Abstract
Determinations of N, P, and K were conducted on cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) leaves and soil from plots mulched or not mulched with clear or black plastic before planting and subsequently treated or not treated with fertilizer, fungicide, or nematicide. Concentrations of N in leaves from plots receiving fertilizer, whether mulched or not mulched, were higher than those from control plots. Leaves from plots mulched with either clear or black plastic, but not fertilized, sometimes had higher N concentrations than leaves from control plots. Total N, P, or K sometimes was greater in leaves from mulched fertilized plots than in those from plots receiving either treatment singly. The nutrient level increase in the soil was detected only for N and occurred in black-plastic-mulched plots. Fruit yield from mulched non-fertilized plots was greater than that from control plots, probably because of the increased nutrient uptake and control of weeds, soil pests, and pathogens in the mulched soil.
