Hello everyone,
I'm pretty new to this growing lark and really had no interest in gardening then I hid 40 :o and blimey things in the garden started to take on a different light in my life. ;D
Anyway enough of why I got here, I want to give cucumbers a go but have no greenhouse only a few pots for the garden which is a good sun trap. So can anyone give me some advice on how the best way of growing outdoor cucumbers????
Many thanks
Hello Mutts and welcome to A4A
Before I had an allotment I grew my cukes in black flower buckets (the ones supermarkets sell their flowers from).
I drilled holes about 1inch up from the base, a good four inches of manure in the bottom topped up with compost. The buckets were paced on my steps and grew up the railings.
Marketmore = Luscious, cylindrical, dark green fruits are produced in large numbers throughout summer. Performs well both in good and poor seasons. A superb outdoor variety.
I'm sure someone will recommend other varieties
I've grown Marketmore and Burpless Tasty Green outdoors, but not in pots. Marketmore is a short fruit, Burpless is a typical long cucmber. Planted them out on a small mound to avoid water rotting the meck and gave them cane wigwams to grow up.
hi and welcome to the site,
i have never looked for specific varieties except to make sure they are a variety to be grown outdoors. i have always planted mine in the ground with a medium size pot sunk into the soil near to the plant's root ball for watering, again to prevent stem rot. i train mine up rose arches with extra twine wound around the structure. i like to use the arch to tie net supports too, this helps support the fruit.
(http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk187/thifasmom/The%20Vegetable%20Garden%20and%20its%20produce%202008/IMG_0678.jpg)
I underplant my corn with them. It usually works but last year they didn't grow properly. Watch out for slugs when they first go out. The plants aren't very big, so they'd probably do well in large pots. Make sure they have plenty of root room.
Welcome to A4a! No help here with cucumbers, I'm afraid- never had much luck with them. :(
Sikkum cucumber is a very good outdoor cucumber.He is only brown instead of green.
Hi Ruud :)
Do you have any pictures of that Sikkum cucumber growing?
Duke
I do the white ones, crystal apple and White Wonder... :)
I've never grown cucs but thought I might give these a go
http://www.thompson-morgan.com/seeds1/product/852/1.html
4 seeds for 3.99 :o
Why are cucumber seeds so expensive compared to courgettes,say?
because fools pay for them...
the white ones are old open pollinated ones and still kick in @20 for £1.50..
:)
Hi everyone,
Thanks for the replies, very interesting.
Have gone and bought a packet of wilkinsons seeds, which are marketmore 76 to give them a go, and see how I get on!!!!
Don't no how they will get on as it says there are 50 seeds and they only cost £1.30 ??? so I can only hope I get on well with them.
Once again thanks for the advice :)
Quote from: caroline7758 on March 08, 2009, 13:03:07
4 seeds for 3.99 :o
Why are cucumber seeds so expensive compared to courgettes,say?
Could be worse, have you seen what T&M charge for Carmen.
http://www.thompson-morgan.com/seeds1/product/538/1/
If you shop around you can get a much better deal moles sell 10g of marketmore cucumber seeds (approx 350 seeds) for £1.90. Courgettes on the other hand work out more expensive than cucumbers but still cheaper than T&M 10g (approx 50-70 seeds) for 'Green bush' are £1.90 from moles or £1.69 for 25 seeds from T&M.
http://www.molesseeds.co.uk
Hello Mutts and it's nice to see you here......it's a good time to find us, at the beginning of a New Year's growing season....expectations are always high & we live in hope that the eventual products match them ;D
For you and for me - a newbie cuc grower on her 3rd season....can someone please explain WHICH varieties need the male flower removed, assuming we're growing varieties with male/female flowers that is :-[.....all the usual varieties have been mentioned..Marketmore, Burpless, etc.....do we just leave them to do their thang & look forward to non-bitter cucs at the end of it?
Anyone care to give us a list?
