prickly cucumbers??

liljo · 4 August 2008 at 10:36AM

Hi I have a cucumber plant that I got from the car boot that is growing well and has alot of cucumbers and flowers on it but the cucumbers are really prickly! I did not know if I had done something wrong and turned them this way? I can't see me eating them without ripping my mouth to shreds lol :mad:

looby-loo_2 · 4 August 2008 at 10:46AM

liljo wrote: »

Hi I have a cucumber plant that I got from the car boot that is growing well and has alot of cucumbers and flowers on it but the cucumbers are really prickly! I did not know if I had done something wrong and turned them this way? I can't see me eating them without ripping my mouth to shreds lol :mad:

Hi and welcome
Good for you to grow cucumbers - they can be quite tricky.
The little prickles are quite normal, just rub them off with a clean cloth or duster when you pick them. By the way the skin on homegrown cucumber can be quite thick so you may need to peel it off anyway. Also, don't wait for them to get too big - seeds will begin to form inside and the taste get bitter. (A bit like a courgette will develope into a marrow) Pick them when they are young. This will also encourage more to grow.

I grew 3 plants this year, one died, but I have picked 5 so far and one more will be ready by Friday.

robnye · 4 August 2008 at 10:52AM

when you say pick them when young..... what length where they?
this is my first year for growing them, left 1 until it was 8 inches long, but no more seemed to grow (which is probably why - as you mentioned), since then several more have appeared.
but it was gorgeous... gave me less reverberation... ie belching, than i normally get

skin was fine, although did run a knife down the sides to take the spikes off

looby-loo_2 · 4 August 2008 at 11:00AM

Varieties differ, some are naturally fatter, thinner, shorter, longer. I think pick it as soon as it is a good size and doesn't seem to be growing any more. They grow quite quickly then stop. Don't keep waiting as the seeds just start developing and the skin thickens.
Sorry if this isn't much help

robnye · 4 August 2008 at 11:10AM

looby-loo wrote: »

Varieties differ, some are naturally fatter, thinner, shorter, longer. I think pick it as soon as it is a good size and doesn't seem to be growing any more. They grow quite quickly then stop. Don't keep waiting as the seeds just start developing and the skin thickens.
Sorry if this isn't much help

nope that sounds fine..... i had noticed that once it got to approx 3 inches, in then took very little time to nearly treble in size - (a matter of days)

liljo · 4 August 2008 at 12:31PM

Do I need to make some kind of support for the plant to grow up as it has started trailing down from the pot quite a bit now?

robnye · 4 August 2008 at 12:39PM

i wasnt sure when i started, then i put a bamboo pole in and tied the plant to it (not tightly), otherwise it did tend to flop onto the ground,

Ezmondino · 4 August 2008 at 12:44PM

I pick our cucumbers when they get to around 6/7 inches. Once picked the plant seems to then concentrate on the new ones. The last 2 weeks have been great for our plants, must have around 25-30 formed cucumbers on 3 plants on the go. We'll be all cucumbered out soon!

katskorner · 4 August 2008 at 3:56PM

OP, your cucumbers sound like they might be outdoor ridge cucumbers. You quite often end up with those at carboots unless you ask for all-female varieties. They will be fine inside, you just might want to peel them before you eat them.