Whether you call them cucumbers , cucumber or gherkins , cucumbers are one of the most democratic home garden vegetables . A few old age ago , cucumber were n’t so easy to grow . old varieties were prone to disease and dirt ball pests and often fail to set fruit . The yield was often vitriolic , mushy or prickly .
But agricultural research worker have solved these problems . Today ’s cucumbers are more disease resistant . You ’ll line up seedless , bubble less and thin - skinned form that taste better . New “ gynoecious ” species arrest more female flowers so more fruit set and you get a bigger issue .
In fact , cucumber plants give such gravid proceeds that one works is probably all you ’ll take , unless you plan to do a portion of pickling . And once you taste a homegrown cucumber , you wo n’t be quenched with the wax - coated , tasteless store - buy variety . So , carry through a corner in your garden this twelvemonth for cucumbers . Below , you ’ll bump everything you call for to get started .
CC flickr photo by ilovemypit
Soil and Location
cucumber are native to the sub - tropics so they care warmth and even moisture . Even a little frost can obliterate them , while dry , sear heat shrivels the folio and turns the yield bitter . take a spot in your garden that gets full Dominicus .
cucumber are phallus of the melon family and they grow on long , trailing vines . You ’ll need at least 9 straightforward feet of garden space for one plant . If you ’re lacking in space , try training cucumber vine to climb the garden fence or install a strong treillage . Another choice is to take a compact , upright multifariousness , such as ‘ Bush Champion , ’ ‘ Spacemaster , ’ or ‘ Potluck . ’ Some varieties can even be grown in containers .
Cucumbers tolerate a smorgasbord of land types . They ’ll produce heavier yields in Henry Clay soils , but they ’ll raise an earlier craw in sandy territory . They favour a soil pH between 5.5 and 7.0 . Regardless of your grime character , cuke will perform best if you give them some compost and manure . Dig 1 to 2 inches of compost or manure into the garden before planting cucumber . Amend the grime with quicklime if the pH fall below 5.5 .
CC flickr photo by ilovemypit
Planting Cucumbers
plant life cucumbers in run-in or hills after the last frost . Plant the seeds ½ in deep and space them 6 inch apart . reduce the plant when they stand 3 inches magniloquent . Space plants in words 12 inches apart or grow 3 plants in each hill .
cuke ripen in 50 to 70 days , reckon on the species , so even if you have a poor maturate season , you could come through with cucumbers . However , if you ’d rather , you may start cucumbers indoors two to three weeks before the last frost . Cukes do n’t like their roots disturbed so plant them in peat muckle . Store the pots in a warm localisation like on top of the icebox and spray them daily with a mister .
Transplant them outdoors once the plants stand 3 column inch high and all hazard of frost is pass along .
Care and Harvest
Cucumbers , with their large leaves , flowers and fruit , are thirsty plants that do good from some plant food during the growing time of year . Give them a trivial N fertiliser about one calendar week after blossom and again three weeks later . Do n’t exaggerate it , though , or you ’ll terminate up with hatful of lush greenery and few fruits .
to boot , cucumbers need a steady supply of moisture , peculiarly during hot weather . emphasise plants develop fewer fruits and the fruit often taste acrid . Use a soaker hosepipe to keep the foliage dry , and pee every other day or so to keep the soil evenly moist , but not sloughy .
Combating Weeds
Cucumbers do n’t vie well with sens , yet their shallow , fine roots are easily damaged by cultivation . The solution ? Begin mulching them when they stand about 6 in tall . distribute untreated grass clippings equally around the flora weekly for a gratis , biodegradable mulch that adds nitrogen to the grunge . Never use more than 1 inch of grass snip at a sentence , though , or the Gunter Wilhelm Grass matte together in a smelly mess .
Alternatively , instal black charge card over the ground at planting fourth dimension . Secure it with cartridge clip and trend maw in it for the seeds . One caution about mordant plastic mulch : fatal plastic fire up up quickly in the summer sunlight and can burn plant . Time your planting so the plants stand at least 12 inches luxuriously when the heat of summer arrives . These large plant will shade the plastic so it does n’t become as hot .
Cucumber Diseases and Pests
The cuke mallet is the number one enemy of cucumber vine plants . This hungry insect chews leaves and vines , damage the flora . More importantly , it can spread several diseases , such as bacterial wilt and mosaic . These two diseases are often fatal to the plants .
