Cucumbers - succession planting

[hendi_alex]

I keep a few replacement plants going all of the time. As soon as one plant starts to produce, a new batch has been seeded in another location. This offers great insurance against many possible causes of plant loss and usually gives us a full summer's worth of daily cucumbers. For me it works much better than trying to coax another cuke or two out of tired, spent vines. I pulled one of my earliest planted vines today.

One of the latest batches of seedlings
[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2624/3729070861_bef4d3bd07.jpg[/img]

This is a fairly young plant, though wilted from the hot, late morning sun, will perk up when the sun gets lower and the plant's soil temperature drops.

[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2628/3729872274_dc917332a4.jpg[/img]

[nes]

What are the bricks for?

[hendi_alex]

The newest member of our family, an awkward 2 month old whitish blond lab, hasn't yet figured out that she shouldn't walk in the plant beds. Hopefully the bricks give these young plants a small measure of protection.

[nes]

Oh I thought it was your cucumber secret!

Think that would work with a toddler?

[Cuke]

They're looking good.I wish I could start new plants like that,but I have a pretty short season.I'm lucky if my toms make it through September with the early frosts.

[gixxerific]

I envy you, I wish I had the space and location to do that. Though I have been skeeming, never you fear. I have ideas that change daily but stay on a common course.

The course of veggies and herbs everywhere. (:Insert: Evil Laugh).

Oh yeah I did transplant one cuc that has survived and is doing well it should go for a while after my others are gone.

Dono

[Rambo 09]

I have always had troble starting these guys out... I am curantly trying to germenate them in a papper towl, I'm going to try that method out, after they sprout, how close do you think I can plant them next to a trimed up zuchiini? gixxerific knows what I am talking about, I just want to grow around that one zuchinni plant, and its next to a fence, how close do you think I can put them together, and should I try to keep them out of the direct sunlight when their just starting?

[gixxerific]

I have always had troble starting these guys out... I am curantly trying to germenate them in a papper towl, I'm going to try that method out, after they sprout, how close do you think I can plant them next to a trimed up zuchiini? gixxerific knows what I am talking about, I just want to grow around that one zuchinni plant, and its next to a fence, how close do you think I can put them together, and should I try to keep them out of the direct sunlight when their just starting?

You should be careful how close you put them to something. Cuc's go everywhere. Mine are so crazy right now and I have been trimming the piss out of them for control, but I think I have lost that war. They need a lot of space, my garden as it sits is really not big enough for them so I improvised. It's working rather well, maybe too well.

Dono

[Rambo 09]

well, I figuerd if I grew them in the right spot it would be fine, I was planning on planting them up ageinst a fence, that way I could wrap them up and get them to grow upwards, think it will work?

[hendi_alex]

Cucumbers are perhaps our second favorite summer crop. So I keep a succession of plantings going from early spring until fall. The seeds are planted in various locations and some survive the summer heat better than others. But most all contribute in some measure to the steady stream of fresh cucumbers on the table.

My youngest cucumber plants are just over a week old, and hopefully will continue the harvest up until the first frost in November.

[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2444/3853076488_e0ef3e0aa2.jpg[/img]

[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2643/3852282555_ea64e9e5b2.jpg[/img]

Some vines are intermediate in size, and are suffering under the August heat. These plants will still contribute at least a few cucumbers to the effort.

[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2427/3853073438_082ed667d2.jpg[/img]

[img]https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3459/3853072396_3a357b2ffa.jpg[/img]

This plant that only gets morning sun seems to be a little happier.

[img]https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3456/3852277331_a1a0071db7.jpg[/img]

This plant is in full sun. You can see the benefit of plastic mulch covered by straw. The plant is growing more vigorously than those which are not mulched and it also wilts less during the heat of the day.
[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2580/3852278467_4de931960d.jpg[/img]

It will be giving a few cukes in the next couple of days.
[img]https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3511/3853071352_4f28e0f336.jpg[/img]

[crobi13]

well, I figuerd if I grew them in the right spot it would be fine, I was planning on planting them up ageinst a fence, that way I could wrap them up and get them to grow upwards, think it will work?

Depending on the hight of your fence, that might not be enough. I started my cuke vines on 4' poles which quickly got too short. Then I put up a 6' pole which also did not last. Right now, my cuke vines are literally 1'-2' away from my roof! That would make the vine somewhere around 12' tall.

[kgall]

I placed tomato cages around my cukes then I put another cage on top ...upside down . When the cuke gets to the top of the second cage I train them to climb down the other side.

[Diane]

I like that idea. It uses less space.
My cukes just take off and go where they want. Up a small fence, then down, up a tomato plant, then down.
Some are climbing along with the squash plants. I try to look for fruit here and there. The squash are volunteers so I didn't plan on this confusion.

[Diane]

Alex, nice looking, healthy plants. You have a great system.

[hendi_alex]

Only the mulched plant looks as healthy and vigorous as plants from earlier in the spring and early summer, but the heat and humidity take its toll on tender cucumber leaves/vines. They will likely start to look much better in a couple of weeks when the heat moderates some. Only problem for me with late growing cucumbers is that they tend to get attacked by a small boring larva. I never see evidence of the critter until the fruit is harvested. Then there will be one or two small entry holes. At least the damage is usually limited and can cut around the affected area.

[hendi_alex]

Several cucumber vines are still at various stages of development. No more will be planted for this season, but I would expect all plants to add to the stream of cucumbers before getting killed by frost sometime between late October and Mid November.

[img]https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3442/3890017616_7f61c7cca4.jpg[/img]

[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2536/3889224149_978341d07f.jpg[/img]

Even this scruffy vine has a couple of cukes getting close to harvest.
[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2580/3890017886_9f580308bc.jpg[/img]

[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2514/3890018172_2d0a1f4079.jpg[/img]

[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2464/3889225245_b4cbd305fc.jpg[/img]

[jal_ut]

No need for succession planting here. Cukes will continue to produce until frost. I guess you have a longer season and the vines may give up.
I just harvested my cukes. I plant a row and just let them sprawl. Here is a pic.

[img]https://donce.lofthouse.com/jamaica/cukes9.jpg[/img]

[hendi_alex]

Looks wonderful. Yes, out cukes are put in the ground in late April, and by the time mid June rolls around the vines are getting tired and mostly quit producing soon after. It is probably a result of the heat, humidity and disease. Anyway, I compensate by making a fresh planting about every three to four weeks from April through August. Also, my soil is really lousy here, I'm sure many would keep healthy cucumbers growing much longer where the soil is reasonably fertile.

[jal_ut]

Different climates have different requirements. You just keep trying things until you find what works for you on your lot.

Nice going!