Love growing cucumbers. I was never really into pickles until I started growing cucumbers. Now I make kosher dill spears, sweet and sour sandwich pickles, and relish. Nothing like home grown and home made!
i feel like growing cucumbers is also one of the most rewarding and fun to watch vegs since once the plant has developed, they just keep coming in on a weekly basis.
I just recently subscribed to the Growveg Garden Planner. What an amazing tool to help us in our garden. Ive a lot to learn navigating it, but I really enjoy it and I look forward to using it for years to come! Edit to add: your humor wasn't wasted on me. "What does your milk bring to the yard?" 😂 too funny.
My Party Time cucumbers have been in sunken bed in the unheated tunnel for about 1.5 weeks now and they have grown at least 10x bigger than when I planted them out. Off to a great start!
Cucumbers are also called "burpless" or "self-fertile" here in the USA. I prefer a seedless cucumber but many burpless will have seeds if left to grow on longer. If I pick them smaller, I get fewer seeds. I pickled many cucumbers last year and hope to do so this year. I'm going to try growing one plant on my back deck in a 10 gallon grow bag and let it sprawl along the deck and hang down over the edge so I can keep it off the ground and don't need a trellis. I put insect netting tied around the main stem at the soil level to keep vine borers out.
My favorite variety is Wautoma. It was developed by the USDA and is burpless, bitter free, and resistant to a wide variety of diseases, including powdery mildew, which is my biggest problem. I grow in a climate with hot summers, and they continue produce even when temperatures get into the upper 90's Fahrenheit. You can pick small for gherkins, or let grow a little longer for snacking size or pickles. They're wonderfully prolific, and I like that I can save the seeds from year to year. I like the flavor so much I don't bother growing slicing types anymore and just plant enough for pickles and eating fresh. My bees love the blossoms and are always visiting them as soon as they open.
Also just to add by following groveg I've been very successful and improving my tactics on growing this year.... This summer is going to the busiest and yet the most rewarding. All thanks to you Ben 😊
My cucumber soup 1 big cucumber with skin in slices, 1 smal handfull of cut up leek put under water with chicken stock let it cook for 10 a 15 min At Salt and peper if needed at 3 table spoons of cut up dille and about 150 ml of creem Let it simmer for 5 min, mixe the soup At slices of smoked samon before serving Enjoy😊
That sounds fabulous!! My grandfather has an excellent green thumb for growing cucumbers, I'll try making him this soup when his cucumbers come in later this summer. 😊
For a bitter cucumber you can cut the vine end and rub it on the cut surface. A foamy white substance will be pulled to the edges of the rubbing area, and that is the bitter compound. Keep rubbing until the foam stops forming. Wash it all off and your cucumber will no longer be bitter.
I always get such a kick out of your videos. The cucumbers on the eyes was great 😁 Just waiting for it to warm up here in Oregon before starting my cukes.
Cucumbers is one of those plants I've never had problems growing. I just throw the seeds at the ground and soon I've got them coming out my ears. Kind of like squash or zucchini. I am going to try growing them up a trellis this year cause I always end up with 2 foot long monster cucumbers hidden under leaves.
I planned on starting my gardening today but sprained my ankle. Thanks for giving me some more knowledge so I’ll be better prepared for my unplanned late start in a week or two!
I just grew cucumbers and they are so sweet. I have never tasted them so delicious. Always they have had a bland taste or bitter and sometimes hard to chew. Now they are moist, soft and sweet with a very nice crunch. Delicious. I am so happy. My first crop
The next generation: Did you know, you can make cuttings. Just take a sideshoot or the topcut and put in water. It will pruduce roots in a couple of weeks and be ready to plant out. I live i Denmark. I do this in the beginning of July🌱
Hello :) Do you have any tips for growing in pots on a deck? I am eager to try it out myself. Also, I wonder if you are from Northern Michigan? While I am not in the U.P., I am very far north, just in the lower mitten. If you are a Yooper, I assume our climate/growing conditions are the same/similar.
Wonderful! Thanks. I've had trouble with bitter and overly curled cucumbers these past few seasons. It gets very hot here very quickly, so I suspect heat stress. I may try a little shade cloth mid-day.
Thank you for the list! We have so many pests that want to destroy our plants, I’m planning to plant them within insect netting this year, using only parthenocarpic varieties.
Wonderful Cucumber 🥒 ♥️ Video! I was successful with Armenian (really a melon) that produced until December. I just planted my Yamato extra long seedlings next to 2 young grapevines behind the chamomile a few days ago!
