Quick-start Cucumber Plants

Living up here at 5600 feet like I do I always feel I'm getting a late start on my garden. I am also partial to lemon cucumbers, which can be hard to find even as seeds, never mind as started plants. I've found that presprouting these tender-rooted plants gives them (and me) a fast start. I've read this works just as well for squash, pumpkins, and melons, none of which like being transplanted. And it's very, very easy.

Cucumber seeds germinate best at 90 degrees F, but are perfectly happy growing at 65 degrees F. All you need to do is give them these conditions and they'll get going a week or two faster than if you planted them in either a pot indoors or directly in your garden. Your germination rate will also be much better. I rarely find a seed dated for the current year that fails to sprout, and usually two or even three year old seeds will do fine.

All you need are:

-seeds

-a paper towel

-a plastic bag

-a warm place

-a twist tie or string, or other way to hang the bag if required

 

Step 1 Beginning the process

Soak a paper towel in water.

Fold it in half.

Place your seeds an inch or more apart on the paper towel. It's important to give their roots room to grow without tangling.

Carefully roll the paper towel up.

Place in the plastic bag and seal.

Comments

[RedMeanie]

Nice Job! I absolutely LOVE Cucumbers! My family does also. My 10 and 2 year old girls eat them sliced with lemon juice and salt just about everyday. Im in Texas on the Gulf Coast. (No Oil Spill Yet). So they grow like crazy here. Ive got one above Ground level garden going with Just Cucumbers Going. Later on today I will be adding a Critically important component to any type of Cucumber breed. Or vine growing type plant. A Square Wire Large Mesh Top cage Roof for the plants to grow through so the Fruits or Vege's don't lay on the ground at all. Before you put this caging over the top the plant should be large enough so you can feed the plants through the openings and they will start to spread rapidly. Also a critical thing with these type of plants is to pick the fruit as soon as it is ripe to your preference and remove all the ripe fruits. If you leave fruits on them, they are very stubborn they will start to grow less and less fruit. If you pick them all they will fruit more. I will try and post pics of mine later tonight without the wire cage and with after I attach it .
I would love to have some of these seeds!

[gwylan]

Thanks! I use a couple of plastic bread trays wired together at the top to make an A-frame trellis. It's worked well for me for the past few years. I don't have much problem with fruits staying on the vine too long, as I eat 'em up as soon as they get to the turning-gold stage. Though lemon cukes almost never get bitter, I like them best before the seeds get large.
(Good luck on that oil spill. I can hardly bear to hear about it.)