We TRIED to grow several varieties of cucumbers this year .... mostly because I got tired of looking at the packets of seeds I'd accumulated. All we grew were vines, except for two little gherkin-size cucumbers that were absolutely delicious. Types we grew outside:
- Boston Pickling
- De Bourbonne
- National Pickling
- Poinsett 76
- Muncher
If you've been reading my blog, you know we moved into this place just last March. We used this year as our experiment year, seeing if the soil would grow anything. It really didn't do well. It's not actually soil; it's sand on top of sand on top of sandy loam! We're working on it, making raised beds for next year and accumulating manure from our goats, rabbit, and chickens. And we'll place grass clippings, fallen leaves, moldy hay, etc on the beds to "ferment" and compose over the winter.
Meanwhile, I want to choose only ONE kind of cucumber seed for future years. This is what we want out of a cucumber:
- short growing season (90 days, but less is preferred)
- pickle and pickle relish
- eat fresh too
- ok to dehydrate (preferred but not required)
- burpless (preferred but not required)
- small fruits (gherkin-pickle size)
- vine (not bush)
- heirloom (non-gmo ... so I can keep seeds for following years)
- sell extras at market or CSA
I'll grow them as part of my "three cousins" field: sunflowers, cucumbers, and watermelons. Good companion planting. The sunflowers are the stakes for the cucumbers to climb, and the watermelons ramble along the ground, keeping in moisture for all.
Your suggestions for the perfect cucumber would be appreciated.
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