Awesome video... thanks so much. Have not grown cucumbers before so this was exactly what i needed. Appreciate you covering cucumber beetles even though they are not an issue where you live
This is my first experience with your channel. I love it. Great information and really energetic, upbeat, and charming presentation. I rarely subscribe on first visit, but this time its a no brainer. Thank you!
Good morning Ben, a well explained lesson on the planting of cucumbers. If the basic is correct then planting success must follow. As we are now at the end of Autumn, I will obtain a packet of seeds and have them ready for the Spring and then just let the cucumbers do their thing, growing! Have a good day, take care. Kind regards.
My first time growing cucumbers. Growing burpless tasty F1. Just waiting for some warmer nights to transfer them to the greenhouse. Thanks for the tips and advice.
MY FAV.....peel and thin slice a cuc, add equal parts sugar , white vinegar , heavy cream and minced fresh dill or green onions ....such a refreshing side !!!! adjust amounts to your liking !!!! cheers Cherryl from Canada
@@GrowVeg I also do this recipe with fresh , crisp leaf lettuce , dress the lettuce just minutes before serving ! enjoy.........PS don't tell anyone but I drink the left over dressing straight out of the bowl , after the meal is over when no one is looking !!!! SHHHHH
This year is a Bread & Butter pickle making season. I am growing two types of cucumbers, Katrina, and Beit Alpha. I am only growing six plants, as both are parthenocarpic. I pickle, snack, and eat salads with cucumbers, and six planta are going to produce more cucumbers than I can eat. It is a good thing that I have family and friends nearby to pawn the excess onto. After this year, I'll know which cucumber varieties produce the best cucumbers and the quantity I can expect. If all goes as expected, I may cut the number of plants to three plants, giving me more room to grow shelling peas.
i've just stumbled upon this channel and your style of content perfectly fits my needs.. thank you so much alr, I'm most likely going to be binge watching your videos for the better part of the upcoming season. Also you're a really cool and entertaining creator, keep up the great work! Greetings and much love from Germany
I personally love Mexican mini cucumber. Incredibly productive and strong way into autumn in my area (Northern Germany) 💚 They taste slightly lemony and add a nice tang to every dish 😊 I discovered them last year and I never want to be without them again. 😅
Your enthusiasm is infectious! Thanks for the tips here. I've got China Jade and Indian Snake cucumbers taking off in my Summer garden, and can't wait to taste them both.
Hi Ben., first time out growing cues. I got Market more as a neighbour had these & they were lovely. I was so pleased that you done this masterclass. Along with all your tips I'm feeling much more confident. Thanks 👍
Are they sour (but not bitter) with large seeds encased in enormous "jelly sacks"? They were my favorite as a kid, and I would love to find the same or a similar variety!!
We are starting our first cucumbers this year - I'm so excited for it because our kids absolutely adore them (which is in itself reason to celebrate, I didn't like 🥒 as a kid ... In fact I am growing to like themnow, thanks to my kids 😃😃😃) and so they are going to grow them in their little garden beds - with the help of THE best gardening teacher on TH-cam!!! ❤ Thank you so much for this masterclass - it just came at the best possible time (having a bit of April snow outside so gardening is on a few days break now) and we are already diligently taking notes!! 🥒
Omg I needed this cuke masterclass! I bought a cucumber plant at Costco yesterday and left it outside overnight; huge mistake! The temperature dropped and now it looks dead 😵😩 I brought it inside this morning in hopes some heat and gentle air makes it come back to life. This is my 4th year growing season and everyday I learn something new but it doesn’t stop me from feeling like a jerk bag for having little brain cells yesterday and doing this my baby 😭
I was taught they're called Lemon-Apple cucumbers & I LOVE them! Years ago I mentioned them to a friend...who thought I had somehow managed to hybridize the 3! The confusion that ensued...the explaining... "You can't...you...no...but one's a VINE, the others are TREES! How could...I...no, but...but...but citrus!..." "Well I don't knnnnow..." "We went to the same high school!!! You did better than me!"
Excellent video!! My tip is, and I do this for cucumbers, gherkin, squash. I put the seeds in a moist square of Jcloth in zip bag in a sealed container by the boiler, an airing cupboard will work. I check twice a day and when there is approx 1/2 inch of root I'll transplant to a pot. This way I know the seed is viable. Happy gardening :-)
Thank you for this! I decided to experiment with winter sowing this year and used that method with almost everything I plan to grow this year. I have only a few jugs which haven't shown any germination at all, and my cucumber jug is one of them. I'd been worried that something was wrong with my seeds, but now I'm thinking that the nights are still too cool for them and they may yet sprout later!
