Post by tucsontomato on Mar 4, 2011 18:29:48 GMT -5
Alright-
I wanted to start this discussion to ask a basic question: What are some of your favorite cucumber varieties?
Since I started, I’ll discuss mine. This is an expanded explanation of each variety, from my post on a veg variety site: vegvariety.cce.cornell.edu.
Soyo Long: Suyo has a very vigorous appearance with thick stems and large leaves. The plant tends to grow up more than out. The fruit of the Suyo cucumber is superior in taste to any other cucumber I have had. The plant growth is pretty much vertical, with very minimal branching. The plant grows very well in the heat, but Suyo is very susceptible to bacteria rots, so you have to keep the water away from the bottom of the stem. Also, if an aphid population comes in it can, over time, get cucumber mosaic virus. In all other respects the plant is pretty disease resistant and vigorous. It produces very well in the heat and flourishes so much more than other varieties of cucumbers I have had in the past. Many other varieties either wilt, get pests, diseases or are stunted in their growth by the heat in this area. These cucumbers are delicious. I will definitely grow this variety from now on!
Yamato: The Yamato cucumber is not as vigorous looking as the Suyo but it can really do well in the long run. Once it gets 18"+ it starts branching out and taking over. It does not set fruit especially fast but it sets much more fruit than the Suyo does and it is a much better bet in the long-term in a hot climate. I would not want to strain this variety with too much fruit when temps are over 105 degrees but this variety does tend to self-regulate by not forming the flower petals on the female flowers when the plant is under stress. This may sound like a bad characteristic but, in my opinion, it is better to keep the plant and get a couple fruit than lose the plant and fruit due to the plant setting too much fruit during times when the plant is under intense stress. The top 1/3 of the fruit tends to be bitter but this can be elevated by cutting the ends and rubbing them in a circular motion against the ends they were cut on until the cut sides foam a little. If, after waiting ½ hour after doing this the top 1/3 of the fruit is still a bit bitter you can peel the skin off. If that doesn’t work you can always slice it thin and soak it in salt water. The salt will replace the bitter taste through some form of osmosis. If you live in an area where heat is the problem I would definitely recommend the Yamato cucumber even over the Suyo Long. It can take the heat incredibly well.
Painted Serpent: I prefer this variety over English varieties due to its sweet taste and smooth texture. It is an incredibly good cucumber. Another fun feature is the slight fuzz on the fruit. The only concern with this cultivar is the number of days until the first fruit sets. Fruit set took me around 75-80 days and I would not expect much sooner, so one may want to plant a faster variety to start with and cut back the initial variety when the painted serpent start setting fruit. Once the initial fruit set, following female flowers arrived in waves and fruit set occurred quickly-total fruit output will likely be the same as any other variety. As other Armenian varieties, the vine can really take the heat (Tucson, AZ). This tends to be a trap crop for both cabbage loopers and cucumber beetles when compared to other melons, cucumbers, and squash. On the plus side my experience with this variety is that, unlike the light green Armenian variety, this variety is very tolerant of powdery mildew.
Armenian: This variety is the only kind of cucumber that many in the hot southwest will grow. Being from the melon family, it is a very heat loving plant. The taste and water content is just like a cucumber but the texture is more like a carrot. I found that thickness is more of a concern with this variety than length. A very thick short cucumber won't taste as good as a long thin one- the key is to pick them when the diameter of the fruit is not too thick and they will be good for eating. This variety grows very quickly (Often seed to fruit set in 60 days) and is prolific but tends to attract aphids more than other cucumber varieties and may be susceptible to some diseases that other watermelon varieties do not encounter. It is very susceptible to PM, so don’t plant anything that could be affected by PM near it.
First Picture should be Soyo Long.
I wanted to start this discussion to ask a basic question: What are some of your favorite cucumber varieties?
Since I started, I’ll discuss mine. This is an expanded explanation of each variety, from my post on a veg variety site: vegvariety.cce.cornell.edu.
Soyo Long: Suyo has a very vigorous appearance with thick stems and large leaves. The plant tends to grow up more than out. The fruit of the Suyo cucumber is superior in taste to any other cucumber I have had. The plant growth is pretty much vertical, with very minimal branching. The plant grows very well in the heat, but Suyo is very susceptible to bacteria rots, so you have to keep the water away from the bottom of the stem. Also, if an aphid population comes in it can, over time, get cucumber mosaic virus. In all other respects the plant is pretty disease resistant and vigorous. It produces very well in the heat and flourishes so much more than other varieties of cucumbers I have had in the past. Many other varieties either wilt, get pests, diseases or are stunted in their growth by the heat in this area. These cucumbers are delicious. I will definitely grow this variety from now on!
Yamato: The Yamato cucumber is not as vigorous looking as the Suyo but it can really do well in the long run. Once it gets 18"+ it starts branching out and taking over. It does not set fruit especially fast but it sets much more fruit than the Suyo does and it is a much better bet in the long-term in a hot climate. I would not want to strain this variety with too much fruit when temps are over 105 degrees but this variety does tend to self-regulate by not forming the flower petals on the female flowers when the plant is under stress. This may sound like a bad characteristic but, in my opinion, it is better to keep the plant and get a couple fruit than lose the plant and fruit due to the plant setting too much fruit during times when the plant is under intense stress. The top 1/3 of the fruit tends to be bitter but this can be elevated by cutting the ends and rubbing them in a circular motion against the ends they were cut on until the cut sides foam a little. If, after waiting ½ hour after doing this the top 1/3 of the fruit is still a bit bitter you can peel the skin off. If that doesn’t work you can always slice it thin and soak it in salt water. The salt will replace the bitter taste through some form of osmosis. If you live in an area where heat is the problem I would definitely recommend the Yamato cucumber even over the Suyo Long. It can take the heat incredibly well.
Painted Serpent: I prefer this variety over English varieties due to its sweet taste and smooth texture. It is an incredibly good cucumber. Another fun feature is the slight fuzz on the fruit. The only concern with this cultivar is the number of days until the first fruit sets. Fruit set took me around 75-80 days and I would not expect much sooner, so one may want to plant a faster variety to start with and cut back the initial variety when the painted serpent start setting fruit. Once the initial fruit set, following female flowers arrived in waves and fruit set occurred quickly-total fruit output will likely be the same as any other variety. As other Armenian varieties, the vine can really take the heat (Tucson, AZ). This tends to be a trap crop for both cabbage loopers and cucumber beetles when compared to other melons, cucumbers, and squash. On the plus side my experience with this variety is that, unlike the light green Armenian variety, this variety is very tolerant of powdery mildew.
Armenian: This variety is the only kind of cucumber that many in the hot southwest will grow. Being from the melon family, it is a very heat loving plant. The taste and water content is just like a cucumber but the texture is more like a carrot. I found that thickness is more of a concern with this variety than length. A very thick short cucumber won't taste as good as a long thin one- the key is to pick them when the diameter of the fruit is not too thick and they will be good for eating. This variety grows very quickly (Often seed to fruit set in 60 days) and is prolific but tends to attract aphids more than other cucumber varieties and may be susceptible to some diseases that other watermelon varieties do not encounter. It is very susceptible to PM, so don’t plant anything that could be affected by PM near it.
First Picture should be Soyo Long.
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