Cucumber Growing Tips

Fresh cucumbers are a summer garden essential. Whether you're making refreshing salads or crunchy pickles, homegrown cucumbers are far superior to store-bought in both flavor and crunch.

Types of Cucumbers

Slicing Cucumbers

Large, smooth-skinned varieties for fresh eating:

• Marketmore 76: Disease-resistant classic, 67 days
• Straight Eight: Uniform shape, great flavor, 58 days
• Armenian: Long, thin-skinned, never bitter, 70 days
• Suyo Long: Asian variety, burpless, 61 days

Pickling Cucumbers

Smaller, bumpy varieties perfect for preserving:

• Boston Pickling: Classic, prolific producer, 55 days
• National Pickling: Ideal for dills, 52 days
• Kirby: Traditional NY pickle variety, 55 days

Bush Cucumbers

Compact varieties for containers and small spaces:

• Bush Champion: Full-size cukes on compact plant, 55 days
• Spacemaster: Dwarf vines, disease-resistant, 56 days

When to Plant

Cucumbers are extremely frost-sensitive. Plant outdoors when:

• Soil temperature reaches 70°F (65°F minimum)
• All frost danger has passed
• Nighttime temps are consistently above 50°F

Planting Methods

Direct Sowing

Best method since cucumbers dislike transplanting:

• Plant seeds 1 inch deep
• Space 12 inches apart for trellised plants
• Or plant in hills—3-4 seeds per hill, 4 feet apart

Transplanting

Start indoors 3-4 weeks before transplanting. Use peat pots to minimize root disturbance.

Trellising: More Cukes, Less Space

Vertical growing offers many benefits:

• Better air circulation reduces disease
• Straighter cucumbers
• Easier harvesting
• More cucumbers per square foot
• Cleaner fruit off the ground

Use 6-foot stakes with netting, or build an A-frame trellis. Train vines upward by weaving through netting.

Care for Maximum Production

Watering

Cucumbers are 96% water—they need consistent moisture! Provide 1-2 inches weekly. Inconsistent watering causes bitter, misshapen fruit.

Fertilizing

Side-dress with compost or balanced fertilizer when vines begin to run and again when flowering.

Pollination

Cucumbers need bees for pollination. If yields are low, hand-pollinate by transferring pollen from male to female flowers with a small brush.

Common Problems

• Bitter cucumbers: Caused by stress—water consistently, provide shade in extreme heat
• Powdery mildew: White coating on leaves. Improve airflow, use resistant varieties
• Cucumber beetles: Use row covers until flowering, then hand-pick

Harvesting

Harvest frequently to encourage production:

• Slicers: 6-8 inches long
• Picklers: 2-4 inches for best texture
• Check plants daily during peak production
• Don't let cucumbers turn yellow—they're overripe and bitter