I understand that it is useful to train plants on 1 or 2 stems. Recently, I used the Back to Eden method and just topped up with woodchips since I was water rotting my home waste, I watered with that to get rid of it. I was too busy to keep plants on one or two stems so then ended up having 5 or 6. The amount of bottom coverage (30cm deep composting vegetable waste) and the cold growing varieties allowed me to have a huge crop of tomatoes - about 4 times as much as I would have had from keeping just 1 stem. I had to literally give them away - the 8 plants initially planted in the tunnel yielded 5kg of ripe tomatoes per day. No way I could eat all that! Try using a deeper cover on the soil and water with your water composted materials. Then the usefulness of 1 stem per plant becomes history
I came here for this and you delivered! About to grow cucumbers for the first time and i need all the info possible. Thanks for such a detailed video/tutorial
Thank you for sharing all your considerable expertise and experience. I love growing lemon cucumbers because they are so obliging. Even with giving as many away as the locals could stand I had vats of cucumber relish to jar and distribute around the locality/Christmas presents all winter - and we are still working our way through the cucumber soup I froze. This year I may be buried by them because I found a forgotten seed packet of the usual [green] variety that was well out of date and sowed the lot in addition to my lemon and a few green varieties, expecting nothing and every one has just germinated. I think I need another polytunnel, even after I give friends and neighbours as many plants I can persuade them to adopt.
@@GrowVeg I wish - it was an accidental experiment because my grandchildren always find unusual seeds to give me and the results were far more prolific than I anticipated!. It turns out a large number of people appreciate the cucumber relish so squeezing in more plants than is reasonable has its benefits. I can't bear to send the extras to a certain death so invested in a small overspill polytunnel. Lunacy obviously increases with old age. Thank you again for all your videos - I wish I had a tiny part of your knowledge and through your kindness I am borrowing it.
I was always under the assumption that cukes don't transplant well, so I've always started in either peat or cow pots...the latter is preferred. Will be trying your way this week! 🤞
Thanks Ben! Great vid. Had no idea there were all female cucumbers. Living here in the Caribbean is ideal for growing cucumbers as the weather is constantly hot. Thanks also for the tip on powdery mild dew.
Great tips, even for those in climates which aren't your own! I find my cucumbers are my most productive plants but you're definitely right, you have to keep your eye on them the most for the cukes which are hiding and maturing and the powdery mildew (I haven't had the beetles yet but i'm on Toronto so it won't be long). I let my cucumbers sprawl all over my fence and trim as much as possible and it definitely works, I need to pay more attention to my Zucchini however (courgette anyone?) as I always end up with a ton of powdery mildew :(
This video makes me feel that it is so much easier to plant in warmer climate. I just throw the seeds in the vegetable bed and just pick when they are ready. My whole year’s physical movement on cucumbers are less than what you showed in this one video.
I planted 6 cucumber plants one plant has 5 cucumbers growing on them now. I planted March 21st I am in Louisiana so our last frost date was March 15th
I'm going to grow cucumbers for the first time in 2025 and this video has been fantastic and so comprehensive. Thank you for doing these Master classes, they are fantastic!
I'm in the UK and all my cucurbits (including my cucumbers, but not my cucamelons, funnily enough) get hit with powdery mildew and I have tried lots of 'home remedies', including the milk one mentioned in the vid, to no avail. However, I was told by a nice lady on my allotment that she uses a solution of two teaspoons of _sodium_ _bicarbonate_ ('Baking *Soda* here in the UK, found in any supermarket in the baking aisle) to one litre of water (just under 2 pints) and I must say it was the best tip I have ever been given. Please give it a go yourselves if the milk remedy doesn't quite do it for you. I should point out though that it has to be Baking _Soda,_ not Baking _Powder_ (as this has other stuff in it) and the method of spraying it is the same as the milk method already outlined in the vid although you may need to reapply less often, say, every 3 or 4 weeks or so?
Great video! I let my first group of cucumbers just keep growing and the largest ones were very bitter & 17in long! This year I’ll be letting them grow up instead of horizontal. Thank you
Excellent video, Ben! Last year was my first time growing cucumbers. They didn't like my weak sandy soil, but I'm determined to give them a better shot this year with plenty of compost and amendments. I love pickles!
Looking at charts the fastest germination is between 75 and 80 F, based on number of seedlings that come up within a certain number of days at said temps. A lot of vegys, even some colder temp vegys do well between 75 - 77 F. For people who want to control soil temp, I suggest looking at different charts because there are some differences between charts. Peppers are kind of an outlier because they like a temp in the low - mid 80s.
carpet beetles plagued my spaghetti squash last year, but I still got quite a few nice squash. One thing to note, they are EXTREMELY bitter. If you crush them, simply washing your hands with soap isnt enough. I ate after, licked my thumb, and almost gagged from the bitterness that was obviously from the beetle.
