Cucumbers.

It has been a funny old year for my cucumbers. It didn't start well. I ordered 5 Passanda greenhouse cucumber plants from a well known seed supplier and when they eventually arrived 4 0f them were damaged beyond help. After complaining another 5 were dispatched, 3 were damaged this time. Anyway, I'd already decided to have a go at germinating my own so as well as planting the 3 Passanda variety in the greenhouse I sowed a dozen Marketmore organic outdoor cucumber seeds. The result is that 12 out of 12 seed germinated, a first for me, and I gave a healthy batch away to my fellow allotmenteers having planted 6 in my cold frame. We are now on a cucumber diet. The Passanda cucumber are a F1 Hybrid with all female flowers and other than regular watering, occasional feeding, pinching out the side shoots and regular tying to the vertical cane and horizontal wire they look after themselves. And what a cropper. See picture above and right. All female flowers!



The outdoor Marketmore are not F1's and as they are in a now open top cold frame, I have been pollinating the female flowers with the male stamens. Lots of watering and careful pinching out tendrils and we are starting to get a good crop. The taste of the Marketmore outdoor cucumbers if better than the Passanda but even the Passanda are 100% better than shop bought ones. Both Marketmore and Pasanda are a miniature fruiting type with the cucumbers being cut at their best when about 20cm long, that's 8" in old money! Sorry, that shows my age!


Left: Female with male flower.

Right: Marketmore almost ready for cutting!





I'm claiming cucumber growing 2006 a success. Just wish I had some recipes for cucumbers other than in salads.