Growing Cucumber

cucumis sativis : Cucurbitaceae / the gourd family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
                  P P P

(Best months for growing Cucumber in New Zealand - cool/mountain regions)

  • P = Sow seed

October: After risk of frost

  • Sow in garden. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 61°F and 95°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 16 - 24 inches apart
  • Harvest in 8-10 weeks. Cut fruit off with scissors or sharp knife.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Nasturtiums, Beans, Celery, Lettuce, Sweet Corn, Cabbages, Sunflowers, Coriander, Fennel, Dill, Sunflowers
  • Avoid growing close to: Potato, Tomatoes

Your comments and tips

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06 Feb 17, John (Australia - temperate climate)
Most varieties of apple cucumber are ripe when the greenish tinge has gone and they are a clear white. When they are overripe they go yellowish and are often bitter. This would apply to most apple cucumbers but there are some more recent varieties available that are green when they are ripe and some that are a golden, almost brown colour. Trust this helps.
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02 Feb 17, Kiri baird (New Zealand - cool/mountain climate)
Hi I have only had two cucumbers of my 3 plants is still early days?
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31 Jan 17, Norm Colless (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Hi, I have apple cucumbers growing vigorously and with heaps of male flowers but no female flowers. What can I do please
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04 Feb 17, John (Australia - temperate climate)
I don't know of anything that will induce cucumbers, pumpkins, squash, etc to produce female flowers. Male flowers are always produced first but it is very frustrating. Female flowers generally appear as the season becomes consistently warmer. Trust this helps.
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23 Feb 17, Pete (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
You can encourage pumpkins to put out more female flowers by snipping the growing end off after about 1.5 to 2m of vine. This made side shoots, which tend to make more females.
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29 Jan 17, Len Olley (South Africa - Dry summer sub-tropical climate)
When my cucumbers are young fruit the get stung in the middle and then start to bend. Those that are not stung grow well. I have tried researching to what is causing this but to no avail. What can I spray?
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05 Feb 17, John (Australia - temperate climate)
Crook Neck, as it is called is mostly caused by uneven pollination which could be attributed to lack of pollinating insects or low humidity. It is a very dissappointing condition and if you cut the cucumber longways you will find the inside of the curve not properly formed. You could try hand pollinating by pickig off some male flowers, removing the petals and rubbing them inside the female flowers. Trust this helps.
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27 Jan 17, Sue Barnes (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Could you please tell me when to plant Suyo Long Cucumber in Brisbane, should i put in jiffy pots to start or straight in ground where they are to grow.
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05 Feb 17, John (Australia - temperate climate)
Direct sowing is always the best but Jiffy pots are OK. (They do not like root disturbance that can occur with transplanting from trays). They don't like frost but that shouldn't be a problem in Brisbane and as they are very mildew susceptible they don't like overhead watering. Good air circulation and ground watering are good ways to reduce mildew problems. Trust this helps.
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26 Jan 17, Harry (Australia - tropical climate)
How do you tell the difference between a female and male flower
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If you have TRUE high humidity: humidex above 95% consistently -- then you have a real issue. If you have a "created" high humidity situation: like a poorly ventilated greenhouse; then correcting the ventilation will fix things. You can create an updraft by placing a screened window/door very close to ground level (or the lowest level that opens to fresh air) and then furthest and highest away from this point another screened window (on the ceiling/roof, or very high on the wall). So if you have a door on the North/East Bottom. the window goes on the South/West Top. When both of the windows are open, you should get a nice updraft that will whisk away all your humidity. It is best to situate the ground level door/window in a shady spot -- because this will be cooler air, and as this comes in it will force the hot/humid air up and out. There are also green house fans that can be installed (but if you do your updraft correctly you will probably not need one) ; and if you are fully indoors even a dehumidifier might work. If you are in a garden setting like the situation above; I think perhaps the cucumber created a roof that was helping hold in the moisture. In this case prune the cucumber to increase airflow. Things like fences can hold moisture; for example if you have a garden between two houses and there is a wood picket fence; this could impede the flow of air, and cause humidity to build up. The answer will ALMOST always be to increase air flow. If this is a true climate issue then you should select what you are growing with care, choosing plants that can tolerate high humidity; and still trying to situate your plants/garden in such a way that air flows freely. I have an allotment, that has "dense" fencing on two sides (I am in the back corner) and I can feel that I have an extra humid situation. I have found that runner beans do well; once they climb higher than fence level, they get a lot of air flow and do nicely. As far a hydroponics; I am not well versed enough to even begin guessing at the issues that may exist in these environments. Just remember that even when the humidex is NOT high, plants still need the airflow to move what they have transpired away from their leaves.

- Celeste Archer

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