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Introduction to Cucumbers

Gardening Guide: The Cucumber Grower’s Guide

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Introduction to Cucumbers

Get a brief introduction to our Cucumber Collection, where you’ll learn some history about cucumbers and get a helpful overview about growing your own cucumbers.

By Norann Oleson

Cucumber on vine

Cucumber on vine

You’ve heard the expression “cool as a cucumber”? Well it’s absolutely true! Cucumbers have been used for their cooling and refreshing properties for thousands of years. Not only do many international cuisines incorporate the cucumber in their repertoire, but people have eaten and applied cucumbers to their skin to literally cool down. The high water content—96%—of cucumbers is what makes them cool and refreshing. The cucumber’s mild flavor and low calories makes them perfect for adding fiber and crunch to all kinds of dishes without busting your calorie budget. In fact, sliced cukes make a great snack all by themselves, or with a little salt, pepper, and a bit of dressing.

You may be surprised to learn that cucumbers—botanically speaking—are fruits. Cucumber (Cucumis sativus) is a widely-cultivated creeping vine plant, related to watermelons, pumpkin, and zucchini. But, for cooking purposes, cucumbers are usually treated as vegetables. Cucumbers have much less sugar than typical fruits, which is another reason why some people view them as vegetables.

There are scientific reasons for determining whether produce is a fruit or a vegetable, of course. According to the Journal of Food Composition and Analysis, a ‘fruit’ is “the seed-bearing product that grows from the ovary of a flowering plant.” In other words, a fruit is the plant’s way of spreading its seeds. With this definition in mind, cucumbers are classified as fruit because they contain tiny seeds in the middle and grow from the flower of the cucumber plant.

A ‘vegetable,’ in botanical terms, is more of a general term encompassing all other edible aspects of the plant, the roots, stems, and leaves.

There are about 100 varieties of cucumbers, but this collection focuses on six popular varieties that will give you some diversity in your harvest and an array of cucumbers to use in recipes. All cucumbers fall into these scientific hierarchy classifications:

  • Kingdom: Plantae (plants)
  • Subkingdom: Tracheobionta (vascular plants)
  • Superdivision: Spermatophyta (seed plants)
  • Order: Violales (flowering plants)
  • Family: Cucurbitaceae (cucumber family)
  • Genus: Cucumis (melon)
  • Species: Cucumis sativus (garden cucumber)

A Brief History of Cucumbers

A pile of fresh cucumbers

A pile of fresh cucumbers

Did you know the cucumber is believed to be native to India and has a 3,000-year cultivation history? Cucumbers spread from South Asia to Greece and Italy, and later to China. Cucumbers are mentioned in the Bible (Numbers 11:1) as being available in Egypt, and the ancient Mesopotamian epic poem Gilgamesh describes people eating cucumbers.

Charlemagne, Pliny the Elder, and the Roman Emperor Tiberius had a fondness for cucumbers. In fact, Tiberius had cucumber on his table every day, summer and winter. The plants would be wheeled out in carts to sit in the sun daily, then taken in to keep them warm, stored under frames or in cucumber houses glazed with oiled cloth known as “specularia.” In more recent history, Ulysses S. Grant was known to make a meal of cucumber slices and coffee.

Through Christopher Columbus, the Spaniards introduced cucumbers to the New World on a stop in Haiti in 1494. Nearly 40 years later, French explorer Jacques Cartier found cucumbers in what is now Montreal.

Today, the cucumber is grown all over the world and is the second-most popular backyard garden crop in the United States, after the tomato. But there are no hard feelings between these two fruits we treat as vegetables. Tomatoes and cucumbers complement each other well in soups and salads, coexisting harmoniously and deliciously.

Do you know some cucumber history? Please tell us about it!

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

  • Curator’s Corner
  • Introduction
  • Feature Articles

  • Types of Cucumber Plants
  • Growing Cucumbers from Seeds or Seedlings
  • Where to Plant Your Cucumbers
  • Soil and Sun Requirements for Growing Cucumbers
  • Fertilizing Your Cucumber Plants
  • Watering Your Cucumber Plants
  • Weeding Your Cucumber Garden
  • Avoiding Cross-Pollination of Seedless Cucumbers
  • How to Spot, Treat, and Prevent Cucumber Diseases
  • What to Do About Pests that Can Harm Your Cucumber Plants
  • How to Identify, Treat, and Prevent Blossom-End Rot
  • Essential Tools and Equipment for Growing and Enjoying Cucumbers
  • Plant Profiles

  • Lemon Cucumbers
  • Double Yield Cucumbers
  • Straight Eight Cucumbers
  • Ashley Cucumbers
  • Muncher Cucumbers
  • English Cucumbers
  • Recipes

  • Tzatziki Cucumber Recipe
  • Traditional Greek Cucumber Salad
  • Cucumber Gazpacho
  • Shrimp and Cucumber Rounds
  • Easy Asian Cucumber Salad
  • Quick Pickled Cucumbers (Refrigerator Pickles)
  • Cucumber Martinis
  • Additional Articles

  • Nutrition Facts about Cucumbers
  • Home Remedies & Health Benefits of Cucumbers
  • Resources about Cucumbers
  • Cucumber Glossary
  • Related Articles

  • How to Make Pickles from Garden Cucumbers Without Canning
  • 9 Cucumber Companion Plants You Want In Your Garden (+ 1 to Avoid)
  • The Cucumber Grower’s Guide—All You Need to Know About Growing, Harvesting, Cooking, and Eating the Garden’s Coolest Crop

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