A smart pick for beginner gardeners, learning how to grow cucumbers is a wonderful way to cultivate your green thumb. With a spring or summer planting season, cucumbers are ready to go in the ground when the outdoor temperature is regularly in the 20s in your area.
There’s work to be done before you can plant and harvest your cucumbers though. Use this guide to learn how to grow cucumbers at home.
There are 6 steps to completing this project:
Most cucumber types are relatively easy to grow, but you’ll need to pick one type to start with in your garden. Small lemon cucumbers and pickling cucumbers are great for tight spaces. Armenian or Persian cucumbers provide more fruit without the extra requirements of larger varieties like English cucumbers.
Choose your favorite style and get growing!
When growing cucumbers, you can either start them from seed indoors if you want to get an early start on your growing season, or you can buy young cucumber plants that are ready to plant if you’ve missed the seed window.
If you’re using bush cucumbers like Boston pickling cucumbers that can grow well in containers, you can begin the growing process indoors in pots. Ideally, you want to get your seeds into plants about two to three weeks before the expected last frost date.
Whether you’re growing from seed or planting a young plant, remember that you want your soil to be around 20 C or a little warmer when the cucumbers go in the ground.
When it comes to how to plant cucumbers, remember that cucumbers grow best in full sun, so choose a planting site that can provide it. Once you’ve found your spot, prepare the soil by adding about two inches of aged manure or compost to the area. Mix it in until it’s at a depth of about six to eight inches. Aim for a pH of 6.5 to 7.0 for cucumber growth.
Cucumber plants should be placed about one inch deep in the soil. Space your plants three to five feet apart for proper growth. Note that some cucumber varieties need more space, so check your seed packet for more details.
Cucumbers are considered thirsty plants, so you’ll want to keep them well-watered, particularly when it’s hot outside. In most cases, watering twice per week to maintain moist soil is all that’s required.
Maintaining moisture with a thin layer mulch is also popular among gardeners. Plastic mulch can be added when you plant, but organic mulch like leaves and straw should be reserved for the warmer summer months.
Fertilizer can help you grow cucumbers, but it is possible to over-fertilize your soil. With cucumbers, all you need is a low nitrogen, high potassium and high phosphorous fertilized added to your planting area every three weeks. Don’t overdo it or you risk reducing the growth of your cucumbers.
Cucumbers are ready to harvest whenever they’re large enough to pick. As your fruit gets larger, you’ll likely want to check your cucumbers each day, removing those that are ready to enjoy.
Harvested cucumbers typically last seven to 10 days in the refrigerator, but they’ll have the best flavor in the first few days after picking. You can wait a few days after harvest to add your cucumbers to pickling solution without sacrificing flavor or crunch.
