Dying cucumbers and confused tomatoes

lol, uh, so, I've got a couple of questions.

1) Has anyone got any tips they can offer me in general on growing ridge cucumbers (namely the variety 'marketmore') outside in the ground?

They died last year because in my overeagerness I put them out far too early and the cold got them, but this year that doesn't seem to be the probelm? I'm growing them in a raised bed with used compost and some general 'growmore' granular food, but they're still wilting and look to be on the way out :( If there's anything I'm doing wrong I really want to know asap, especially if there's any way to save them...

2) The other thing is that I'm a bit confused on the labelling and variety of tomato 'moneymaker'. My mum in her well-meaningness bought a half-grown plant with flowers from the garden centre, not knowing I'd already decided on the little bush variety 'sweet and neat' that I can grow in the pots that hang off the old dead treetrunk in our garden.

Oh well, we're both great tomato eaters so if it works, it works XDD

From the size and shape of it I can tell it's probably a cordon-type, right? She insists that the labelling and pictures on the sign at the garden centre indicated it was a cherry tomato, which we both vastly prefer, but all the research I've done so far indicates it as a 'medium', whatever that means, presumably a regular-sized 'salad' tomato?

I've stuck it in the ground with some new compost and general fertilizer with a view to start feeding it asap, but I would like to know if being a cordon type it needs pinching out etc and when/if it needs support - it's only under a foot tall atm, and I have no idea if it gets bigger ^^;;;

 

Even out door ridge cucumbers are fairly tender until the nights warm up.
The weather has been very cold this spring and planting out cues, at least until now, or even a bit later, is always a good idea.
The plants also need hardening off, most bought plants that look really good are direct from a nursery greenhouse, the ones that look awful have been outside too soon.

As to money maker, as far as I know its a regular tom, needs pinching out, grows normal sized toms.
Best grown up a cane.

 

I'm growing marketmore again this year. I made the same mistake as you last year and between the weather and the slugs they were doomed. If they are not too big can you make some kind of cloche for them to give them a bit of protection for a couple of weeks. Maybe even a clear storage box put over it upside down might work. I am going to grow 1 in my new grow house and one outside to see the difference. Money maker is a cordon variety. I also grew these last year outside, but they got blight.

Rusty

 

Marketmore is the outdoor variety I've been growing for many years. They will stand lower temps than stupidly priced F1 cucumber varieties that keel over below 10degC, but I haven't planted mine out yet as I'm still getting <7degC in my garden, meaning about 5degC at my plot - still too cold.

I'll plant them out next week: