Cucumbers (Cucumis sativus) are a beloved garden staple, offering refreshing, crunchy fruits that thrive in warm conditions.

They are in the Curcubit family of fruits and their closest relatives are pumpkins, zucchinis, squash, gourds and melons.

As with most home grown veggies, the taste (and nutrient density) of home grown cucumbers simply can't compare with their supermarket counterparts (don't get me started on the plastic packaging), and fortunately, they are super easy to grow - and just try to imagine a greek or garden salad without them! 

What are the Health Benefits of Cucumbers?

While I admit to enjoying some sliced cucumber in a jug of Pimms in Summer or a cheeky G&T, when eaten every other way, cucumbers are packed with healthy stuff.

 They are about 95% water so are super hydrating, while the high water content, combined with fibre are also great for digestion and weight loss.

They are also high in potassium which is great for regulating blood pressure and also a good source of Vitamin C and Magnesium.

Cucumbers are packed with antioxidants such as flavonoids and tannins that reduce inflammation, and there is a reason they are used in facials as they promote skin hydration and elasticity.

Cucumbers Growing Up Trellis in Bec's Permaculture Garden

Hot Tips for Growing Cool Cucumbers

Cucumbers thrive in warm, sunny conditions and require well-drained, nutrient-rich soil to produce an abundant harvest.

You can plant cucumber seeds from Spring (after last frosts) right through to early to mid-Summer and even longer if you have a hot house. Like most food crops, they are best planted in areas that get at least 6 hours of sun a day.

Just remember that in places like Perth where we are, depending on your garden, we can have up to 12 hours of hot sun a day in the middle of Summer, so ideally, position in an area that gives you morning sun but is protected from the hot afternoon sun.

How to Plant and Grow Cucumbers

Soil Needs

Well-drained, fertile soil with a pH ideally between 6.0 and 7.0. Add plenty of organic matter to your garden beds prior to planting including aged compost and animal manures as well as rock dust. This will ensure healthy disease and pest resistant plants but also importantly, will make them nutrient dense. 

What to Plant - Seeds or Seedlings? 

As we are an increasingly impatient lot, I suggest planting at least a couple of seedlings (share a punnet with a neighbour) to give you an encouraging head start, and sow your seeds at the same time.

This will give you a nice bit of succession so that you will have fruit for months! 

If planting early in the season, start your seeds off in seedling flats or pots in a good quality seed raising mix and transfer to their final spot when they have a good few true leaves.

Propagating Seedlings in Newspaper Pots

If planting in the heat of summer, sow them straight into the ground. A good rule of thumb to know is to sow seeds to a depth of twice the height of the seed. So in this case, that is probably up to your first knuckle.

Cucumber Water Needs

Regular watering to keep the soil moist (but not waterlogged) will get your seeds or seedlings off to a great start.

Aim your water at the roots of plants and preferably water in the morning so the leaves dry off during the day. This will help prevent diseases such as powdery mildew.

Mulching well with a straw mulch such as lupin, and lucerne will go a long way to retaining moisture in the soil and prevent (or ease in the heat of summer) afternoon wilt! Cucumbers perform wonderfully well in wicking beds.

How to Support Cucumber Vines

Trellising not only saves space in your garden, but also helps improve air circulation which will in turn help prevent common diseases.

Keeping the fruit off the ground also means pests like slaters are less likely to have a munch on your cukes as well. Some Rio type mesh, using jute twine trellis or a purpose built trellis structure like this bamboo teepee work a treat. 

Hand Pollination Technique

Hopefully you will have an abundance of bees in the garden to pollinate your cucumber flowers but if you notice that you have fruit growing that then shrivel and go brown before reaching maturity, you may benefit from hand pollinating your fruit.

Identify the male and female flowers. Male flowers have a thin stem and produce pollen, while female flowers have a small, immature fruit at the base.

Female Cucumber Flower

Gently pluck a male flower and remove its petals and carefully transfer the pollen from the male flower’s centre to the stigma in the female flower’s centre. 

Perform this early in the morning when flowers are fully open and most receptive.

How to Fertilise Cucumbers

Regular feeding is important during the growing season for a bumper crop.

My routine is to add a little bit of potash to encourage flowering at the start, and alternate fortnightly feeding with either liquid fish emulsion or blood and bone. I apply a seaweed tonic weekly and/or worm wee to keep the soil conditioned, microbes happy, and to help prevent heat stress during those 35 deg plus days. 

Pests and Diseases can make Cucumbers lose their Cool! 

Sometimes, pests and diseases sure know how to crash the party! Luckily, there are organic solutions that can keep your crop crisp and healthy and your garden thriving.

How to Organically Control Pests on Cucumbers

Aphids

These tiny sap-suckers weaken plants. A spray bottle with some diluted Neem oil or soapy water sends them packing.

Spider Mites

These almost invisible critters are the cause of yellow, speckled leaves. Plant flowers that encourage Ladybirds and other predatory insects as they love eating spider mites, or try a garlic spray. 

Slugs and Snails

These guys are hungry for your cukes, particularly in their delicate seedling stage. Save your eggshells, crush them and place around the plant to create a barrier, trellis your vines to keep the fruit off the soil, or use beer traps to keep them in check.