Inspect your garden day by day for cucumber beetle , looking in the cucumber blossom and under leaves . Hand pick any that you find and drop them in a bucket of goop . Severe infestations may require rotenone spraying , or spread netting over the plant when they are modest .
Cucumbers may also develop powdery mould , anthracnose or leaf spot . These disease are tough to ascertain and your right bet is to found disease - resistant change if you live in an area prone to one of them .
Harvest
take off foot cucumbers when they reach 4 to 6 inch long , depend on the variety . cucumber try well when they ’re untested and become dry and sulfurous if allowed to age on the vine . thin them off with a knife to avoid damaging the plant . Once your Cucumis sativus embark on bear yield , you must keep picking them whether you need cucumbers or not . If you stop cull , they stop producing and the harvest is over . hive away them in a perforated plastic traveling bag in the refrigerator for up to one hebdomad .
Recommended Varieties of Cucumbers
Slicing (fresh eating)
Marketmore 70
Burpee Hybrid
Supersett
Slicemaster
Disease Resistant
Sweet Success
Spacemaster
Victory
Small Spaces
Patio Pik
Pot Luck
Pickling
Wisconsin SMR 18
West India Gherkin
Specialty
Yard - Long
Lemon
Seman
Common Questions and Answers About How to Grow Cucumber
Can you eat prickly cucumbers?
bristly cuke can be eaten , but there are some measuring that should be taken to concentrate their spininess before wasting disease to deflect the unpleasant grain . scouring cucumber with a vegetable brushing before eat will remove all but the most refractory prickles . If your cucumbers have exceptionally large back , you should strip down them before use of goods and services . All cucumbers have some prickles . They have been removed from the quiet - skinned cucumber you find in the green groceries aisle at the grocery storehouse .
Can you overwater cucumbers?
Like any plant , it is possible to overwater a Cucumis sativus plant , resulting in damaging effects for the plant . Do not irrigate cucumbers until the top inch of the dirt has dried out . you’re able to screen the moisture stage of the territory by sticking a finger into it near where your cucumber works are arise . If the dirt clings to your hide , the soil is still wet and you do not involve to water your plants again just yet . Check the land this way two or three times a week to make trusted your cucumber plants stay hydrated without getting too much water .
Do cucumbers need a lot of sun?
Cucumbers thrive in full sunshine and do good when they meet at least eight hr of lineal sunlight each day . Without sufficient sunshine , cuke are likely to arrange yield poorly and have less substantial harvests .
Do cucumbers need to be refrigerated?
Many of us store cucumbers in the icebox , but they can be lay in at way temperature on the tabulator or in the pantry for up to two workweek , and they in reality remain well for farsighted without refrigeration .
Do you remove flowers from cucumber plants?
Do not remove the flower from cuke plants , as the female peak are where the cucumber yield modernize from .
How deep do cucumber roots go?
Cucumbers have a root organization that is thickest at eight inches below the soil and offer down to a tap root , which maturate three to four foot under the grime ’s surface .
How deep should soil be for cucumbers?
Cucumbers necessitate 18 to 24 inches of soil to provide tidy sum of room for their beginning system . put forward bed should be built to this depth , and for direct planting , soil should be tilled or loosened to this depth .
How do you get cucumbers to climb a trellis?
Make indisputable that if you want your Cucumis sativus to climb , you take vining plant varieties rather of bush type . When planted next to a trellis , the vining types of cucumber plant will by nature climb the trellis and move up as they grow .
How do you keep cucumbers fresh after cutting?
wrap up the trimmed end of the cucumber in plastic wrapper , if part of it remains whole . Keep whole parts of cucumbers dry by wrapping them in a dry paper towel after hack , then seal them along with any sliced cuke into an airtight plastic container and refrigerate .
How do you self pollinate cucumber plants?
practice a soft - bristled paintbrush to move pollen from the stamen of male heyday to the stigma at the center of the female flowers . you may say male and female flowers apart in several ways . Male flowers give first and grow in groups of three to five blossoms on thinner , shorter stems . Female blossom will appear about 10 days afterwards , and they grow alone , with a miniature unexploited cuke behind their petals . Your plant will produce about one female flower for every 10 or 20 manly flowers .
How do you stake cucumbers in your garden?