Hi Ben!I'm going to use your tips when Its summer in South Africa,I failed miserably this year trying to grow cucumbers,if it was not mildew it was something else,I never harvested any this year and my heart was very sore because I like pickles a lot
Love growing cucumbers. I was never really into pickles until I started growing cucumbers. Now I make kosher dill spears, sweet and sour sandwich pickles, and relish. Nothing like home grown and home made!
So true! 😀
i feel like growing cucumbers is also one of the most rewarding and fun to watch vegs since once the plant has developed, they just keep coming in on a weekly basis.
I was excited to get a crock for Christmas. Looking forward to making fermented dills!
Brilliant video from one of TH-cam's best gardening channels. Thanks Ben for sharing your in depth knowledge.
I adore this man, his knowledge and enthusiasm is contagious! I love my cucumbers and the advice is stellar, thank you.
Thanks so much for watching! 😀
I just recently subscribed to the Growveg Garden Planner. What an amazing tool to help us in our garden. Ive a lot to learn navigating it, but I really enjoy it and I look forward to using it for years to come!
Edit to add: your humor wasn't wasted on me. "What does your milk bring to the yard?" 😂 too funny.
I have used it for 6 years and love it.
@@gpswatching its perfect and very affordable. Im sure you're very quick and efficient by now. I'm still learning all the functions, tips and tricks.
Thanks so much. The Garden Planner is always evolving/improving, so I think it's genuinely useful! And so pleased the humor was picked up! :-)
My Party Time cucumbers have been in sunken bed in the unheated tunnel for about 1.5 weeks now and they have grown at least 10x bigger than when I planted them out. Off to a great start!
Great job!
Cucumbers are also called "burpless" or "self-fertile" here in the USA. I prefer a seedless cucumber but many burpless will have seeds if left to grow on longer. If I pick them smaller, I get fewer seeds. I pickled many cucumbers last year and hope to do so this year. I'm going to try growing one plant on my back deck in a 10 gallon grow bag and let it sprawl along the deck and hang down over the edge so I can keep it off the ground and don't need a trellis. I put insect netting tied around the main stem at the soil level to keep vine borers out.
My favorite variety is Wautoma. It was developed by the USDA and is burpless, bitter free, and resistant to a wide variety of diseases, including powdery mildew, which is my biggest problem. I grow in a climate with hot summers, and they continue produce even when temperatures get into the upper 90's Fahrenheit. You can pick small for gherkins, or let grow a little longer for snacking size or pickles. They're wonderfully prolific, and I like that I can save the seeds from year to year. I like the flavor so much I don't bother growing slicing types anymore and just plant enough for pickles and eating fresh. My bees love the blossoms and are always visiting them as soon as they open.
A great recommendation, thank you. 😀
Also just to add by following groveg I've been very successful and improving my tactics on growing this year.... This summer is going to the busiest and yet the most rewarding. All thanks to you Ben 😊
That is so lovely to read. Happy gardening! :-)
Perfect timing, planting mine tomorrow.
How did they do??
My cucumber soup
1 big cucumber with skin in slices, 1 smal handfull of cut up leek put under water with chicken stock let it cook for 10 a 15 min
At Salt and peper if needed at 3 table spoons of cut up dille and about 150 ml of creem
Let it simmer for 5 min, mixe the soup
At slices of smoked samon before serving
Enjoy😊
Wow. I've never heard of cucumber soup. Interesting.
That sounds fabulous!! My grandfather has an excellent green thumb for growing cucumbers, I'll try making him this soup when his cucumbers come in later this summer. 😊
Can do this with courgettes as well and liquidise. Very quick and easy soup and if you grow courgettes you always have too many!
Sounds like world war two ration meal😂
Yum❤
For a bitter cucumber you can cut the vine end and rub it on the cut surface. A foamy white substance will be pulled to the edges of the rubbing area, and that is the bitter compound. Keep rubbing until the foam stops forming. Wash it all off and your cucumber will no longer be bitter.
This is a superb tip, thanks for sharing!
I always get such a kick out of your videos. The cucumbers on the eyes was great 😁 Just waiting for it to warm up here in Oregon before starting my cukes.
So pleased you enjoy the videos. Thank you for watching!
Cucumbers is one of those plants I've never had problems growing. I just throw the seeds at the ground and soon I've got them coming out my ears. Kind of like squash or zucchini. I am going to try growing them up a trellis this year cause I always end up with 2 foot long monster cucumbers hidden under leaves.
I’ve never been able to grow them successfully. They seem to get overripe on one end, and undeveloped on the other.
