Cucumbers and Home-made Pickles

Not many people get excited about growing cucumbers. Instead, they rave about asparagus or tomatoes, which, when in season, are pretty unbeatable. However, if you turn cukes into home-made bread and butter pickles with this easy-to-make recipe you’ll find at the end of the article, you might change your mind. Even long gone Grandma-in-law Hoffman would have liked their taste, but only if you didn’t tell her they were made in the microwave. She jarred pickles that were so good, they were worthwhile to eat all by themselves.  So is this microwave version.

To grow cucumbers, let’s start with some basics. Cukes like soil pH in the 5.5-7.0 range. You must add lime if pH is below 5.5 or sulphur to bring it down if the numbers read too high. pH is very important since it affects the ability of the plant to absorb nutrients from the soil. Adding fertilizer doesn’t help if you don’t have the correct pH.  This is a key point to remember for anything you plant. You can determine this with a soil test.

The cultivation of cucumbers is easy, and they tend to be prolific. Last year I harvested 44 cucumbers from one bush variety plant. The previous year’s harvest was over 50. With that in mind, think about how much space you want to devote to multiple plants. You can read about the different types of cucumbers and grow the type you wish from mail order or online catalog companies or just plunge right in and plant the varieties offered at the garden center.

Look for healthy green plants without any yellow leaves. Or start with seeds sown directly in the ground May 15 through July 1. Some types are grown for whole pickles, some for sliced pickles, and others for use in salads. Read about them and buy the ones that appeal to you. Ask at the garden centers about the plants offered if you have questions.  Find out how big they grow. There are dwarf versions and also bush varieties. Others that tend to grow long vines will do well on a trellis, which also keeps the fruit off the ground, making them less attractive to bugs. I prefer the bush varieties and typically plant only one, which doesn’t sound like much, but you can easily be overrun with cucumbers when they are at peak production.  Just ask my husband.

If you buy seedlings, make sure you harden them off before planting, which means that you gradually expose them to direct sunlight over 10 days. Start by moving them outside for 2 or 3 hours, protecting them from direct sunlight and strong winds, and withholding fertilizer. After two days, keep them outside 6 or 8 hours, gradually increasing the number of hours the plants are left outside until they can be left outside all day and night. If there is any threat of cold below 60 degrees, they must be brought inside for the evening. Two days before planting them, apply a starter fertilizer solution, which could be something like 10-50-10. Add 2 tablespoons of fertilizer to 1 gallon of water and apply.

Space your plants 12” apart in rows 48-72” apart.  You can also grow 2 to 3 plants per hill that are 24-36” apart in 48-72” rows. Add 10.5 ounces per 10 feet of row of 33-0-0 fertilizer a week after they start blossoming.  Cucumbers may also be grown in containers. 

A common problem in growing cucumbers is walking to the garden and seeing your plants splatted flat on the ground, after a fast middle-of-the-night death wilt. I remember the trauma when it happened. Caused by a bacterial wilt brought on by cucumber beetles, the plants wilt suddenly and die. Even if you see the wilt talking place, there is nothing you can do except rip out the plants and throw them in the garbage, not the compost.   To prevent this, look for the presence of cucumber beetles or their chewing injuries which lead to the development of the wilt. If you remove the bugs, you can probably escape this dreaded fate.

Penn State offers a publication, Growing Cucurbits, that gives you a great deal of information about growing all vegetables in this family. It’s free. Just stop in at the Ag Center Cooperative Extension in Gettysburg and ask for one. It covers everything in much more detail including other disease problems you might encounter. It’s good to keep in a gardening file as a reference. While you’re there, ask for articles dealing with bugs in the garden.

Rotating your crops is important, especially if you have had a bacterial wilt. This means that you shouldn’t plant cucumbers or any other members of the cucurbit family in the same spot next year.  This includes, squash, melons, pumpkins, and gourds.

The fun part about growing cucumbers is the harvest. When should you pick them? The texture and seediness is not ideal when they are large. Pick them when they are over 5 inches and dark green if you plan to slice them.  If you plan to pickle whole cucumbers, harvest them when they are just over 2 inches long. They may be harvested at any stage but do it before they turn yellow. The seed cavity should still be immature. Here’s a warning. Once they begin forming, they grow quickly. If you miss checking them for a few days, you could end up with cucumbers the size of Hindenburgs, which is not good. If you are going on vacation, have a friend pick them for you. They keep in the refrigerator for quite awhile.

Microwave Bread and Butter Pickles: 1 or 2 cucumbers (2 cups sliced), ¾ cup sliced onion, 1 cup sugar, ½ cup white vinegar, ½ teaspoon mustard seed, ¼ teaspoon turmeric, and ¼ teaspoon celery seed. Mix dry ingredients, then stir in vinegar, then cucumbers and onions. Microwave about 8 minutes. Stir half way through. They will keep in your refrigerator for months. Then share the recipe and your cucumber growing expertise!

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