Slaters

These guys also love munching on the stalks of young seedlings. Use a decoy of some hollowed out half oranges or grapefruit placed cut side down which attracts the slaters. Check them in the morning and you should have a little slater party within. You can either relocate the slaters to your compost pile, or feed to your or neighbourhood chickens!

Common Cucumber Plant Diseases and Organic Solutions

Powdery Mildew

White, powdery trouble on leaves. Fill a spray bottle with  milk-water solution in a ratio of 1 part milk to : 9 parts water and spray regularly until under control. 

Downy Mildew

Yellow spots that lead to wilt. Trellised cucumbers rarely suffer from this so if they are close to the ground, get them up for better airflow, or if it is particularly bad, use a copper-based organic fungicide - Just be sure to cover surrounding plants and the soil directly underneath with newspaper to catch the drips so that the beneficial fungi are not affected.

When can you Harvest your Cucumbers for Gin...I mean Salad...(asking for a friend..)

All going well, and depending on the variety, you should be able to harvest your first cucumbers approximately 50–70 days from sowing your seeds.

Cucumbers can be pretty sneaky - they seem to be tiny cornichon size one day, to a foot long the next, so keep an eye on them once the small fruit appear.

I prefer to harvest on the smaller size but as long as they are firm, evenly coloured and are close to their mature size, its good enough for me. If they start to turn yellow, they will then be over ripe and develop a bitter taste.

Harvesting regularly will encourage continuous production. 

Armenian Cucumbers Growing up Twine Trellis

Companion Planting for Cucumbers

Cucumbers like all of us do better with good friends around to support us. The famous threesome of the Three Sisters planting guild, combining Corn, a Legume and a Curcubit is a prime example.

Companion planting can improve growth, deter pests, and enhance flavour. Here are a few of Cucumber's best mates.

• Beans: Fix nitrogen in the soil, benefiting cucumber growth.
• Corn: Provides shade, and wind protection.
• Lettuce: Utilises ground space efficiently around your crops
• Radishes: Repel cucumber beetles.
• Marigolds: Deter pests with their strong scent.

And look... we can't get along well with everyone all the time so cucumbers should avoid:

• Potatoes: Compete for nutrients.
• Aromatic herbs (sage, rosemary): Can hinder cucumber growth.

"This Cucumber Harvest is Kind of a Big Dill! "

Gosh I love plant puns but I digress! Ok - so you have harvested a bumper crop and you have already eaten your fill, given some to your neighbours and now you are in a bit of a "pickle" as to what to do next?

While cucumbers are best enjoyed fresh and whole, cucumbers will keep well for up to two weeks in a veggie saver bag, in the crisper drawer, and preserving them ensures they last longer.

It's time to "relish" the moment! (Yes - I can pun the whole day!) Pickling or fermenting your cucumbers will make them last months and they are super good for you adding some lovely probiotics into your diet.

You can also cut them into chunks and freeze them for putting into your green smoothie or to make a refreshing cucumber sorbet. 

Pickled Cucumber Recipe

This recipe is quick to make with an easy method to preserve your harvest. It is great for your gut and delicious.

Preserving the Harvest by Pickling Cucumbers

Ingredients

• 4–5 medium cucumbers, sliced
• 2 cups vinegar (white or apple cider)
• 1 cup water
• 2 tbsp salt
• 2 tbsp sugar (optional)
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 1 tsp dill seeds or fresh dill

Instructions

1. In a saucepan, combine vinegar, water, salt, and sugar. Bring to a boil until salt and sugar dissolve.
2. Pack cucumber slices into sterilised jars along with garlic, mustard seeds, peppercorns, and dill.
3. Pour the hot brine over the cucumbers, ensuring they are fully submerged.
4. Seal the jars and let them cool to room temperature.
5. Store in a cool dark spot in your pantry and pop in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours before consuming.

Pouring Pickling Liquor into Jars of Sliced Cucumbers

Some of our Favourite Cucumber Varieties to Grow

We have a good selection of heirloom cucumber seeds in stock now from our suppliers Thrive Sustainability, Seed Station and Yilgarn Seeds.

Popular Varieties

1. Muncher – Thin skinned and tender and never has a bitter flavour. Great early fruiting and productive variety
2. Marketmore 76 – Dark green and non bitter, this old fashioned favourite has an attractive dark green, smooth skin.  
3. Dongara Long White Apple - White coloured flesh and white skin. Textured surface. 
4. Spacemaster – Great for pots, its compact size is ideal for small gardens. Produces deep green bumpy skin fruits that can grow to 20cm long.

Unusual Varieties to Try

1. African Horned Cucumber – Distinctive fruit with horned protuberances. Fruit is yellowish orange when ripe with green jelly flesh and subtle lime/banana flavour. 
2. Richmond Green Apple – Green oval palm sized fruits with similar flavour profile to crystal apple. High yielding.
3. Armenian - Long slender fruit with pale green skin that can grow over 50cm long, but best harvested at around 30cm long. Distinct melon flavour.

Open Pollinated and Heirloom Varieties of Cucumber Seeds Available In Store

You are now an expert in how to grow cucumbers, so "cuke back and relax", grab a packet of seeds and get growing! Keep your cucumbers happy, and they’ll keep you crunching all season long! 🥒✨

PS - Check out some of our other helpful blog articles on Soil Nutrition, the Perth Seed Planting Guide and Integrated Pest Management.

What are Your Cucumber Growing Tips?

We would love to learn and hear from you. Please share your tips or comments below.