Why didn’t my cucumber seeds come up? Sow, then wait, then…nothing. You think something’s wrong with the seed, right? Not usually. Usually it has everything to do with the temperature and when it come time to do its thing.
Knowing plant a little will help prevent you from yanking up rotting seeds in frustration. From this, we know from the lifecycle that weeks of leaf growth precede any fruit production on the vine. While this feels wrong (why wait?), it isn’t. Right now, you are building the plant’s structure before fruit adds any weight. Rushing this process stresses out the plant and stressed-out plants makes either bitter fruit or no fruit at all. Be patient at this stage: Later there will be more weight in your harvest.
How to Grow Cucumbers
Gardeners want their crop faster, and that’s why many start them too soon: they aren’t waiting for soil to heat up. Cucumbers won’t grow in cold soil. In fact, it’s not even safe to put seeds in until the soil is about 65 degrees; otherwise they may rot rather than sprouting at all. Better to wait another couple of weeks then have no bed at all after fungal rot attacks. When the soil warms enough, though, seeds does not delay getting up and growing.
Within a week of sprouting, you’ll notice those first leaves pushing through, and that’s when things get tricky. Those first few leaves is called seed leaves. They act as temporary food sources for the baby plant while its true leaf form. A tiny mistake during this phase like uneven watering can cause stems to split open and fruit to take on strange shapes.
Next, you want some structure as the vine begins it’s stretch. Putting up a trellis early will allow air to move between leaves. Powdery mildew loves damp still air. Keeping the foliage dry is essential to avoiding mildew. Training the vines up help with this. It also allows for cleaner fruit and an easier harvest for your back.
Once the flowers emerge (which can take awhile after the plant is well-rooted), you’ll see both male and female bloom intermingled. Only the females produce fruit. Some varieties mature faster than others. For example, pickling cukes mature quickly (less than 50 days) while long English slicer tend to be slow and may require up to two months before they’re fully grown and long enough for use.
You want to select the appropriate variety for your region. In other words, if you have a short summer, grow the fast ones: the pickling types. If you’ve got a longer, warmer growing season, then wait for the bigger, meatier slicer types. Whether a plant vines or grows in a bush can greatly affect how long it takes to ripen (select the plant that fits your space).
Cucumbers are an exercise in humidity and heat. Water consistently. Make sure ground stays warm. And pick regularly: Overripe cucumbers will tell the plant to cease making more fruit. Picking often (every other day or so) keeps the plant in production mode, and therefore it continue to produce fruit.
Once you get into that rhythm, it’s easy. You do your part, provide the conditions, care for the plants, and the cucumber vine does her part, rewarding you with fruit as she goes. Get it started right and wait till soil warms. Let her go at her pace, and you’ll be in business.