Best Cucumbers for Pickles

[MaggieMD]

Can anyone suggest some cucumber varieties that would make good garlic and/or bread and butter pickles? I live in Southern Maryland, and we have a fairly long season. Also, has anyone grown the herbs (dill?) needed to make pickles and how did that work? I have only grown slicing cucumbers (Sweet Success is a favorite) but my sister suggested making pickles, and I think we will try it this year. Do the pickle cucmbers come in all at once? I'm in the proces of ordering seeds (yes, it's a tad early, but I get impatient about it in the winter!). Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[opabinia51]

I can't recommend any specific varieties of cucumbers but, what I have done in the past is just go down to the local nurseries to see what varieties of seeds they offer and talk to the long term staff at the stores. Also, look on the web to see if there are any proprietors of heirloom seeds in your area or just in the U.S.

For Dill, her in SouthWestern Canada, it is dead simple to grow. Just purchase a few seedlings from a local nusery and put them in the soil. Dill is a companion plant to Onions and cabbage but, should not be planted near tomatoes or carrots.

Also, in the heat of summer it will bolt and go to seed on your very quickly. So, you will have to replant as the summer goes on. For pickly purposes I think it would be best if you just planted some in Late August to have it ready for your cukes in the fall.

[MaggieMD]

Thanks, especially for the tip about not planting it near the tomatoes, which I might have done.

You said to pickle the cukes in the fall -- so do they all come in at once? Do I have to buy a special variety that produces all at once? IN the past, I had vines and would pick them throughout the summer.

[MaggieMD]

I just got my order of seeds from Gurney's, includng some cucumber seeds called Cucumber Hybrid Classy -- but that seed packet say "Amaranthus" as the botanitcal name. All the other cucumbers' seed packets say "curcumis sativus." I have heard Amaranth attracts cucumber beetles and is used as a trap crop, so now I'm afraid to plant this variety near my garden. Also, does anyone know what "treated with Apron, Lorban,Thiram" means? It is written on that same cucumber pack only (the "amaranthus" one). I think I'm a little over my head here!

[opabinia51]

With regards to your first question:

check out the seed catalogues and see if there are some hybrids that might give you cukes earlier.

With regards to your Amaranthus question: take a look inside the seed packet: if you have cucumber seeds then chances are the packet is mislabled or just some new variation of a cucumber. However, the genus should be cucumaria.

[MaggieMD]

Thanks. I find it worrisome that a big company like Gurney's would mislabel a packet! I have already written them. Do you know what treated with Apron, Lorban,Thiram" means? I looked them up on the web and got the chemical (not proprietary) names, but could only find that one -- Thiram -- is a fungicide.

[Gnome]

MaggieMD,

I find it worrisome that a big company like Gurney's would mislabel a packet!

I would hope that the quality control at the processing facility is better than that. A more likely scenario is that you were simply shipped the wrong product, I used to work in inventory control at a warehouse pick/pack facility and it is not uncommon for product to be mis-located. A worker simply picking by location would not notice the wrong product.

If you do not hear from them soon just open the pack as Opa suggested, this should clear up the confusion pretty quickly. I looked for Amaranthus seed on Google and they look nothing at all like cucumber seed.
[img]https://www.delange.org/Amaranth/Amaranth1.jpg[/img]

Norm

[opabinia51]

Well, what you have said tells me that these seeds have been treated with a fungicide and probably a bunch of other -cides as well. I don't know the names that you asked about but, I do know that it is best to avoid anything with the suffix -cide.

These chemicals tend to cause more problems than they solve. Yes, seeds can get infested with various things that will prevent germination and so on but, that is just a part of life.

Using any sort of -cide in your soil destroys the natural variation of microbs and macrobes in the soil that naturally fight disease and actually feed the plants by breaking down organic matter. Some fungi form mycorrhizae and actually do feed plants.

So, I personally would not use those seeds. I usually only buy seeds that are organic.

Also, save seeds from the plants that you grow. You can trade them with others!

[MaggieMD]

Thank you both, and thanks for the picture. I did open the packet and they are clearly cucumber seeds, though some are treated with a blue-green chemical (no Opabinia, I won't use them, I'm trying to stay as organic as I can in the garden). I sent an email to Gurneys customer service and they did not respond to the query, but they sent me an email saying they are shipping me a packet of Classy Hybrid cucumber seeds, so maybe they figured it was the wrong packet. If I get the same thing, I'm going to order from a different company. Thanks for all your help.

[Gnome]

MaggieMD,

I did open the packet and they are clearly cucumber seeds

Out of curiosity I did a little research trying to determine if there is any confusion or controversy in the binomial system of naming species that would account for the discrepancy. I found nothing that explains this.

Norm

[MaggieMD]

Me either~! I did some web searches too. But I found it odd that I heard amaranth was a trap crop for cucumber beetles, and there it was on the pack of cucumber seeds! What an odd coincidence. I guess when I get the next packet we will see what's inside...

[MaggieMD]

Well surprise, surprise (not really) -- to folow up, the second pack of Gurney's Classy Hybrid cucumber seeds looks just like the first one, with the same label, the same blue colored cucumber seeds, the same notation about the seeds being treated with the same chemicals. So it's not a mislabelling fluke. Oh well, went to heirloomseeds.com and got a different variety. Now THOSE look normal.

[opabinia51]

BRAVO! Enjoy your cukes and be sure to tell us how everything goes.