Why are cucumbers bitter and how to prevent it?

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

It's nice after a frosty winter and no less long spring to replenish vitamins with a crispy cucumber. You can experience special pride if this vegetable

grown by hand. However, very often the joy of summer residents can be spoiled - the cucumber does not live up to expectations, its flesh is far from being called sweet. In such a situation, the question invariably pops up: "Why are cucumbers bitter?"

Causes of bitterness

In fact, there is only one reason for the appearance of bitterness in these vegetables: the presence of the substance cucurbitacin, which gives the vegetable an unpleasant taste. This substance has historically been designed to repel insect pests. Thanks to this, the plants had the opportunity for the full maturation of seeds, and, therefore, full reproduction.

Usually cucurbitacin predominates in young fruits. Today, breeders have ensured that in modern hybrids there is a minimum amount of such a substance, and therefore bitterness is manifested to a lesser extent. The presence in the cucumber of a gene called bi makes it possible to guarantee the absence of bitterness. At the same time, it is outwardly impossible to distinguish bitter cucumbers and the plants on which they ripen fromtheir sweet counterparts.

The main reason why cucumbers are bitter is clear. However, this property can manifest itself to varying degrees.

The following factors may cause a summer resident to find that he has bitterness

cucumbers:

1. Excessive direct exposure to the sun's rays.
2. Not enough watering.
3. Excessive or insufficient humidity of the ambient air.
4. Plant overheating in hot, dry weather.
5. Wrong balance of fertilizers (especially potash and phosphate).
6. Plant diseases.

Also, the reason why cucumbers are bitter can be a sharp difference in daytime and nighttime air temperatures.

How to prevent bitterness

The birthplace of cucumbers is tropical forests in southeast Asia. The climate is warm and humid, there is no direct sunlight. At home, cucumbers climb trees. It is important to create similar conditions for the plant, then the question of why cucumbers are bitter simply will not arise.

Watering cucumbers is necessary in the evening with warm water so that the soil is completely moistened. On hot and dry days, sprinkling is additionally carried out. For these purposes, a watering can with small holes is suitable. Such watering helps to wash off the dust from the leaves, to create favorable humidity. The plant additionally absorbs moisture through the leaves and shoots. Good watering is especially important during the formation of the ovary.

It is desirable to observetemperature regime. Ideally, it is about 28 degrees during the day and 16 at night. In case of a sharp cold snap, cucumbers should be covered. In addition, when bitterness appears in cucumbers, they should be fed with nitrogen-potassium fertilizers: best of all, complex or potassium nitrate. In order to avoid the question of why cucumbers are bitter, you can grow hybrid varieties that are resistant to the appearance of cucurbitacin. However, even if bitter cucumbers appear on the garden bed, you should not be upset. Such vegetables should be peeled immediately after harvesting and cut off their tails. Cucumbers that are bitter can be used for pickling, as cucurbitacin is destroyed during the preservation process, and the bitterness disappears.

Despite the fact that cucurbitacin can spoil the taste of cucumber, the substance is useful. It has antitumor properties. Therefore, one should not strive to grow varieties in which it is absent. It is much better to create optimal conditions for plants, observing the cultivation technique.