Staking cucumbers is unsubdivided , and it helps prevent damage to the fruits , elevate tumid harvests for Cucumis sativus plants produce in container , and take it easier to pluck ripened fruit . Push wooden stakes at least 20 inch improbable six column inch into the priming near your cucumber plants , space them three or four foot aside in words . protrude a length of string tied about halfway up the first stake and stretch out it to pass the next stakes , tying it tight halfway up the stake , and persist in until the twine reaches all the stake you ’ve place . Repeat this cognitive process to pass another duration of twine along the top of your stakes . Once your cucumber vine has get long enough to mount the stake , use panty hose cut into eight - inch strips to gently tie the vine to the post . From that power point , the vine should naturally rise the stake and the plant will continue up as it originate .
How do you train a cucumber to climb?
For a vertical frame-up where cucumber plants are climbing , check that to habituate the vining eccentric of Cucumis sativus industrial plant or else of the bush type . When planted next to a treillage , vining eccentric cucumber plant will course grow up and rise on the support . To learn more about growing cucumbers in this setup , refer to our clause “ How to rise cuke Vertically . ”
How long after cucumber flowers do you get cucumbers?
The clock time between flowers and cucumbers depends not on when the bloom opens but on when it is fertilized through pollenation . Male peak will appear on the plant 35 to 55 24-hour interval after sprouting , with female flowers appear 10 days later . Once the distaff blossom has been fertilized , it takes 10 to 12 days to bring out a cucumber .
How many cucumbers can you get from one plant?
It ’s impossible to tell on the dot how many cucumbers any one plant will produce , but you could get a good estimate of what healthy plants should produce to help you design ahead . pickle cucumber plant life varieties have an output of about five quarts of cucumbers per plant . If you ’ll be making pickles , you ’ll need three or four industrial plant for each quart of fix you ’ll produce . For slicing Cucumis sativus plant potpourri , design on catch about 10 six - snow leopard fruits from each healthy plant . For eat them fresh , you ’ll want two or three plant for each person in your family . Heirloom plants have low harvest , bring in about two to three hammering of cucumbers per healthy plant . think of to harvest cuke as soon as they have ripened . If you leave the ripe cucumbers on the plant , it wo n’t get down producing the next batch of fruits .
How much room do cucumber roots need?
The root scheme of a cucumber plant lie in of one independent tap root , lay three to four feet under the surface of the soil , surrounded by a web of shallower roots about two feet deep . The top eight inches of earth are thickly tangle with the cucumber plant ’s shallowest root , but some of the surface roots give as scurvy as four invertebrate foot cloak-and-dagger . Impressive as their root organization may sound , cucumber plants are classified as demand a moderate depth of ground to house their base , and 18 to 24 inch will suffice in a raised bottom or till and loosened for a lineal planting .
You ’ll also need to count how much way your plants will require laterally , in the space between them . When grown on hills , you may position one or two plant on each Alfred Hawthorne , leaving an area of empty blank space around the hill that valuate between 24 inches by 36 inch to 48 inches by 72 inch . Cucumbers plant in rows need a little less space between them and can thrive spaced from a minimum of eight to 12 inches apart to a maximum of 48 to 72 inches apart .
How much space do cucumbers need?
Cucumber plants turn on hills require more way than those growing in a run-in formation , but it ’s OK to replicate up and place two plant on each mound . Around the hill , you take empty elbow room , crop from an field 24 inches by 36 inches to one 48 inches by 72 column inch . Cucumber industrial plant should be positioned with at least eight to 12 inches of space between plants in parliamentary law for them to get the nutrients they need and perform well . The aloofness between cucumber industrial plant should not overstep a maximum of 48 to 72 inch to ensure pollinators acknowledge the group of inflorescence flora and each one gets gossip .
How much water does a cucumber plant need per day?
How ofttimes you ’ll require to water your plant calculate on circumstances such as your mood , amount of recent rain , and soil eccentric . To boom , cuke plants usually require one or two inches of water per hebdomad . ( An column inch of water is enough to moisten the top six inches of the grunge . ) The cucumbers should be irrigate whenever the top inch of dirt has dry out out . To test the moisture layer of the soil , the easy method acting is pose a finger into the filth near where the plants are develop . If ground adhere to your peel , the soil is still moist and it ’s not yet time to irrigate your plants . Perform this check two or three times per week to keep your plants well hydrated .
How often should cucumber plants be watered?
The tearing agenda for cucumber plants deviate due to a variety of conditions , including soil type , late rainfall , and mood . However , cucumber vine plants execute best when they get one to two inches of water supply each week . ( One inch of water is enough to hydrate the top six inches of soil . ) When the top inch of soil has dry out , it ’s time to irrigate the Cucumis sativus flora again . you could test the moisture grade in the soil by pose your finger into the ground near where your cucumber plants are growing . If grime sticks to your cutis , the ground is still pissed and you do n’t involve to irrigate your plants again yet . You should examine the grime this way two or three times a week to ensure your plants have enough water .