Thanks, Lish
Welcome to the site. Burpless tasty did not do so well for me outdoors but marketmore produced in abundance.
I can not praise Moles Seeds enough it is good quality seed and well worth clubbing together to cut costs down, i brought a pack of 250 Sweetcorn seed of them amongst other thingswhich only cost £1.95 ( variety Ovation F1 ) £1.99 for 25 seed from T&M say no more ;)
Marketmore from Moles Seeds £1.90 for 10 gram or £2.40 for organic seed ......35 seeds per gram ..good value
Quote from: Hyacinth on March 08, 2009, 13:50:27
For you and for me - a newbie cuc grower on her 3rd season....can someone please explain WHICH varieties need the male flower removed, assuming we're growing varieties with male/female flowers that is :-[.....all the usual varieties have been mentioned..Marketmore, Burpless, etc.....do we just leave them to do their thang & look forward to non-bitter cucs at the end of it?
Anyone care to give us a list?
Thanks, Lish
i never found out about this till last year and so never did anything and always had great tasting cucs but i gather this is more needed for indoor cucs but i maybe completely wrong ???
I have read that you should crosspollinate but on the back of the seed packet it dosn't mention anything about it . ???
Oh well I will stick them in and hopefully I will get some plants growing.
The next thing will be grow in pots in the garden or take them up the allotment LOL.
Knowing me I will have some in both ;)
Remember to plant seeds on their edge to avoid rotting ;D
But you knew that already ::)
Would you recommend pre-chitting?
Another Moles fan here-the price of Cus from retail catalogues is just stupid-but don`t tell everyone-I need to sell some plants ;D
But DON'T spoil it all by trying to jump the gun. Or you'll shoot yourself in the foot!!
And, yes - Moles are great - even with their tech advice.
I don't bother pre-chitting with my cheap white ones Caroline, but at those prices I would... :-\
I usually grow Burpless Tasty Green but start them off in pots in the greenhouse (or any windowsil would do.) I've never worried about which way up the seed goes - they always seem to find the right way up and down! Once they are big enoug to handle I plant them out with a good handful of compost underneath, a circle of Slug Stoppa round them and then plenty of water. I've never taken any flowers off or cross polinated. Once they take off and the cucumbers start I'm ususally keeping the street provided for a good few weeks.
Here is a picture from a sikkim cucumber.Great outdoors cucumber,native in the himalayes.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v169/crazytomato/sikkimcuke2.jpg)
where do you get the sikkim cuc seeds from please
lovely pic Ruud, and thanks 8)
Can't see that it's anything like what my laydees have been used to eating tho...I've only just persuaded them that cucs these days which look like the ones they're used to seeing, are burp-free ::) ;D
Baker creek got them,and here in holland you got a seed supplier who got them.
Here you got an english seed supplier who got sikkimseeds
http://heritageplants.co.uk/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=shop.garden_flypage&product_id=51&category_id=3&manufacturer_id=0&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=26&vmcchk=1&Itemid=26
Bakers Creek are out of stock :'(
Weed-Digga
Got them at Seeds-by-Size, just need to work out their ordering system now ???
Weed-Digga
Quote from: Muttsnuts on March 08, 2009, 15:12:17
I have read that you should crosspollinate but on the back of the seed packet it dosn't mention anything about it .
Some cucumbers are self fertile and require no aditional pollination help. ;)
Quote from: Baccy Man on March 08, 2009, 13:34:59
Quote from: caroline7758 on March 08, 2009, 13:03:07
4 seeds for 3.99 :o
Why are cucumber seeds so expensive compared to courgettes,say?
Could be worse, have you seen what T&M charge for Carmen.
http://www.thompson-morgan.com/seeds1/product/538/1/
As tipped by someone last year, the only way to buy Carmen from T&M is to buy 10 packets of seeds and then choose the Carmen as your free packet :)
Thanks for the picture Ruud:)
Duke
My one piece of advice would be to rigg up a few canes with a stretch of polythene sheeting around on at least three sides. It makes a difference to the rate of growth, especially in the early weeks after planting.