Lucky you. I get very little harvest from container plants
Cucumbers are water hogs!!!! It's hard for me to commit to daily watering here in 9b So Louisiana
@@karencarolI recently learned that this can be because they weren’t property pollinated.
I love this veggie guy so many great tips while watching good content, keep it up my friend big ups from Sweden
GrowVeg is sharing all good and honest advice.
I planned on starting my gardening today but sprained my ankle. Thanks for giving me some more knowledge so I’ll be better prepared for my unplanned late start in a week or two!
Get well soon! 😊
That sucks, hope your ankle recovers very quickly!
Oh poor you. Hope you are fully recovered very soon!
I just grew cucumbers and they are so sweet. I have never tasted them so delicious. Always they have had a bland taste or bitter and sometimes hard to chew. Now they are moist, soft and sweet with a very nice crunch. Delicious. I am so happy. My first crop
That's really super to hear - makes all the effort growing them well worth it! :-)
Cucumbers are my favourite vegie to grow in the summer! Nothing like a home grown cucumber! 😍🥒💚
So true! :-)
This man is the Alton Brown of the Garden. Im hooked.
Alton Brown or Elton John?
The next generation: Did you know, you can make cuttings. Just take a sideshoot or the topcut and put in water. It will pruduce roots in a couple of weeks and be ready to plant out. I live i Denmark. I do this in the beginning of July🌱
Great idea! 🥒
Seriously?! I have to give it a try!! My cucumbers dont produce fertile seeds, so I have to keep buying the seeds ever so often.
🤖
@@jamesbrock7908 yes, I took the topcut les than 14 days ago and it has developer nice roots👍👍👍
@@annettebrdsgaard2645 What is topcut?
Your videos are always soooooo informative and easy to understand. This is a keeper since I like to grow cucs on my deck in pots.
Hello :) Do you have any tips for growing in pots on a deck? I am eager to try it out myself.
Also, I wonder if you are from Northern Michigan? While I am not in the U.P., I am very far north, just in the lower mitten. If you are a Yooper, I assume our climate/growing conditions are the same/similar.
Wonderful! Thanks. I've had trouble with bitter and overly curled cucumbers these past few seasons. It gets very hot here very quickly, so I suspect heat stress. I may try a little shade cloth mid-day.
Someone advised me that consistent watering is the key
Yes, a little shade may help if it's really hot around midday/early afternoon. And keep them well watered. :-)
"What does your milk bring to the yard?" HAHA!!! See what you did there 🤣
Lol apparently it brings less powdery mildew. 😂
Glad my terrible sense of humor was picked up! ;-)
@MikkisoXTRA I don’t understand the joke 🙈🙈🙈 I‘m not a native speaker. Would you mind explaining? (I love a good pun) 😂😆😅
@@LittleKikuyu its an old dumb song titled: "My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard " you probably can listen to it on TH-cam. 😂
Now I’m gonna have that song in my head for the weekend.
Thanks!
I had never given it any thought to make a second sowing for cukes. Thanks Ben!
HibBen, great video on cucumbers with plenty of useful hints & tops too. Thanks for sharing and take care 😊
Thank you for the list! We have so many pests that want to destroy our plants, I’m planning to plant them within insect netting this year, using only parthenocarpic varieties.
Your videos are really informative and the way you do it is really wholesome, love everything about it, thank you for being who you are ❤
So very well said!!!
my strawberries are really good this year. thanks for helping me through that mess. 😂 you're still the happiest guy on here
Thanks so much. Enjoy those strawberries! :-)
Thank you for this full knowledge video on cucumbers. Stay blessed.
Thank you - you too!
Have never grown a cucumber but just watched your video very inspired you are very easy to watch nice on the eye 😊
Love it! Absolutely packed with information on cucumbers.
Wonderful Cucumber 🥒 ♥️ Video! I was successful with Armenian (really a melon) that produced until December. I just planted my Yamato extra long seedlings next to 2 young grapevines behind the chamomile a few days ago!
All cuc's are melons lol
Awesome video... thanks so much. Have not grown cucumbers before so this was exactly what i needed. Appreciate you covering cucumber beetles even though they are not an issue where you live
I just planted cucumbers this evening looking forward to it😊
Great advice and as always beautiful photography. 🎉🎉
This is my first experience with your channel. I love it. Great information and really energetic, upbeat, and charming presentation. I rarely subscribe on first visit, but this time its a no brainer. Thank you!
Thank you so much - and a very warm welcome to the channel!