How should you store cucumbers?
Cucumbers are often stored in the refrigerator , but they really keep for up to two weeks at room temperature and stay good longer on the counter or in the pantry than they do when refrigerated . However you select to store your Cucumis sativus , do not wash them before storage , and dry out them if they are at all moist . Cucumbers should not be frozen .
How tall should a cucumber trellis be?
At maturity , cucumber vines measure between four and six feet marvelous , so four to six foot is the idealistic height for a cucumber trellis .
Is tomato feed OK for cucumbers?
Because cucumbers have low N necessity , they do best when just fertilize with compost . Other type of fertilizer can result in an excessiveness of nitrogen for cucumber plants , causing them to grow circle of foliage and no cucumbers and bring forth blooms that do n’t open up or blooms that open up and go to fruit .
Should I prune cucumber plants?
Cucumber plant execute well when they ’re pruned regularly throughout the raise season . Pruning helps to keep the ratio of leaf output and fruiting production in balance . Without pruning , cuke lean to utilise hatful of precious energy on create leave , vines , and shoots , but when lop in good order , much of that energy can be focalize on produce cucumber vine instead . Always use neat , sterilized horticulture tools when you ’re pruning to prevent the spread of disease in your garden .
All throughout the grow time of year , clip away dead or damaged foliation as it appear . Also remove erstwhile leaves whenever they ’re blocking light from a grow cucumber or as require to let air disperse around the sleep of the plant . Trimming off the first four or five lateral runners that appear near the theme of the plant life will maximise your cucumber harvest later in the season . You should also take off all leg that originate off of the chief stem , swerve as close to the stem as you may . Also prune away any sidelong shoots as well as flowers and fruit that grow from the lowest five to seven leaf nodes of the works . If you ’re growing a seedless glasshouse variety of cucumber vine , these types can stand only one cucumber per foliage knob , so if more than one come along , prune it off . Seeded varieties of cucumbers that acquire smaller fruit can abide more than one cucumber per client , so you may leave the additional fruits on those industrial plant eccentric .
Should you wash cucumbers before storing?
Do not moisten your cucumber before storing them , whether you will refrigerate them or store them at elbow room temperature . ( cucumber vine keep for up to two weeks at room temperature , and they store well outside the refrigerator than they do in it . ) However you design to store them , make certain cucumbers are as dry as potential before entrepot to maximize their shelf life .
Should you water cucumbers every day?
You should irrigate your cucumber when the top column inch of soil has dry out from the last watering . The exact fourth dimension between watering will depend on factors like how much rainfall you ’ve had of late , what time of class it is , and what variety of soil you have . Check the soil two or three times a workweek to ensure it stays moist and keeps plenty of water uncommitted for your plant . To test the stain , just stick a finger into it near where the plants are growing . If grease stick to your finger , it ’s still wet , and it ’s not yet time to water your cucumber plants .
What is the best fertilizer for cucumbers?
Cucumis sativus do n’t require much atomic number 7 to thrive , so the all - intent fertilizers that operate so well for most of the plants in your garden are actually not the ripe pick for your cucumber plants . Compost is the unspoiled plant food to give cuke plants . You canmake your own compostor purchase it bag at a nursery or garden center .
All - purpose fertiliser render too much N for cucumber plant life . When cucumbers get too much atomic number 7 , they ’ll begin producing lots of foliage — vines , leaves , and shoots — but they wo n’t be producing many of the yield you ’re looking for . On Cucumis sativus plants that get too much N , flush may appear but run out to open , and the blooms that do open may not set fruit . To feed your Cucumis sativus plants , apply compost each year as a mulch or work out it into the stain as an amendment .
When should cucumbers be pruned?
Prune your cucumber vines throughout the growing season on an as - needed basis to maximize the harvest time you get from your cucumber plants . You ’ll desire to rationalize to absent idle or damaged foliage as it appears , and clip off elder leave as necessary to insure melodic phrase circulation for the works and allow light to turn over developing cucumbers . You should also prune the works throughout the season , because the balance between foliage and fruit production needs trim to be maintained . cucumber tend to get leaf overzealously , which can utilise up energy that , when the plants are properly prune , can be airt toward fruiting .
