The cucumber is a widely-cultivated creeping vine plant in the family Cucurbitaceae that bears cylindrical to spherical fruits, which are used as culinary vegetables. Considered an annual plant, there are three main types of cucumber—slicing, pickling, and seedless—within which several cultivars have been created.
The cucumber plant is a sprawling vine with large leaves and curling tendrils. The plant may have 4 or 5 main stems from which the tendrils branch. The leaves of the plant are arranged alternately on the vines, have 3–7 pointed lobes and are hairy. The cucumber plant produces yellow flowers that are 4 cm (1.6 in) in diameter.
The cucumber fruit varies in shape but is generally a curved cylinder rounded at both ends that can reach up to 60 cm (24 in) in length 10 cm (3.9 in) in diameter. Cucumber plants are annual plants, surviving only one growing season and the vines can reach up to 5 m (16.4 ft) in length. Cucumber may also be referred to as gherkin and originates from the foothills of the Himalayas, likely in India.
Cucumbers may be sliced lengthwise, widthwise, diced, or julienned as well as grilled, puréed, or pickled. The variety’s thin skin makes them an ideal fresh slicing cucumber that does not need to be peeled. Cucumbers are popularly paired with leafy greens and pasta salads. Their delicate flavor makes them a welcomed textural component in sandwiches and sushi. Complimentary ingredients include red and white fish, shellfish, chilies, tomatoes, mint, oregano, yogurt, garlic, cumin, chicken, pork, and fresh cheeses such as feta and chevre.
They are a good source of vitamins C, A, and K. These vitamins help with immunity, vision, iron absorption, collagen production, heart, lung, and kidney function, bone health, and blood clotting. They provide the body with potassium, a nutrient that may help reduce blood pressure and regulate fluid balance, muscle contractions, and nerve signaling. They also have fiber for improving digestion and promoting fullness after eating.
Cultivation
- Climate: Cucumbers thrive in warm conditions, with optimal temperatures between 60°F to 90°F (15°C to 32°C). They require a lot of sunlight.
- Soil: They prefer well-drained, fertile soil with a pH between 6.0 and 7.0. Adding compost or aged manure can enrich the soil.
- Watering: Cucumbers have high water needs, especially when they are fruiting. Consistent moisture helps prevent bitterness in the fruit.
Cucumbers
English Cucumbers
- Origin: Likely adapted from varieties in Europe, but widely grown in greenhouses worldwide.
- Characteristics: Known for being long, slender, with a thin, dark green skin that’s tender and edible. They are seedless or have very fine seeds, making them “burpless” or easy to digest. Commonly found wrapped in plastic to extend shelf life.
Armenian Cucumbers
- Origin: From the Middle East or Armenia, related more closely to melons.
- Characteristics: Long, often twisted, with a light green or yellowish skin that’s tender. They have a mild, slightly sweet flavor, fewer seeds, and are often eaten fresh or grilled rather than pickled.
Kirby Cucumbers
- Origin: Developed in the U.S., named after a horticulturist.
- Characteristics: Small, with bumpy skin ranging from yellow to dark green. They are crunchy and ideal for both fresh eating and pickling due to their size and texture.
Lemon Cucumbers
- Origin: Believed to have originated in the Middle East or Asia.
- Characteristics: Round with a yellow skin resembling a lemon. They have a mild, slightly sweet flavor, making them great for snacking fresh or in salads.
Persian Cucumbers
- Origin: From Persia (modern-day Iran).
- Characteristics: Small, slender, and slightly sweet with thin, edible skin. They’re about 5-6 inches long, perfect for salads, or eating whole.
Japanese Cucumbers
- Origin: Japan
- Characteristics: Known as “Kyuri,” they are long, narrow, with thin, dark green skin. They are very crisp and have very few seeds, ideal for slicing in salads or sushi.
Beit Alpha Cucumbers
- Origin: Middle East, named after a kibbutz in Israel.
- Characteristics: Small to medium size with a smooth, tender skin. They’re sweet, crunchy, and excellent for salads or pickling.