Good morning Ben, a well explained lesson on the planting of cucumbers. If the basic is correct then planting success must follow. As we are now at the end of Autumn, I will obtain a packet of seeds and have them ready for the Spring and then just let the cucumbers do their thing, growing! Have a good day, take care. Kind regards.
I'm growing cucs fo the 1st time this year, so this is perfect info. Thanks,
Wonderful information and tips! 🫶🏽
i never had luck with cukes in pots until this year in va i grew “green dragon” cukes. enjoy your show.
I am growing Manny and Diva, both are spineless and parthenocarpic. I tried Diva last year and was very happy! Hardly a cucumber beetle in sight!
Hope you get a fab harvest. :-)
Excellent overall instructional video on cucumbers! Production is top notch. Only information we need to know! GREAT stuff! New subscriber.
Amazing, thanks for your kind comment and for subscribing. A very warm welcome to the channel to you! :-)
My first time growing cucumbers. Growing burpless tasty F1. Just waiting for some warmer nights to transfer them to the greenhouse. Thanks for the tips and advice.
MY FAV.....peel and thin slice a cuc, add equal parts sugar , white vinegar , heavy cream and minced fresh dill or green onions ....such a refreshing side !!!! adjust amounts to your liking !!!! cheers Cherryl from Canada
Yummy! 😋
@@GrowVeg I also do this recipe with fresh , crisp leaf lettuce , dress the lettuce just minutes before serving ! enjoy.........PS don't tell anyone but I drink the left over dressing straight out of the bowl , after the meal is over when no one is looking !!!! SHHHHH
Always so upbeat and interesting. You make me want to plant immediately. Wonderful!!
Went out and bought Ashley and they have germinated so I am back to yo r wonderful video to see what to do next.
I keep coming back to these videos for a info - refresher. How awesome your videos are!! Thanks a lot.
Thank you and Happy Gardening!
This year is a Bread & Butter pickle making season. I am growing two types of cucumbers, Katrina, and Beit Alpha. I am only growing six plants, as both are parthenocarpic. I pickle, snack, and eat salads with cucumbers, and six planta are going to produce more cucumbers than I can eat. It is a good thing that I have family and friends nearby to pawn the excess onto. After this year, I'll know which cucumber varieties produce the best cucumbers and the quantity I can expect. If all goes as expected, I may cut the number of plants to three plants, giving me more room to grow shelling peas.
Always worth growing a few more plants… just in case. 😀
Awesome series!!👍 Cant wait for the fruit bush episodes !
Thanks so much again for your fabulously clear and concise gardening instruction, tips and advice!
More very useful tips - thank you Ben. Love your cucumber eyes 😅👍
I can’t get over how great this video is. Perfect range of truly useful information. Bless you dear brother
Thanks so much Stephen - delighted you found the video helpful. Enjoy those cucumbers! :)
Great video, I have just sown mine just before this video popped up. Looking forward to more masterclass videos
i've just stumbled upon this channel and your style of content perfectly fits my needs.. thank you so much alr, I'm most likely going to be binge watching your videos for the better part of the upcoming season. Also you're a really cool and entertaining creator, keep up the great work! Greetings and much love from Germany
What kind words, thank you so much. Happy gardening! 🧑🌾
I personally love Mexican mini cucumber. Incredibly productive and strong way into autumn in my area (Northern Germany) 💚 They taste slightly lemony and add a nice tang to every dish 😊 I discovered them last year and I never want to be without them again. 😅
Great recommendation, thanks. :-)
Danke für den Tip!
Your enthusiasm is infectious! Thanks for the tips here. I've got China Jade and Indian Snake cucumbers taking off in my Summer garden, and can't wait to taste them both.
How exciting - hope you get to enjoy a great crop. :-)
Hi Ben., first time out growing cues. I got Market more as a neighbour had these & they were lovely. I was so pleased that you done this masterclass. Along with all your tips I'm feeling much more confident. Thanks 👍
I grow lemon cucumbers and they’re wonderful!
Are they sour (but not bitter) with large seeds encased in enormous "jelly sacks"?
They were my favorite as a kid, and I would love to find the same or a similar variety!!
We are starting our first cucumbers this year - I'm so excited for it because our kids absolutely adore them (which is in itself reason to celebrate, I didn't like 🥒 as a kid ... In fact I am growing to like themnow, thanks to my kids 😃😃😃) and so they are going to grow them in their little garden beds - with the help of THE best gardening teacher on TH-cam!!! ❤ Thank you so much for this masterclass - it just came at the best possible time (having a bit of April snow outside so gardening is on a few days break now) and we are already diligently taking notes!! 🥒
So delighted to read you're starting your first cucumbers this season. Great stuff! I'm sure you'll get a fantastic crop. Happy gardening! :-)
Lots of great info, thank you!
