Plant Gene and Trait 2025, Vol.16, No.3, 123-132 http://genbreedpublisher.com/index.php/pgt 126 4.2 Influence on light penetration, air circulation, and flower exposure Vertical trellis can enable plants to be better distributed in space, greatly improving the light and air circulation inside the canopy, facilitating photosynthesis in leaves and allowing more flowers to be seen. Systems like the high-rope system can make the light distribution more uniform, reduce leaf overlap, enable the bottom leaves to absorb sunlight well, and improve photosynthetic efficiency (Berghage et al., 2024). Good air circulation can also reduce diseases. Meanwhile, flowers are more exposed and easier to be found by pollinating insects, improving the pollination rate and fruiting rate (Tscharntke et al., 2015). 4.3 Benefits in mechanization, disease management, and labor efficiency The use of vertical trellis can also facilitate mechanized operations more conveniently. For example, harvesting and plant management are also more convenient (Jamil et al., 2023). Because the plants do not have direct contact with the ground, the fruits are less likely to rot and there are fewer soil-borne diseases. Moreover, using trellis can also make it more convenient to spray pesticides and inspect pests and diseases, improving the control effect. Overall, allowing cucumbers to grow vertically not only makes tasks such as picking and pruning easier, but also reduces labor input and improves labor efficiency (Berghage et al., 2024). 5 Interactions Between Plant Density and Vertical Trellis Configuration 5.1 Synergistic or antagonistic effects on pollination conditions The combination of plant density and vertical trellis will jointly affect the pollination of cucumbers, which may produce a synergistic effect or may cancel each other out. If the density is a little lower, not only can the flowering amount of each cucumber plant be increased, but also the quality of the fruit can be improved, and the overall yield will not decrease too much (Ding et al., 2022). Vertical trellis such as elevated or umbrelle-shaped ones can improve the ventilation and lighting of plants, reduce the occurrence of diseases, and also create a better environment for pollinating insects. When the density is moderate and the trelli design is reasonable, it can make the flowers easier to be seen and provide a larger space for insects to move, thereby improving the pollination efficiency and fruit uniformity (Ding et al., 2022). 5.2 Optimization of floral visibility and pollinator pathways Vertical trellis can also make flowers more conspicuous and make it easier for pollinating insects to find and pollinate them. Low-density planting reduces the overlap between leaves, allowing the exposed area of flowers to be larger and facilitating the free flight of insects (Ding et al., 2022). The elevated planting method not only makes harvesting more convenient, but also optimizes the plant structure, increases the movement efficiency of pollinators among plants, and improves the pollination success rate. Therefore, a reasonable combination of density and frame type is conducive to optimizing the pollination route and the accessibility of flowers. 5.3 Influence on yield components and quality parameters The combination of density and trellis also affects the yield structure and fruit quality of cucumbers. When the density is low, each plant bears more fruits and has better quality, such as higher contents of sugar, vitamin C and flavonoids (Ding et al., 2022). While too high density can increase the yield per square meter, it may lead to smaller fruits and decreased quality (Ayala-Tafoya et al., 2019). Vertical trellis can also make the fruit color more uniform, the grade higher, reduce diseases and fruit damage, and increase the proportion of commercial fruits. Meanwhile, the appropriate combination of density and trellis type can also increase the market rate of fruits and the overall economic benefits (Babatunde et al., 2023) 6 Effects on Pollination Efficiency 6.1 Floral accessibility and spatial arrangement How densely the plants are planted and how the trellis are set up directly affect whether pollinating insects can reach the flowers smoothly. When planted not too densely, the air circulation and light conditions among the plants are better, and the flowers are easier to be seen and approached. This is very friendly to pollinating insects such as bees and can improve the pollination efficiency (Ding et al., 2022). Planting with vertical trellis, such as raising the plants and distributing the flowers more widely, not only reduces mutual occlusion but also makes it easier for insects to fly onto the flowers, thereby increasing the success rate of pollination. In addition, if the
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