Gherkins
- Origin: Derived from wild cucumbers in Asia, specifically cultivated for pickling.
- Characteristics: Very small, about 1-5 inches, with a bumpy skin. Often pickled to make the classic small pickles or cornichons.
Chinese Snake Cucumbers
- Origin: China
- Characteristics: Extremely long (can grow over 2 feet), with a serpentine shape. They have a mild flavor, are often used in Asian dishes, and are good for large-scale pickling.
White Wonder Cucumbers
- Origin: Introduced in New York in 1893.
- Characteristics: White or pale green skin, heirloom variety, crisp texture, and mild flavor. Commonly used fresh in salads due to their unique color.
Salt and Pepper Cucumbers
- Origin: Not directly specified but likely a modern hybrid.
- Characteristics: Known for their skin which has white and dark green speckles. They’re crunchy, often used in pickling or fresh eating.
Garden Cucumbers
- Origin: Common in North America.
- Characteristics: Medium to large, with a thicker skin that’s often waxed for market sales. They have larger seeds, requiring them to be peeled and sometimes seeded for recipes.
Heirloom Marketmore 76
- Origin: Developed in the United States in the 1970s.
- Characteristics: A dark green, cylindrical cucumber about 8-9 inches long. It’s known for its disease resistance and high yield. The skin is slightly rough but edible, making it versatile for both slicing and pickling. It has a crisp texture and good flavor.
Straight Eight
- Origin: Introduced in 1935 in the U.S.
- Characteristics: True to its name, this heirloom variety grows uniformly straight, reaching about 8 inches. It has a uniform green color with small white spines. Great for fresh eating or pickling, offering a classic cucumber taste.
Miniature White Cucumbers
- Origin: Unknown, but popular in home gardens.
- Characteristics: These are small, round to oval cucumbers with a creamy white skin. They are sweet, crisp, and have a pleasant, mild flavor, perfect for salads or pickling.
Mexican Sour Gherkin
- Origin: Native to Mexico and Central America.
- Characteristics: Not technically a cucumber but often treated as one due to its cucumber-like taste. These tiny, grape-sized fruits have a tangy, cucumber-like flavor with a hint of citrus. They are excellent for pickling or as a garnish.
Poona Kheera
- Origin: India
- Characteristics: This cucumber starts green but turns yellow or russet brown when ripe. It has a sweet, nutty flavor with a crunchy texture, ideal for fresh eating when young, or for pickling when mature.
Crystal Apple Cucumbers
- Origin: Noted since the late 19th century, origin unclear.
- Characteristics: Round, like a small apple, with a pale green to white skin. They’re known for their crispness and a mild, almost apple-like flavor, making them great for eating fresh or in salads.
Suyo Long Cucumbers
- Origin: China
- Characteristics: A long, burpless cucumber that can grow over 12 inches. It’s ribbed with a thin skin, crisp, and has a sweet, refreshing taste. Excellent for fresh eating due to its tender skin and mild flavor.
Painted Serpent
- Origin: Possibly from the Middle East or Asia.
- Characteristics: A unique cucumber with a serpentine shape, growing up to 3 feet long. It starts light green with dark green stripes but matures to yellow. The flesh is crisp, with a mild flavor, often used in Asian cuisine.
Bounty Cucumbers
- Origin: Developed in the U.S.
- Characteristics: A hybrid with high yield and disease resistance. They are dark green, cylindrical, averaging about 8 inches, suitable for slicing. They have a good crunch and flavor, especially when picked young.
Tasty Green Cucumbers
- Origin: Japan
- Characteristics: A variety with a smoother, thinner skin than many Western cucumbers, ideal for slicing into salads or sushi. They are sweet, crisp, and virtually seedless, making them very palatable raw.
Jumbo Pink Pickling Cucumbers
- Origin: Developed for commercial pickling.
- Characteristics: These cucumbers are larger than typical pickling cukes, with a pink blush on their skin when ripe. They have a firm texture and are mainly used for pickling, offering a good crunch and flavor.
Green Finger Cucumber
- Origin: Middle East, popular in Lebanon and surrounding regions.
