Asian cucumbers...

[Greenthumb18]

Has anyone ever tried growing asian cucumbers? I'm going to give it a try this year, i've read that they are slim, crisp, mild cukes and different from american cukes. They also can get very long.

 

[tinychicken]

We grow Armenian cukes every year. They are light green and very mild, never bitter. They can grow a couple of feet long but are best harvested around 12 inches. My Territorial catalog says they are burpless, but I was never bothered by burps so I can't swear to that!

 

[Rosalind]

Yep, I have Japanese climbing cukes and this year got some Chinese cuke seeds from a friend who gave me some of her Chinese cucumbers last year.

They get sort of spiny and warty, but they are never bitter and not as seedy or watery as American cukes. They make excellent pickles and salads. They hold their shape and crispness better when marinated in dressing. The ones my friend gave me were about 2 feet long. Also, apparently you can grow them in the city with very little sunlight, as she was growing these things in a vacant lot between two tall apartment buildings and they did fine on only about 4-6 hours of direct sun/day.

 

[digitS']

. . . and different from american cukes. . .

They may be different from what we think of as American cukes but they are very similar to what we think of as "English" cukes. You'll find those English cukes in your supermarket.

The English had some special requirements because of their cool, cloudy growing seasons. Many of their warm-season veggies are grown in greenhouses, as I understand it. The Japanese varieties could take good advantage of greenhouse conditions without getting sick from being indoors. Voi l , the "English" cucumber!!

"American slicers" - who doesn't enjoy an American slicer? Well anyway, the Japanese have done well with those, too. Sweeter Yet is an example.

I grew Armenian cukes for the 1st time last year . That was fun. The Chinese have some nice pickling cukes! And, I have grown cute little white cukes from Asia for quite a few years - White Star most recently. Now, I'm probably a long way from what people think of with an Asian cucumber . . .

Tasty Green (aka. Burpless 26) has been around for quite a few years. It's from Sakata and really fits with what most people think of as an Asian cucumber . I got a substitute with a seed order one year - Tasty King. It actually did better in my garden's arid growing conditions but isn't much different from Tasty Green.

These are really, really nice cucumbers and well worth growing.

Steve