Effects of Different Proportions of Cattle Manure and Mushroom Residue on Yield and Quality of Cucumber Fruit

Large-scale agricultural and animal husbandry production in Shaanxi Province of China has led to significant environmental pollution, due to the incineration of vast amounts of agricultural waste annually. As the land area used for vegetable cultivation expands and farming practices evolve, the demand for organic substrates continues to grow. To optimize cost savings and enhance efficiency, this study investigated the effects of different organic substrate compositions on cucumber (Cucumis sativus) yield and quality, using ‘Jinyou 35’ cucumber as the experimental model. The results demonstrated that the blended organic substrates derived from agricultural waste met key physicochemical requirements for cucumber cultivation across both seedling establishment and fruit development stages. Compared with the control, the T4 treatment (mushroom residue/cattle manure = 1:1) increased the cucumber yield and its content of total sugar, vitamin C, and fatty acids. Furthermore, the T6 treatment (mushroom residue/cattle manure = 3:1) produced the highest total aroma and the lowest soluble protein content compared to the other treatments, and the level of C6 aldehydes in the cucumber fruits was significantly higher (p < 0.05) in this treatment group than in the control group. The findings suggest that properly formulated organic substrate blends can serve as effective growing media for cucumber cultivation, while simultaneously mitigating environmental pollution. This study provides a theoretical foundation for the sustainable utilization of agricultural waste-derived organic substrates in vegetable production.