Also, gorgeous greenhouse! I hope to have one someday
Omg I needed this cuke masterclass! I bought a cucumber plant at Costco yesterday and left it outside overnight; huge mistake! The temperature dropped and now it looks dead 😵😩 I brought it inside this morning in hopes some heat and gentle air makes it come back to life. This is my 4th year growing season and everyday I learn something new but it doesn’t stop me from feeling like a jerk bag for having little brain cells yesterday and doing this my baby 😭
I felt this 100% 😂
@@AstarteAnthro 😩😭
Don’t feel bad. Every day is a learning date for gardeners. :-)
I was taught they're called Lemon-Apple cucumbers & I LOVE them! Years ago I mentioned them to a friend...who thought I had somehow managed to hybridize the 3! The confusion that ensued...the explaining...
"You can't...you...no...but one's a VINE, the others are TREES! How could...I...no, but...but...but citrus!..."
"Well I don't knnnnow..."
"We went to the same high school!!! You did better than me!"
That’s fantastic! :-)
My first time growing cucumbers, thanks for this very informative video.
I retire in a couple of months and going to try to grow lots of things, I’ve subscribed for your handy videos, thankyou
That's really great to hear. Thanks for subscribing. And happy growing! :-)
Thank you for video very interesting and usefull every time i see your video i want to run to my allotment in north london your entusiasm is contagius
Excellent video!!
My tip is, and I do this for cucumbers, gherkin, squash. I put the seeds in a moist square of Jcloth in zip bag in a sealed container by the boiler, an airing cupboard will work. I check twice a day and when there is approx 1/2 inch of root I'll transplant to a pot. This way I know the seed is viable.
Happy gardening :-)
Great suggestion! :-)
Omg what an awesome video!! Thank you bro 🙏🏻 I feel so confident and ready for cucumbers in my garden this year 🤜🏻
Thank you for this! I decided to experiment with winter sowing this year and used that method with almost everything I plan to grow this year. I have only a few jugs which haven't shown any germination at all, and my cucumber jug is one of them. I'd been worried that something was wrong with my seeds, but now I'm thinking that the nights are still too cool for them and they may yet sprout later!
I understand that it is useful to train plants on 1 or 2 stems. Recently, I used the Back to Eden method and just topped up with woodchips since I was water rotting my home waste, I watered with that to get rid of it. I was too busy to keep plants on one or two stems so then ended up having 5 or 6. The amount of bottom coverage (30cm deep composting vegetable waste) and the cold growing varieties allowed me to have a huge crop of tomatoes - about 4 times as much as I would have had from keeping just 1 stem. I had to literally give them away - the 8 plants initially planted in the tunnel yielded 5kg of ripe tomatoes per day. No way I could eat all that! Try using a deeper cover on the soil and water with your water composted materials. Then the usefulness of 1 stem per plant becomes history
Thanks for these ideas. :-)
I came here for this and you delivered! About to grow cucumbers for the first time and i need all the info possible. Thanks for such a detailed video/tutorial
Thanks so much for watching. I hope you enjoy a fabulous harvest! :-)
Thank you for sharing your wealth of knowledge.
Thank you for sharing all your considerable expertise and experience. I love growing lemon cucumbers because they are so obliging. Even with giving as many away as the locals could stand I had vats of cucumber relish to jar and distribute around the locality/Christmas presents all winter - and we are still working our way through the cucumber soup I froze. This year I may be buried by them because I found a forgotten seed packet of the usual [green] variety that was well out of date and sowed the lot in addition to my lemon and a few green varieties, expecting nothing and every one has just germinated. I think I need another polytunnel, even after I give friends and neighbours as many plants I can persuade them to adopt.
Sounds like you’re a total cucumber growing pro!
@@GrowVeg I wish - it was an accidental experiment because my grandchildren always find unusual seeds to give me and the results were far more prolific than I anticipated!. It turns out a large number of people appreciate the cucumber relish so squeezing in more plants than is reasonable has its benefits. I can't bear to send the extras to a certain death so invested in a small overspill polytunnel. Lunacy obviously increases with old age.
Thank you again for all your videos - I wish I had a tiny part of your knowledge and through your kindness I am borrowing it.
What a great video - very detailed -thanks .
I was always under the assumption that cukes don't transplant well, so I've always started in either peat or cow pots...the latter is preferred. Will be trying your way this week! 🤞
Just what I needed to know!! Thanks a bunch! I hope I can get some growing.
