The easy fix for this is to harvest them sooner. Once the female cucumber flowers have been pollinated, check to see how they are growing each day.
Most will be ready to harvest about 10 days after pollination. Depending on your variety, cucumbers are ready to harvest 50 to 70 days from planting. Ripe cucumbers are bright medium green to dark green and firm. If you give your cucumber plants too much water, it will remove essential minerals from the soil, such as calcium and nitrogen.
In this happens, the cucumbers will turn yellow early, long before one would normally harvest them. Holding off on the water is the answer to this cause. Cucumbers need just 2 inches of water a week in the hottest weather and 1 inch in normal temperatures. This causes them to turn yellow. For best results water deeply and slowly a couple of times a week.
Cucumbers need the right mix of nutrients to grow well. A lack of fertilizing can cause both the leaves and fruit of cucumbers to turn yellow. Improperly fertilized cucumbers will stay small rather than reaching a proper size and will often turn yellow. To prevent this, use a balanced fertilizer at planting time, or add compost or other organic matter to the soil.
Fertilize again after bloom and then about once a month during the growing season. Crop rotation is an important part of preventing yellow cucumbers.
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