Cucumber Pests and Diseases

Cucumbers are easy to grow but sometimes fall prey to disease and pests. You’ll need to look out for any pests or diseases that might affect your growing cucumber plants.

Watch out for these common problems:

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1. Problem:

No fruits on mature vines

Cause:

Lack of pollination

Solution:

Hand-pollinate the female flower with a Q-tip.

2. Problem:

Curling leaves, yellow spots on fruits

Cause:

Mosaic virus carried by Aphids

Solution:

Spray neem oil or insecticidal soap all over the leaves and stem to get rid of the aphids.

3. Problem:

Leaves dusted with flour-like, webby spots, twisted stems

Cause:

Powdery mildew

Solution:

1. Apply a fungicide to the plants

2. Mix 1 teaspoon baking soda with 1 drop of dish soap and 1 quart of water and spray on the plants.

3. Remove affected leaves.

4. Problem:

Holes in stems, yellowing and wilted leaves

Cause:

Cucumber beetles

Solution:

1. Spray leaves with neem oil to destroy the eggs.

2. Introduce beneficial insects to control the beetle population.

3. Use an insecticide