Cucumbers are versatile vegetables that are easy to grow in summertime. They can be eaten raw; additional to lemonade or a mojito; sautéed; pureed into a dressing table, yogurt dip or soup or pickled. And they are successful manufacturers. While they have a tendency to sprawl, their vining habit lets you develop them as a vertical accent on your own vegetable garden, training them up a trellis, over an old ladder or along a fence. The compact bush varieties are also a fantastic choice for smaller gardens or containers.

The two main sorts of cucumbers are slicers, utilized when freshly picked, and picklers, which are pickled or preserved, however there is overlap between the two, as some slicers can be pickled and some picklers can be used fresh. Slicers are generally darker green, long, smooth and thicker skinned, while picklers are shorter and bumpier. Specialty cucumbers include white, yellow and brown cucumbers and the long Asian and Armenian varieties. You’ll also find cucumbers bred to reduce bitterness or to eliminate burping.

Note: Most cucumbers bear both male and female flowers, necessary for pollination. Some bear only female flowers, making more fruit but necessitating a variety with male flowers planted nearby. Some seedless varieties do not need any pollination.

More manuals to summer plants

seedsavers.org

When to plant: Once all threat of frost has passed and soil temperatures reach 60 degrees Fahrenheit (16 degrees Celsius)
Days to maturity: Generally 48 to 70; some provided that 80
Light requirement: Entire sun
Water necessity: Constant moisture

Favorites:
Slicers: Ashley Slicing, Bush Champion, Diva (seedless), Early Fortune, Fanfare, General Lee, Gold Standard, Marketmore 76, Orient Express, Salad Bush, Slicemaster, Spacemaster, Straight Eight, Sweet SuccessPicklers: Alibi, Bush Pickler, Country Fair, Diamont, Endeavor, Northern Pickling, Parisian Pickling, Pickalot, Pioneer, Russian Pickling, Snow’s Fancy, Supremo HybridSpecialty: Amira (Armenian type), Armenian, Edmonson, Green Fingers, India Poona Kheera (brown), Japanese Climbing, Lemon, Miniature White, Striped Armenian, Suyo Long (Asian), Tasty Jade (Asian), White WonderThe Seed Savers Exchange includes a good selection of heirloom varieties.

Maria Hickey & Associates Landscapes

Cucumbers, green beans and morning glories were planted at the base of the garden tepee. As it grew, kids enjoyed playing within the leafy structure, then reaping the harvest.

Planting and care: select a site with abundant, well-drained soil. Sow seeds after the soil is hot and frost risk has passed. If you began plants indoors or are buying nursery starts, set them out at this time also. If you’re using a service system, set up this once you sow seeds or plant seedlings. Place bush varieties somewhat closer together than what is recommended below for normal vining varieties. You can also sow successively to make sure a long harvest.

To grow in hills, make soil mounds 6 to 8 inches high and 4 to 6 feet apart. Form a watering basin around each mound or set up drip irrigation. Plant four to six seeds in a circle roughly 1/2 to 1 inch deep. Lean to two or three seedlings per hill.

If you’re growing them in rows, space the rows 3 to 6 feet apart and dig furrows along each row or install drip irrigation. Sow two to three seeds together, 1/2 to 1 inch deep and 8 to 12 inches apart. Lean to one seedling per grouping.

For containers, plant bush varieties at a pot that’s at least a foot deep.

Cucumbers need always moist soil to reduce bitterness, so water them well once you plant them and continue to water and regularly. Mildew can be encouraged by sprinklers, so select.

Maintain the soil around the plants weeded and mulched. Mulching under the fruits will keep them tidy, as will increasing them off the ground. Fertilize the soil once the plants start to grow well, then again about four months afterwards. You might need to protect very young seedlings from birds, but remove any covers or pliers once flowers form to permit pollination.

Cucumbers are bothered by a litany of insects, including aphids, cucumber beetles, flea beetles, mites, squash bugs and squash vine borers. They can succumb to powdery and downy mildew, bacterial wilt, mosaic virus and anthracnose.

seedsavers.org

Harvest: Harvest time is contingent on the sort of cucumbers. When the plants start producing usable fruit, cut them off the stalks while the fruits are still young, as older ones may get seedy. Plan to pick several times a week; cucumbers develop.

Slicers are generally great to use once they reach about 6 inches, picklers may be ready to go at 2 inches for sweet pickles and 5 inches for dill pickles; you might need to wait until long varieties achieve 20 inches.

More manuals to summer plants

See related