Thanks so much, my pretend Uncle Ben!!! 😅🎉❤
Thanks Ben! Great vid. Had no idea there were all female cucumbers. Living here in the Caribbean is ideal for growing cucumbers as the weather is constantly hot. Thanks also for the tip on powdery mild dew.
absolutely get those parthenocarpic cucumbers, i've been growing them for a few years and the yield is so much better.
Great tips, even for those in climates which aren't your own! I find my cucumbers are my most productive plants but you're definitely right, you have to keep your eye on them the most for the cukes which are hiding and maturing and the powdery mildew (I haven't had the beetles yet but i'm on Toronto so it won't be long).
I let my cucumbers sprawl all over my fence and trim as much as possible and it definitely works, I need to pay more attention to my Zucchini however (courgette anyone?) as I always end up with a ton of powdery mildew :(
I think the milk solution trick should work on the courgettes too. And keep everything well watered of course! :-)
This video makes me feel that it is so much easier to plant in warmer climate. I just throw the seeds in the vegetable bed and just pick when they are ready. My whole year’s physical movement on cucumbers are less than what you showed in this one video.
Absolutely brilliant video, you cover literally everything. Thank you
I planted 6 cucumber plants one plant has 5 cucumbers growing on them now. I planted March 21st I am in Louisiana so our last frost date was March 15th
That’s a great result already! 😀
I'm going to grow cucumbers for the first time in 2025 and this video has been fantastic and so comprehensive. Thank you for doing these Master classes, they are fantastic!
So pleased you found this video useful! Happy gardening! :-)
I'm in the UK and all my cucurbits (including my cucumbers, but not my cucamelons, funnily enough) get hit with powdery mildew and I have tried lots of 'home remedies', including the milk one mentioned in the vid, to no avail. However, I was told by a nice lady on my allotment that she uses a solution of two teaspoons of _sodium_ _bicarbonate_ ('Baking *Soda* here in the UK, found in any supermarket in the baking aisle) to one litre of water (just under 2 pints) and I must say it was the best tip I have ever been given.
Please give it a go yourselves if the milk remedy doesn't quite do it for you. I should point out though that it has to be Baking _Soda,_ not Baking _Powder_ (as this has other stuff in it) and the method of spraying it is the same as the milk method already outlined in the vid although you may need to reapply less often, say, every 3 or 4 weeks or so?
This is a brilliant suggestion - I will have to try this out! Thank you. :-)
Great video! I let my first group of cucumbers just keep growing and the largest ones were very bitter & 17in long! This year I’ll be letting them grow up instead of horizontal. Thank you
Excellent video, Ben! Last year was my first time growing cucumbers. They didn't like my weak sandy soil, but I'm determined to give them a better shot this year with plenty of compost and amendments. I love pickles!
Hope you manage to enjoy a fantastic crop this year. :-)
Thank for the growing tips. 😊
Absolutely lost it at "What does your milk bring to the yard?" 😂 I wasn't expecting that amongst so much serious thoughtful advice about cucumbers
Haha - glad to have raised a smile! :-)
i bought a cucumber plant on a whim and now i determined to make it flourish
Okay, you are just delightful. AND this is SUPER helpful and thorough; thank you!!
Thanks so much! :-)
Looking at charts the fastest germination is between 75 and 80 F, based on number of seedlings that come up within a certain number of days at said temps.
A lot of vegys, even some colder temp vegys do well between 75 - 77 F. For people who want to control soil temp, I suggest looking at different charts because there are some differences between charts.
Peppers are kind of an outlier because they like a temp in the low - mid 80s.
Thank you Ben for your sharing,it’s very useful
carpet beetles plagued my spaghetti squash last year, but I still got quite a few nice squash. One thing to note, they are EXTREMELY bitter. If you crush them, simply washing your hands with soap isnt enough. I ate after, licked my thumb, and almost gagged from the bitterness that was obviously from the beetle.
Thanks for the Greek lesson Ben .
Got mine cooking away in the polytunnel, great stuff Ben 🙏🙏🌱🌱
you should look into aspirin for mildew, not only did they find it helps protect the plant from it but it also increased the fruit count in tomatoes
Great tip, thank you so much!
Hi Ben!I'm going to use your tips when Its summer in South Africa,I failed miserably this year trying to grow cucumbers,if it was not mildew it was something else,I never harvested any this year and my heart was very sore because I like pickles a lot
Another great video! I'm always learning on this channel!
How can you tell the difference between male and female flowers? Did I miss that in video. Keep up the great info. Blessings. chefrka
Female flowers will have a tiny cucumber behind the flower.
The male flowers have a thin, 'normal' stalk behind the flower. The female flower stalks are swollen - the embryonic fruit behind it.
Love your channel ben! It's always so wonderful
Just love your presentations 😎🙏💚