So my grandma gave me a cucumber plant a few months ago, and despite living in an apartment with only a balcony, I accepted the plant. Now, it's been growing well and is still growing, yet there are some things that concern me as I am completely new to cucumbers and gardening in general.

1) Is the pot too small? I've heard that there are cucumbers that don't grow very large, but it still seems too small since it's branching outside of its container.

2) I do rotate the plant regularly, it gets a good amount of sun and heat. It *should* be getting enough water, yet the plant is leaning and growing a lot towards one side. Shouldn't the plant be growing upwards and not sideways? What can I do to mitigate this issue?

3) The leaves frequently get damaged, but I don't know why. I've taken it as normal since I couldn't find any conditions that describe its ailment. What could it be?

4) The stem looks white and a bit thin compared to all new growth. It appears somewhat sturdy when I touch it and it's not mushy or wet. My biggest concerns are that it's some sort of disease, or that the stem will eventually break off due to the cucumber growing (it doesn't help that it's growing sideways.

Edit: The plant has grown tendrils (are they bad?) and something that looks like a sex organ. I can't tell if it is male or female though. I'd assume this means that the plant is still healthy somehow?

Cucumbers love water but don't like to have their roots soaking in it. I've never grown cucumbers in a pot but I would for sure get a pot much larger than what you have to allow root growth. Cucumbers are a vine that is usually trained to grow vertically. A small trellis or wire support will allow them to grow up with a little help from you. The tendrils are a part of the plant that grow and spiral around whatever is near to help it support itself. Do not tie the vine so tight as it appears in your photo. The plant will get larger as it grows. Cloth strips or special clips work best for support without girding the vine. There are no male or female plants. There are male and female flowers that grow on the plant. The male flowers come first to attract pollinators. The flower will be attached to the plant by a thin stem. The female flowers will have a miniature cucumber at its base which if pollinated will become a cucumber. A cucumber plant with growing cucumbers will be quite heavy so plan accordingly.

anyuser3222 said: Cucumbers love water but don't like to have their roots soaking in it. I've never grown cucumbers in a pot but I would for sure get a pot much larger than what you have to allow root growth. Cucumbers are a vine that is usually trained to grow vertically. A small trellis or wire support will allow them to grow up with a little help from you. The tendrils are a part of the plant that grow and spiral around whatever is near to help it support itself. Do not tie the vine so tight as it appears in your photo. The plant will get larger as it grows. Cloth strips or special clips work best for support without girding the vine. There are no male or female plants. There are male and female flowers that grow on the plant. The male flowers come first to attract pollinators. The flower will be attached to the plant by a thin stem. The female flowers will have a miniature cucumber at its base which if pollinated will become a cucumber. A cucumber plant with growing cucumbers will be quite heavy so plan accordingly.

Is there anything wrong with the leaves or the stem?

ClipClapCat said: Is there anything wrong with the leaves or the stem?

That browning on the leaf is most likely due to lack of nutrients and the inability for root growth. Sometimes a young plant will get scars on the stem from the leaves moving in the wind and repeatedly hitting the stem. The scar will heal over faster with the proper growing conditions. A much larger pot with amended soil will most likely resolve all your issues. The cucumber is a fast growing sprawling vine that needs a lot of water and takes a lot of the nutrients from the soil to grow. Much more than is available in that small container.