Salads, pickles, beauty aides, the cuc is a summer treat with infinite possibilities. While they are know for their fresh, cooling flavor, Cucumbers are also good for you. Sulfur, silicon, chlorine potassium, sodium, magnesium, and fluorine are bountiful in the cucumber. This vegetable is also reputed to aid with digestion and constipation. The addition of this vine to your kitchen garden offers a fresh taste, cucumbers echo the flavor of summer.
A subtropical plant cucumbers require full sun. They need space to grow their vines but they do not need a lot of space in the bed. Using trellis like structures can help with vine growth. If you are looking to grow container gardens try dwarf cucumbers.
Cucumbers grow best in well drained conditions. Organic compost (such as lama manure) will ensure your soil has proper nutrients to produce strong and healthy plants. This is one of the best ways to improve both soil drainage and balance soil pH.
After the possibility of frost has passed plant cucumber starts or seeds. Cucumbers are easy to start from seed. Plant seeds one to 1 1/2 inches deep. When planting in rows, sow seeds 2 to 3" apart. Water the first day and if there is no rain, every two to three days until they germinate. Seeds should show signs of life within one week.
Aphids, pickle worms, and mites are common pests you may see in your garden and all love the cucumber. Anthracnose, powdery mildew, bacterial wilt, and angular leaf spot are diseases that will kill off your plants as well. The cucumber beetle is one of the biggest and most common foes of this plant, they attack early and spread bacterial wilt. An organic and attractive way to keep your cucumbers happy is by planting fragrant marigolds in the bed.
"Fresh cucumbers taste so much better than store-bought ones and each variety has a unique flavour. The inner temperature of a cucumber can be 20 degrees cooler than the outside air. The cucumber originated in Asia Minor and spread globally. The Romans grew them and the Bible refers to them. In the late 1500's The Plains Indians and Iroquois obtained cucumbers from the Spanish by barter, learning how to grow these alongside the corn, beans and pumpkins they already grew." Care2 contributor, Jeffy H.
Here are some delicious recipes to make the most of your cucumbers once they are grown;
- Rustic Italian Bread Salad
- Greek Summer Salad - Salata Therini
- Sevillian Gazpacho
- Cucumber Dip - Tzajiki
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For More Recipes www.recipes-simpleandsatisfying.com and www.terra-americana.com/recipes
Find it locally:
Meadow View Gardens is a treat. They have a fantastic selection of flowers and vegetables, including cucumbers and marigolds to plant. The staff is incredibly helpful as well as knowledgeable. Throughout Meadow View you will find display gardens to spark your creative side. Sit and have a cup of lemonade in their shaded cafe while you take a minute to peruse their garden journals and make the decisions of exactly which plants you want to bring home. Beware, it is difficult to restrain your self here.
Meadow View is open May and June, 9am to 6pm Daily. At the end of June they have an incredible sale.
120 College Highway
Southwick, Massachusetts 01077-9438
Phone: (413) 569-0814
Photo Credit: Plantcare.com and The Daily Green
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