- Characteristics: Small, finger-like cucumbers with a dark green color, smooth skin, and a crunchy texture. They have a sweet taste and are often used in Middle Eastern dishes, especially in salads like fattoush.
Diva Cucumbers
- Origin: Developed in the United States.
- Characteristics: This variety is notable for its all-female flowers, meaning it doesn’t require pollination to set fruit. Diva cucumbers are seedless, have a mild flavor, and a thin, tender skin that doesn’t require peeling. They are about 6-8 inches long, with a slightly curved, slender shape, perfect for fresh eating.
Boston Pickling Cucumbers
- Origin: Introduced around 1880 in the United States.
- Characteristics: An heirloom variety specifically cultivated for pickling due to its blocky shape and crisp texture. They are not as long as some other types, usually about 6 inches, with a dark green color and white spines. They can be eaten fresh but are best known for their pickling qualities.
Slicing Cucumbers
- Origin: Generic term for many varieties developed globally for slicing.
- Characteristics: These are what many think of when they imagine a cucumber—medium to large, dark green, cylindrical with a smooth skin, often requiring peeling due to the thickness of the skin. They have a high water content, making them refreshing for salads or sandwiches.
Muncher Cucumbers
- Origin: Developed in the United States for home gardens.
- Characteristics: Burpless and seedless, Muncher cucumbers have a sweet flavor with a crunchy texture. They grow to about 8 inches, with a medium green color and a smooth skin. Ideal for snacking, in salads, or for making cucumber sandwiches.
Gynoecious Cucumbers
- Origin: A breeding type rather than a specific variety, originating from various parts of the world where selective breeding for all-female flowers was done.
- Characteristics: These cucumbers produce only female flowers, ensuring a higher yield of fruit. Examples include varieties like ‘Sweet Success’. They tend to be seedless or have very small seeds, and they often have a tender skin.
Burpless Hybrid
- Origin: Developed in North America to reduce the bloating caused by some cucumber varieties.
- Characteristics: These cucumbers are bred to produce less burping or indigestion. They are usually long, with a thinner skin, and sweeter than many other types. Popular varieties include ‘Sweet Slice’ and ‘Burpless Beauty’.
Parisian Pickling Cucumbers
- Origin: France
- Characteristics: Small, about 3-4 inches long, with a gherkin-like shape. They have a crisp texture perfect for pickling, with a slightly sweet flavor when fresh. They are often used for making cornichons or other small pickles.
Sikkim Cucumber
- Origin: Sikkim, a state in northeastern India.
- Characteristics: Also known as ‘Sikkim Hybrid’, this cucumber is unique for its elongated shape, sometimes reaching over 20 inches. It has a mild, sweet flavor, and the skin is edible when young. It’s used both in cooking and for pickling.
F1 Hybrid Cucumber
- Origin: Various, as it refers to any first-generation hybrid between two inbred lines.
- Characteristics: Often developed for specific traits like disease resistance, uniformity, or productivity. They can vary widely in appearance but generally offer improved characteristics over open-pollinated varieties, such as ‘Bush Champion’ which is compact for small gardens.
Telegraph Cucumbers
- Origin: England
- Characteristics: Long and slender, these cucumbers can grow over 2 feet in length. They have a thin, dark green skin and fewer seeds, making them ideal for slicing. They’re often wrapped in plastic to protect the delicate skin.
Patio Snacker Cucumbers
- Origin: Bred for small spaces, likely in the U.S.
- Characteristics: Compact plants suitable for containers or small gardens. The cucumbers themselves are small, perfect for snacking, with a thin, edible skin and a sweet flavor. They are ideal for fresh eating without the need for slicing.
Korean Cucumbers
- Origin: Korea
- Characteristics: These cucumbers are shorter and thicker than many Western varieties, with a bumpy, ribbed skin that’s white when young and turns yellow as it matures. They are juicy, sweet, and crisp, often used in kimchi or eaten fresh.
Cucumber ‘Summer Dance’
- Origin: Developed in Japan.
