If you know how to grow cucumbers you will know that home grown varieties have a taste that you just can’t get from store bought ones. Crisp, sweet and juicy and thats the way cucumbers should be.
If you follow a few basic steps, you can easily grow these wonderful vegetables in your home garden.Cucumbers are popular in many middle eastern and Mediterranean cuisines and are easy to grow. Full sun and a humus rich well drained soil are basic requirements.
Grow your own Cucumber Plants
Cucumber plants are a warm season crop and are very popular with home gardeners. In order to save space many people grow cucumbers on a trellis which also allows more sun in many cases and also lifts them of the ground so that they get good air circulation which helps prevent mould. Cucumbers require a humus rich moist soil and do need water to grow properly. Try not to water the foliage of cucumber plants.
Cucumbers can be grown from seeds or seedlings, they tend to resent being transplanted so avoid disturbing the roots where possible.
A simple cucumber trellis or climbing frame is a great space saver as well as way of preventing the foliage from developing mould. Some growers do grow them on the ground usually over a bed of straw or sugar cane mulch
Fertilise with a liquid seaweed fertiliser applied to the roots, do not let cucumbers dry out in warm periods, and no not let the soil get to wet at the same time. with many varieties or types of cucumbers available the choice is eating or pickling types.
How to grow Cucumbers – Step by step
Cucumbers are a plant that require good soil and lots of nutrients, so soil preparation is important.
- Dig over the area to be planted to the depth of a garden fork.
- In clay soils amend with some gypsum to help break up the clay and dig over again.
- Add well rotted compost, aged animal manure and if you have it leaf mould and vermicaste. Dig over a third time, each time removing and weeds and roots.
- Let the area settle for 2 – 3 weeks before planting. You can install your trellis and remove any additional weeds and choose your cucumber varieties in this time.
- Rake over the soil and you are ready to plant your cucumber seeds.
- Seeds to be planted at around 2cm deep, you can add some additional compost and vermicaste to each planting hole.
- Water in well with your favourite liquid seaweed fertiliser and keep seeds moist until the germinate.
After seed germination
- Keep weeds away from new cucumber plants.
- Water regularly and do not allow the soil to dry out.
- Weekly application of a seaweed fertiliser is beneficial.
- Mulch around plants to help maintain a cool moist root run.
- As fruit begins to form increase water.
- NEVER water the leaves of cucumber plants, this increases the likelihood of mould.
Cucumber Varieties
Knowing how to grow Cucumbers is half the problem solved. Now you need to select the varieties to grow.
Decide if you want Cucumbers for eating or pickling.
Pickling Cucumbers
‘Clarion Pickler’ and ‘Paris Pickling’, both live up to their names and are used mainly as a pickling cucumbers.
Eating Cucumbers
Lebanese varieties such as ‘Amiga’, Caman’, Kassib’ along with the climbing ‘Panama’ are all popular.
The Chinese variety ‘Suyu’ is excellent for both eating and pickling.
Other varieties include Hybrid types such as : The early fruiting ‘Japanese Climbing’, the compact growing ‘Spacemaster’, the popular Asian variety ‘Suyu Long’, the German heirloom ‘Schlesische Landgurke’ and the round Italian type ‘Tondo Liscio.
Also worth considering are : Antonino, Bowing, Burpless, Camelot, Cardinl, Clarion, Derby, Monjavo and ‘Improved Bourbonne’ or as the French would say ‘Amèlioré de Bourbonne’.
