Cucumber

I've already written a brief post about growing cucumber, but I couldn't resist writting a more detailed one about this wonderful plant.

How to grow Cucumber

Crop Rotation Group: Cucurbits (Squash family).

Indoor or outdoor growing

Different varieties are good for growing in a greenhouse or outside. As a general rule, cucumbers which are spiny or rough to the touch (called ‘ridge cucumbers’) will tolerate cooler climates and are suitable for outdoor growing. The ones with smoother skin are usually better grown in a greenhouse. The former have a better taste. Outdoor cucumbers usually require pollination, so do not remove male flowers. Note: the following advice is only for outdoor growing.

Sowing

Sow indoors preferably in March (otherwise April-May), preferably on a heated propagator. Cucumbers don't transplant well, so it's better to sow directly in 7.5cm pots. Otherwise, they can be transplanted to a larger pot at the one true leaf stage. Keep in good light. Keep moist, but don't overwater to prevent disease.
Depth: 2-3cm.
Germination time: 1 week.
Time to maturity: 4 months.

Plant out

Plants are very sensitive to cold weather: must be hardened off (gradually over 7-10 days) before planting out and never before June.

Plant out when plants are about 10cm high, with 2-3 true leaves.
Location: sunny, sheltered from winds, well-drained (for this reason they're often grown in ridges, hence the name) and in humus-rich soil.
Spacing: 45cm apart if trained onto canes, 90cm otherwise.

Care

Pinch out the growing points after six leaves have formed to encourage plants to produce fruiting side shoots. Climbing cucumbers may need tying to vertical supports, particularly as the heavy fruits start to develop.

Feed: from mid summer feed fornightly with liquid feed.

Harvest

Harvest cucumbers while they’re still small and tender. Gherkins when they're about 8cm long, longer varieties 15-20cm. Pick often to encourage more fruits and preferably harvest in the morning while it’s still cool.

Pests and Diseases

Slugs: are only problem when plants are young.

Aphids: whitefly excrete sticky ‘honeydew’ over the plant, encouraging the growth of sooty mould.

Red Spider mite: rusted foliage, burn badly infected leaves.

Mosaic virus: plants and leaves are stunted and deformed, and leaves show distinctive yellow mosaic patterning. Flowering is reduced or non-existent, while any fruit that do appear are small, pitted, hard and inedible. Remedy: The disease is spread from plant to plant by sap-sucking aphids, so take any necessary measures to control them. Infected plants should be destroyed – wash your hands after touching infected material to avoid contaminating healthy plants.

Powdery mildew: white patches on leaves. Remedy: buy resistant cultivars, keep the soil moist and grow in cooler location.

Recommended AGM varieties (all outdoor)

‘Marketmore’ AGM: Disease-resistant ridge cucumber with trailing habit. Good yield of short, tasty, dark fruits.

‘Bush Champion’ AGM: a bush style cucumber, i.e. compact variety 20cm high and a spread of 60cm, ideal to grow in containers or raised beds. High yield of short dark green fruit.

‘Prima Top’ AGM: F1 hybrid; medium-length, dark green, long, smooth-skinned cucumber and healthy foliage.

‘Masterpiece’ AGM: Short and straight, dark-green in colour.

‘Tokyo Slicer’ AGM: F1 hybrid; high yielding, with long smooth-skinned, dark slightly ribbed fruits.

‘Fortos’ AGM: (gherkin) attractive uniform fruit.