Growing cucumbers 101

Cucumber vines on trellis in the August garden

Monday, May 25, 2026

Cucumbers are a tropical plant and love heat.  They can be started indoors 4 weeks prior to the last frost (early March in our Zone 7) and transplanted outside after all danger of frost has passed for the quickest harvest.  They can also be directly sown into the garden or a pot in the summer.  You can purchase transplants at nurseries or big box stores.  You can plant as late as July which will give you fruits from August to frost.

Cucumbers have been around for thousands of years and originate from India.  The cucumber arrived in Europe at least 2000 years ago.  The Romans loved them.  Christopher Columbus brought the cucumber with him to Haiti in the 1400‘s and seeds were likely aboard the first ships in Virginia in the 1600’s.

Cucumbers are a good source of potassium, antioxidants like beta carotene, lutein, vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin K.  It also has a diuretic properties.  Cucumbers have a sweet, refreshing taste.  They are popular in salads, smoothies, and juices.

Cucumbers should be planted in full sun with rich soil and consistent moisture.  Cucumbers can be grown in pots or in the garden bed.   You can let them run or train them to grow on a trellis.  If growing in soil, plant 4 seeds in hills 3-4‘ apart and thin to the strongest two.  I plant mine around a trellis to use the vertical space.  Unless you get a "bush" variety, the plant will likely outgrow its trellis; just pinch off the top when it gets to the height you want. 

In my garden, cucumbers have never been bothered with pests or disease.  They are a seemingly carefree vegetable that produces abundantly. 

If growing green varieties, harvest before the fruits turn yellow.  Early fruits have less seeds and have no bitterness.  Frequent harvesting also encourages the vine to grow more fruits.  Follow the seed packet instructions for harvesting of other colors of cucumbers.

If growing in pots, look for patio, dwarf, bush, or compact in the description.  Some small varieties include Lemon, Suyo, Salad Bush, Fanfare, Sweet Success, Bush Champion.  One vine of Salad Bush was all we needed to have enough cucumbers to make pickles for the year for my husband and fresh in salads for me.  I also love adding cukes to my smoothies and snacking on them right off the vine.  
Grow your own smoothie and juice garden
Decorative and Edible Container Gardening
Make your own pickles without a store bought seasoning mix

Make pickle relish

I have started seeds indoors and outdoors.  If started outdoors, starting in May after the soil has had a chance to warm up will give quick germination and growth.  If you start too early, the seed won't sprout and will rot.  I started mine outdoors in April when we had a warm spell.  They are all transplanted into the garden bed, one per trellis.

Days to harvest after sprouting varies from 50-70 days, depending on variety, amount of sun the plant gets and how warm it is.  Typically, the smaller fruits are quicker to develop.  Cucumbers grow and produce fast in hot, humid weather.  

4 years ago, I planted my seeds directly into a garden pot in early June.  I grew one Bush Champion in a large pot.  The one plant gave me enough to eat fresh, make pickles that my husband loves and pickle relish for me. I have 4 planted in the garden bed this year.  I'm trying to eat more veggies.  Four may be too many for fresh eating and canning, but it will be fun trying new varieties and seeing which ones work best in my garden.  They are all vining types.  I've been growing bush types for the last few years as I was space constrained.  With the new garden bed, I have plenty of room to put them in the garden instead of a pot.

Fertilize regularly and keep evenly moist.  Do not let soil completely dry out.  This will result in bitter or hollow fruits.  Each plant produces both male and female flowers.  The first flowers will likely be males; they are the ones that have a long thin stalk with the flower on the end.  Don’t be surprised or worried when the first flowers fall off without fruiting.  When the female flowers appear, you will get baby fruits.

How to care for the summer edible garden

There are a wide variety of cucumbers out there from tiny to humongous, from green to white to yellow to red, from those grown to eat fresh to those that can be stored on the counter for months, from those that are smaller bush types to those whose vines can ramble over 20 feet.  The fun varieties that you tart from seed or the ones that you buy from the big box store will give you an easy growing abundant producing vegetable plant.   

Don't forget to save seeds from your best producer for next year's garden!

Seed saving-fun, easy and a cost saver