Cucumber

Going to try and grow cucumbers this year anyone recommend a decent easy to grow F1 that produces well.


Cheers

 

I'm sure you'll get plenty of suggestions Shimsham.
Bedfordshire prize did well for me.
What I found with cucumbers was I got a glut of big cucumbers quite late in the season.
Now I only grow Cucumber Lemon (Chrystal Apple) - lemon, tennis ball size. They fruit all summer and do well outdoors.
You might want to give them a try.. Last time I looked Alan Roman did seeds for 50p.

 

Thanks Alice,I want to grow some for my grandson [8] who absolutely loves cucumber/toms/cheese and there is nothing finer than home grown with the exception of the cheese.

Cheers Colin

 

I'm sure your grandson would love a little lemon cucumber all to himself. Here they are growing on the plant. The pic was taken in July.

 

This year I grew Emilie (an F1 type) and resistant to deseases. It cropped well. I grew two in my greenhouse and one in the polytunnel. It's a fairly short cuc (about 8") which suits us fine as we never manage to finish the longer varieties before they start to go off.

Another very good cropper I grow is Market More this is a ridge type with prickly skin. It always produces a massive crop. It can be grown trailing along the ground or trained up canes or wires. I grow them on the ground between tomato plants. They can be picked small and used as gherkins or grown to full maturity.

 

Hello
Its my first post but I thought I would share with you what I an growing this year in my greenhouse as its being heated for the first time I thought I could try growing the cucumber a little earlier than I have in the past and the F1 I have chosen is Carmen and here is a bit of a write up about them These are a bit expensive seeds to buy however I am pleased that out of the 5 seeds I have 4 strong seedlings and one not so strong as the seed case seemed to be glued to both seed leaves and eventualy I managed to release it using a scalpel blade here is the company review:thumb:

An 'All Female' cucumber which stood out in our 2007 trials. It exhibits good tolerance to cold weather and mildew and is resistant to scab and leaf spot. Ideal for second season or short season cropping, when disease can be a problem. RHS Award of Garden Merit winner. Recommended for exhibition. Long variety. Maturing time from sowing 12 weeks. Sow singly on edge in pots under glass at 18 21°C 1065 70°F February May. Pot on plants into large pots about 25cm size or plant them out in a frame or greenhouse. Do not plant in frames until May. Maintain night temperature of 16 24°C 60 75°F. Remove male flowers leaving the female ones distinguished produced.by swelling on the stem behind the petals from which cucumbers will be 'All Female' varieties produce virtually 100% female flowers. calories.Harvest July September. HEALTH BENEFITS Refreshing, 96% water low in calories.

 

I am trying Picolino for the first time this year.A bit pricey at £3.69 for 4 seeds but all female flowers and a bite sized 6 inch cucumber

 

make 100% sure that minimum temperature does not fall below 10C. Warmer + Humid is good :thumb:

When you pot-on keep the original soil level higher than the new pot's level - so the water "runs away" from the stem - stem rot is the biggest problem.

Gorw 2x as many as you need for final cropping. In many years you will lose some - as the saying goes:" Cucumbers wake up each morning thinking of another way to die" :(

Take of the first few female flowers that appear - for the first two weeks after they appear. If you let the first Female flowers set the plant thinks its job of procreating is done, and is sluggish to set more fruit :(

 

Thank you very much for that timely advice I heard of that before about taking off the bottom flowers but had forgotten so I am really glad you gave me that advice