A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2006 Spacesaver Cucumber

I planted a spacesaver cucumber today - has anyone had good results with these? I planted it in a 24 inch pot. I planted a seedling which I had in a bio-dome seed tray.
I know it's early, but I'm in coastal southern California.

have not tried them, but have heard good things. a 24 inch pot is huge for a small cucumber, i beleive all they require is 2-3 gallons of dirt. so it should flourish quite nicely in a pot that big. good luk

Thanks, Wizzard - great pix and what a cute baby !
I'm now a proud great-aunt, to Ahstin, born January 11th, 2006 !

What is a space saver cucumber?

It's a cucumber plant that stays much smaller than a standard, but gives full size cucumbers.
The seed is available from Park's and Burpee.
This is my first try, and as I can only garden in containers, I have it in an 18 inch pot.

I ordered some seeds from Parks. I'm gonna give it a try. Did you order one plant? I'm pretty sure I ordered seeds.

No, I got seeds too. They came up in my seed tray and then I planted them today.
But after they came up, I read somewhere that cucumbers should be planted directly in the soil, not transplanted.

Cucumbers resent their roots being disturbed..
So, most directions will always say, direct seed..

They seem to attract the bad bugs when the plant isn't happy..
This year I direct sowed, and had much happier plants..
My mother always told me that too, but did I ever listen to her, , I will from now on...
Had good results.. lot's of cuke's.

I grew regular cukes, but I grow mine up a fence, so I don't waste flat space in my garden..

I also tried the "lemon cucumbers" they were so cute.. and at first they were an optical illusion and wasn't sure I wanted to eat them..
Thinking the would taste like lemons..,
they were only shaped like lemons..

I grew some one time that were I think called ?bush cucumber and they did well in 3 gallon buckets.

Weezie I saw those lemon cukes...in the catalogs and I had the same thoughts you did.

And yes cukes do resent being transplanted if you are not careful how you do it....I always start mine in the house and transplant them, mine "if" upset wilt down for about 3-4 days and require ALOT of water for the first week or so and then perk up and grow like mad, I have not had a problem with yield and have been transplanting them for years, I also start my cantaloupe & watermelon in the house and transplant them, and they say they should be direct sowed also.

I also will be growing my cukes on a fence this year, space saver and also no bending over and digging through the masses of itchy leaves to find the cukes, and of course you always miss one or too that you find later That is too big to use.

Another thing I also did one year, there was no soil only clay and on the side of a hill, I grew regular cukes in 3 gallon buckets, I placed two buckets about a foot apart and made a little trellis between the two (from one pot to the other) for them to grow up on...The harvest was not as good as if they had been grown in the ground, but we had fresh cukes everyday to eat.

Here's the lemon one...
*wasn't quite ripe yet*

These posts really got me in the mood to go outside and find lots of crisp cukes on healthy plants !
Come on, summer !

Wow Weezie that is a cool picture, I may have to track down some seed to try a few of them just for the fun of it.

PM my your address and give me a wee~bit of
time, I'm down with a flu bug .. but I have some left...

UP^

"I grew regular cukes, but I grow mine up a fence, so I don't waste flat space in my garden.."

How come the weight of the cucumber doesn't break the vine? I need more space. I may just try this.

Sheri,
The fence or the type of cucumber????

Both. Didn't the weight of the cuke on the fence break the vine?

It's the size of a lemon, exactly to a "T"......

We have a failure to communicate here. I meant when you plant your other vines and let them run up the fence. It seems like the cukes pulling on the vine would break the vines.

The cukes when growing put out tiny tendrils, that twist and turn around the fencing..
Similar to a morning glory and that helps brace the weight of the fruit, and it's self on the fencing...

Also the cuke's in my pictures where the size of lemons, and didn't even phaze the fence or the vine..

I also had Marketmore and another pickling type
on the same fencing and everything held great..

I had the fence standing straight up and also
hooped it in a half circle and still didn't pull it down..

I used a "Rabbit Fencing" found at my local
Tractor Supply company...

I also planted acorns up a fence and it didn't phaze that either...

Did that help???

My spacesaver cukes are about an inch tall now and have their first set of true leaves.
OR..... my zucchini is about an inch tall and has its first set of true leaves.... I got mixed up in my seed flat !

Got any pictures' Deborah????

I do that allll the time, mixing up flats and 6 pks..
I do know them enough though usually by the first true leaves, usually.

No pictures, no digital camera either.
Glad I'm not alone in getting seeds mixed up !

Oh constantly...
I grew spaghetti squash and bird house gourds
for the first time last year, and messed up the 6pks, on came up and one didn't..
And I really thoughhhhhhttt I was growing the squash, it did look like more like a pumpkin type.. and it ended up being the gourds...
but without growing either, I didn't know....

I could go on and on about mix ups...
but I am getting better...

And that is how one learnssssss