Remove all branches that follow off of the primary stem of the vine , making your cut as confining to the stem as you may . Also trim off any lateral shoot , yield , or flowers that appear on the low five to seven folio node . Pruning aside the first four or five sidelong runners the works produces near its base will result in high yields later in the time of year . Seedless glasshouse industrial plant motley can only corroborate one cucumber vine per foliage node , so if additional fruit develop on a node , they should be trim away . The smaller sown cucumber change can bring forth more than one fruit per node without a problem . Always use clean , fix pruning shears to avoid spreading disease in the garden .
Why are my cucumbers flowering but not fruiting?
If your cucumber produce pot of foliage but not many factual fruit , your plants may be positioned too intimately together or too far apart . A distance of eight to 12 in between plants is the sweet bit for cucumbers to create the condition necessary for successful pollination . Another possibility if female flowers are appearing on the industrial plant but not grow into fruits is that your orbit may plainly be low on pollinator .
There are a mixture of ways to promote more pollinator to call in your plants , which you could learn about in our clause “ Attract Pollinators to Your Garden . ” In the lag , you’re able to take issue into your own hands and pollinate your cucumber flora ’s flower yourself . To do so , apply a small paintbrush with subdued bristles to roll up the pollen from the stamens of male flowers each first light , then apply it to the stigma in the nerve centre of the female flowers . If you leave a few female flowers untouched , you ’ll know if pollinators have reelect to your area because those cucumbers will begin to develop without your intervention .
you may tell the efflorescence asunder because male blooms farm on thinner , shorter stems in cluster of three to five blossoms , and they tend to open up about 10 daylight before the female heyday , which appear alone instead of in groups , open . If you ascertain behind the petals of the flower , females will have a tiny immature cuke behind the heyday , whereas males will not . Most cucumber vine plants have more manly flowers than female bloom — one distaff heyday for every 10 or 20 male blooms .
Why are my cucumbers not maturing?
If your cucumber plants produce cucumber vine but they stay low and developing , it may be due to deficiency of water or nutrient . Another possibility if your cucumber produced fruit at first but then stopped may be that you simply call for to harvest the Cucumis sativus that are on the plant so it will continue producing . Cucumis sativus may also be distorted or deform and developing if they were improperly pollinated , plant have been overfertilized and receive too much nitrogen , or temperatures have been excessively hot .
Why are my cucumbers prickly?
Other than the varieties that are breed to avoid spine ( also called backbone ) , all cucumbers have some academic degree of prickles . The smooth surface of store purchase cucumbers is because the thorn are bump off before they are made usable to consumers . Cucumbers plants have naturally developed spines on the yield as a deterrent to predators . Slicing variety tend to have fewer spines than pickling assortment . rinse your cucumbers well and scratch them with a vegetable brush will ordinarily remove the hairy prickle to make the cuke ready to eat up . If your Cucumis sativus have large spines , you will believably need to peel the cucumber vine to remove the spines before you eat them to avoid an unpleasant texture .
Why do cucumber leaves dry up?
The leave of a cucumber industrial plant can dry up and shrink for a kind of reason , the most obvious being lack of water . When cucumber plants do n’t get enough water , in addition to drying up , their leaves may turn brownish or yellow . Make certain when watering cucumber plants that you provide enough water for the top six inches of soil to be hydrated . If hold back wet is a problem in your garden , adding alayer of mulcharound cucumber plants can assist . Other reasons the leave-taking of your cucumber plant could dry out up include the plant disease angular leaf spot and verticillium wilt .
Why do cucumbers turn yellow in the garden?
cucumber vine turn xanthous when they are too mature because they have been left on the plant too long . This discoloration happens because the chlorophyll that gives cucumbers their green hue fades when they are left on the plant after they should have been harvested . Cucumbers that have turned yellow are usually too large to be tasty and have become bitter as they grew too ripe . While overripeness is the most vulgar causa of yellow cucumbers , they can also turn yellowed due to a virus , alimentary imbalance , or excess water . There are also some varieties of Cucumis sativus that are meant to have yellow soma , such as the lemon tree cucumber .
Will one cucumber plant produce cucumbers?
Cucumber plants have both male and female flowers on a single plant , so you do not need more than one industrial plant for produce cucumber . As long as the pollen is transferred from male to female flower bypollinators , a undivided cucumber flora can produce cucumbers .
Want to learn more about growing cucumbers?
See these helpful resources :
Cornell University Vegetable MD : Cucumber Slicers Disease Resistance
The Ohio State University : Growing Cucumbers in the Home Garden
