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| A 'Straight Eight' cucumber hangs heavy and ready to harvest. |
Description
Cucumber plants are tendril bearing vines with triangular prickly hairy leaves and yellow flowers which are either male or female. The female flowers are recognized by the swollen ovary at the base which will become the edible fruit. The flesh of cucumbers is firm and crisp, and really not very sweet, but delicious nevertheless. There are many dozens of varieties of cucumbers available to the grower ( Cornucopia II lists 92). Short blocky types are favored for pickling, and longer cylindrical types are used for fresh slicing. Extremely long and slender Oriental or "burpless" cucumbers and spherical lemon cukes are also popular. Breeders have developed cucumber types that are parthenocarpic, or seedless, which develop without pollination (as long as they are isolated from normal cucumbers to prevent insects from bringing pollen to the flowers). The big commercial growers often grow gynoecious cucumbers, varieties that produce only female flowers. By having just a few male flowers in the field, commercial growers can expect very high yields more or less all at once. Home gardeners generally prefer the monoecious varieties which have male and female flowers on the same plant and tend to produce over a longer period. Small pickling cucumbers, typically immature specimens, are sometimes called gherkins. Armenian or snake cucumbers are a different species, Cucumis melo. Their fruits are ribbed and often quite long and coiled.
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| Long and thin, the 'Kyota' cucumber's shape makes it easy to recognize. This cucumber is used in many Asian cuisines. |
Proper selection of cucumber varieties depends on your location. Ask your local garden center or extension agent which varieties have the necessary disease resistance for your area.
Author: Steve Christman
Copyright 1996 - 2009
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