- Characteristics: Known for its parthenocarpic (fruit development without pollination) trait, allowing for seedless or nearly seedless cucumbers. ‘Summer Dance’ cucumbers are long, thin, and have a sweet, crisp texture. The skin is thin and edible, making it excellent for sushi or salads.
Crystal Apple Cucumber
- Origin: Heirloom from the 19th century, origin not well-defined but popular in American gardens.
- Characteristics: These cucumbers are round like small apples, with a creamy white to pale green skin. They have a crisp, apple-like texture with a mild, sweet flavor. They’re great for fresh eating, pickling, or as a unique addition to salads.
Asian Slicing Cucumbers
- Origin: General term for varieties from Asia, especially China and Japan.
- Characteristics: Typically long, slender, and with a smooth, tender skin. They can be straight or slightly curved. The flesh is very crisp, with a high water content, making them refreshing. These cucumbers are used in many Asian cuisines, often sliced for salads or eaten fresh.
Double Yield Cucumbers
- Origin: Developed in the United States.
- Characteristics: This variety is designed to produce a high yield in a small space, making it great for home gardens. Cucumbers are dark green, medium-sized, and cylindrical with a mild flavor. They’re good for both fresh eating and pickling.
Slenderette Cucumbers
- Origin: Another specialty from the U.S., focusing on space-efficient gardening.
- Characteristics: Specifically bred for container gardens or small spaces. The cucumbers are slender, about 6 inches long, with a tender, edible skin. They have a sweet, crisp texture, making them ideal for snacking or adding to salads.
Early Fortune Cucumbers
- Origin: Developed in Japan.
- Characteristics: Famous for its disease resistance and early maturity. ‘Early Fortune’ produces smooth, dark green, slightly curved cucumbers that are around 8 inches long. They have a mild flavor and crisp texture, used widely for slicing.
Tyria Cucumbers
- Origin: A product of British breeding for their cooler climate.
- Characteristics: Known for its all-female flowering, ensuring high yields. Tyria cucumbers are long and slender, with a thin, edible skin. They are virtually seedless, with a sweet, crisp taste, perfect for salads or eating fresh.
Yard Long Cucumbers
- Origin: Likely from Asia, where long cucumbers are prized.
- Characteristics: As the name suggests, these can grow over 2-3 feet long if conditions are right. They start off dark green but can turn lighter as they mature. They have a mild flavor and are excellent for pickling due to their length or sliced for salads.
Cucumber ‘Mini-Me’
- Origin: Bred for container gardening, origin likely North America.
- Characteristics: This variety produces very small cucumbers, often no more than 2-3 inches long, ideal for snacking or as a garnish. They have a crisp texture and a sweet flavor, with a thin skin that’s easily eaten.
Bush Champion Cucumbers
- Origin: Developed in the United States.
- Characteristics: Designed for small gardens or container growing, this bush variety produces fruits quickly. The cucumbers are typical slicing type, about 8-12 inches long, with a dark green color. They are excellent for fresh eating due to their crispness and mild flavor.
Tigerella Cucumbers
- Origin: A British variety, bred for its unique appearance.
- Characteristics: Known for their striking tiger stripe pattern on the skin, which can be green, yellow, or orange depending on maturity. Tigerella cucumbers are mainly used fresh, offering a crisp texture and a mild, slightly sweet taste.
Cucumber ‘Martini’
- Origin: Developed for cocktail enthusiasts, likely in North America.
- Characteristics: These are small, round cucumbers, about the size of a golf ball, perfect for garnishing drinks or adding to salads. They have a thin, edible skin and a refreshing, crisp interior with a mild flavor.
Harvesting
Harvesting Cucumbers should be harvested from the plant when they are still immature and green in color. Mature fruits are yellow and the flesh is often tough with woody seeds. The size of cucumbers at harvest depends on the variety of the cucumber being grown and what it is to be used for.
Cucumbers for pickling are generally picked when they are less than 5 cm (2 in) long whereas burpless cucumbers for slicing should be allowed to reach approximately 4 cm (~1.5 in) in diameter. It is important to remove any fruits nearing maturity to ensure the plant remains productive. Their rapid growth means that cucumbers may need harvested every couple of days.