| Cucumbers
are heavy feeders so work well composted material into the area
you are planting in. Sow after the soil temperatures are
above 70 to 95ºF. Plant
seeds ½ to 1 inch deep, 6 inches between plants and and
in hills or rows 4 to 6 feet
apart. Cucumbers
will cross with one another but not with other plants in the
Cucurbitaceae family. For instance, 'Lemon Apple' will
readily cross with 'Homemade Pickles' but it will not cross with
'West Indian Gherkin'.
If you are
planning to save seed and growing more than one
variety of cucumber (Cucumis sativus), you will need to
isolate them from one another by about ½ mile or hand pollinate to
insure seed purity.
for a recipe for Grandma D's sweet
dill
pickles.
for a recipe for Grandma Eda's sweet
pickles.
--
More Information --
(Approximately 25
to 30
seeds per gram)
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Ashley
65 days — Bred and released by the South
Carolina Truck Experimental Station, Charleston in 1956.
'Ashley' is an early variety with productive vines and dark green
fruits that are seven to eight inches long, tapered on the stem
end. An excellent slicing variety. Resistant to downy mildew and
does well in humid areas.
Boston
Pickling Improved
55 days — 'Boston Pickling' was originally released about
1880. It is a dependable variety that bears over a long
period of time if kept picked. This improved strain is
resistant to cucumber mosaic virus and cucumber scale. The plants
have blocky, bright green fruits that are perfect for pickling. |
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 Bush Crop
55 days — A deep green six to eight inch slicing variety.
Excellent for small gardens as the runners and vines are short. Good producing
variety on dwarf, bushy plants.
- Very Limited Supply - |
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Delikatesse
60 days — This variety has its roots in Germany.
It is a good producer of pale green, warted fruits that reach 10
inches. Excellent taste. Used for pickles when small
and for slicing when larger. |
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Homemade Pickles
55 days — A heavy producer of solid, crisp fruit. Can be
harvested at two inches long or at full maturity at five inches. |
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 Lemon Apple
60 days — Vigorous and productive variety that produces fruits
about the size and color of a lemon. Flesh is crispy white, sweet, and burpless.
The fruit is ripe when it first starts to turn yellow, but can be used green or
ripe. A very old variety (about 1894). |
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 Marketmore 76
70 days — Bred by
Dr. Henry M. Munger of
Cornell University and released in 1976. The fruit are eight to nine inches long and dark
green in color. They have a sweet mild flavor and are very
disease resistant (downy mildew, powdery mildew, scab, cucumber
mosaic virus). Does well in cool climates.1During
our 2003 growing season we had some extremely hot (100F) and dry
weather here in Oregon. The cucumber in the picture was
picked in the midst of our heat wave and was not bitter at
all. It remained of excellent flavor. |
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 Muncher
60 days — Strong, vigorous vines that
prolifically produce smooth, tender fruits that reach nine inches in
length. Good slicer that does not get bitter and is burpless.
Cucumber mosaic virus resistant. |
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 Poinsett 76
70 days — Improved Poinsett that
added scab resistance. Although it exhibits resistance to
many common diseases
(anthracnose, angular leaf spot, downy mildew, powdery mildew),
it is not recommended for New York grower as it is susceptible to
cucumber mosaic virus (spinach blight).
This variety was a cooperative release by
Dr. Henry M. Munger of Cornell
and Clemson VA/AES in 1976. They are excellent slicers that
average 8-1/2 inches long and 2-1/2 inches in diameter when
mature. Flesh is crisp, white and tender.1 |
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 Spacemaster
80
60 days — These dwarf plants produce heavily and are
resistant to cucumber mosaic virus, scab, and moderately
resistant to downy and powdery mildews.
The
eight inch fruit are good flavored and not bitter, even when grown
in full sun. Bred by
Dr. Henry M. Munger of
Cornell University and released in 1980.1 |
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Straight
Eight
63 days — The
vigorous and productive plants yield dark green, blunt ended,
cylindrical, seven to eight inch long fruits. A good slicing variety.
Released by
Ferry-Morse Seeds in 1935 and was an "All-American Selection®"
winner that same year. |
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West
Indian Gherkin (Cucumis anguria)
65 days — This variety dates back to at least the early
1790s. The 1-1/2 inch by 2 inch oval fruit look like large
burrs and are produced on large vines with leaves that look like
watermelons. They have been used for small pickles and
relishes for centuries. |
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|
 White Wonder
60 days — A very old variety that has been listed over
the years under the synonyms Albino, Ivory King, Jack Frost,
Landreth's White Slicing, and White Albino.
The
original seed was sent to the
W.
Atlee Burpee by a customer in 1890. It was released
it in 1893.
Popular for slicing and pickling. The
fruits are
normally five to six inches long with a natural white color skin.1 |
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Other
Issues: Cucumbers
are also slightly day length sensitive. That is they produce the
most female flowers when the days are about 11 hours long. This is
why it is common to have a shortage of cucumbers in midsummer in
some areas.
This
day length phenomenon is not to be confused with a problem that
some hybrids exhibit. Some hybrid cucumber
varieties are what are known as gynoecious. That is, they only
produce female flowers. How the seed companies get around this
problem is by placing a small number of seeds from a
standard-type, but similar cucumber into the pack. The odds are
usually good that if you plant the packet and everything grows,
you will get both male and female flowers so that pollination will
occur and you will get fruit.
The
older, standard varieties that we offer are not unstable hybrids.
They are open-pollinated (e.g. will breed true to type if not
crossed with another variety) and the same vines will produce both
male and female flowers. |
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