Thanks for all that most helpful.
Was thinking about giving Lemon cus a go as I have seen some seeds on ebay.
Has anyone tried to grow them???
Link http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/CUCUMBER-CRYSTAL-LEMON-50-vegetable-seeds_W0QQitemZ150330589936QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_HomeGarden_Garden_PlantsSeedsBulbs_JN?hash=item150330589936&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66%3A4%7C65%3A7%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318
Sorry don't know if the link works, I'm sure someone can get it to work :-\
I am trying the lemon cukes this year for the first time so I would like to know a bit more about them too. Are they a trailing cucumber ?
Duke
Not keen on E-bay? Try this link...
http://www.tuckers-seeds.co.uk/productlist.php?catid=1&subid=35 (http://www.tuckers-seeds.co.uk/productlist.php?catid=1&subid=35)
or for organic ....
http://www.organiccatalog.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_22_45_107&products_id=117&osCsid=c476d9008427b182ff85ea74d9a493ba (http://www.organiccatalog.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_22_45_107&products_id=117&osCsid=c476d9008427b182ff85ea74d9a493ba)
..pretty sure crystal lemon and crystal apple are the same and it's a trailer.
(I can help on links because they're on my short list but not enough space this year.)
Quote from: Barnowl on March 09, 2009, 16:20:54
Not keen on E-bay? Try this link...
http://www.tuckers-seeds.co.uk/productlist.php?catid=1&subid=35 (http://www.tuckers-seeds.co.uk/productlist.php?catid=1&subid=35)
or for organic ....
http://www.organiccatalog.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_22_45_107&products_id=117&osCsid=c476d9008427b182ff85ea74d9a493ba (http://www.organiccatalog.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_22_45_107&products_id=117&osCsid=c476d9008427b182ff85ea74d9a493ba)
..pretty sure crystal lemon and crystal apple are the same and it's a trailer.
(I can help on links because they're on my short list but not enough space this year.)
Last year I grew Lemon from Alan Romans and one Crystal Apple, can't say I could tell the difference. They're the easiest, strangest cukes I've grown - I gave a couple to my neighbour, who grew them on in his greenhouse and then asked me what he should do with them.....eat them, says I. ;D
i aways grow Tasty king from unwins,
10 seeds for £2.79 all seeds strike, and you leave all male flowers on,
these help with the pollanation of the females
never had a bitter one yet.
alot cheaper than all female
I grew crystal lemon last year for the first time and my family said they were lovely ( I don't like cucumbers ). We were talking about them at the weekend and my 3 year old granddaughter declared that this year she was going to "eat them all herself" so they must be OK?
Yep, my 8 year old loved them. :)
Quote from: Muttsnuts on March 08, 2009, 15:12:17
I have read that you should crosspollinate but on the back of the seed packet it dosn't mention anything about it . ???
Oh well I will stick them in and hopefully I will get some plants growing.
The next thing will be grow in pots in the garden or take them up the allotment LOL.
Knowing me I will have some in both ;)
I switched from Marketmore to an F1 Hybrid called "Cool Breeze" which has only female buds and have been impressed with the quantities produced by one plant. If space is at a premium it might be worth the cost to try a hybrid. I grow them up fencing and netting. My main problem is keeping them well- watered. Just talking about this gets me craving cuc-sour cream and onion salad!
Hi Mutts, grew BTG's up canes next to my runners and french climbers year before last at the lottie (started too late last year to get much of anything in) and plan to grow them in the same spec this. Lance
Has anyone tried to grow parwal or tindoori/ tindora? Really nice little cooking cucumbers:
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_N68-LmbOknE/SJ2XMjscNkI/AAAAAAAAAMc/Xm-7H9DJVpI/s400/P1060146.JPG
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivy_gourd
Would like to try some, but maybe next year. :)