- Why you should grow it
- Cucumbers are great to pick throughout the summer – a nice treat to snack on
- They grow up on a trellis so they can use different space in the garden – if you have a packed garden they can use open vertical space
- Pickle cucumbers you can’t eat right away for harvest throughout the year
- How to start seeds
- They are a warm crop so they need to start in warm soil
- You can start inside in early Spring or direct sow starting in mid-May
- Start with moist, seed starting soil
- Plant a bit deeper as the seeds are large
- Keep in a warm spot, once the seedlings appear they will need about 6-8 hours of good sunlight
- Transplant into larger pots if the seedling is crowding the pot and you can’t plant it out
- Tips for growth
- Plant in loose soil near a trellis or fence – something the vines can trail up
- They need good warmth and humidity to fruit
- Add some compost before planting or around the base to give the soil a boost
- During the heat of the summer, add mulch around the base to prevent evaporation – cucumbers need consistently moist soil
- Harvesting
- Harvest cucumbers regularly to encourage fruiting
- Cucumbers left too long on the vine can become bitter
- Harvest when they are 3-4″ long
- Leave a little stem on the cucumber if you can, it allows for longer storage – cut off cucumbers with a pruner or knife
- Pickle cucumbers if you can’t eat them in time and to have a harvest throughout the year
- Saving Seeds
- It can be complicated, cucumbers easily cross-pollinate with other varieties if planted close together
- Isolate the cucumbers either by timing, space or by closing up the flowers and then hand pollinating the female plants
- Label the flowers you have hand pollinated to know which ones to save the seed from
- Then leave the fruit on the vine for as long as possible, this will ensure the seeds will store a lot of food, sugar, and then last longer on the vine
- Scoop out the seeds, rinse and dry completely
- Label and store in a cool, dry, dark place
