6 October 2012, by gj
Recently we decided to save more of our seeds than we had in previous years, including one of our favorites- the heirloom Lemon Cucumber.
Cut the cuke, spread the seeds on a ceramic plate, walk away…
Right?
separating the good from the bad
Um, no. The next morning most of the seeds were stuck fast to the plates.
Rut Roh.
So we turned to the (somewhat) trusty internet and learned that cuke seeds should be treated the same as tomato seeds for saving.
Just in time, we were able to coax all the seeds into a jar and cover in water.
We loosely capped the jar and allowed for air flow over the course of the next week.
fermenting cucumber seeds
Sure enough most of the seeds fell to the bottom as the gelatinous (and sticky) substance that held them together fermented away. These are the usable seeds.
After removing the bad/floating seeds and draining the water off, the seeds were allowed to dry until crisp.
air dry
Of course, not wanting to lose one more seed than necessary, we returned the ‘floaters’ to the jar just in case.
second chances
We were also told to use this method for cucumbers’ relatives, the melons and squashes (not watermelon).
We’ll let you know.
Don’t just take our word for it.
How to Save Tomato Seeds
Our seeds, soon for sale here.
Categories: all about seeds, cucumbers, how to grow
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12 August 2011, by gj
a lemon cuke in its natural habitat
Cucumbers are relatives of melons, and are an easy to grow veggie for the home gardener.
Maybe too easy.
by any other name
There are many varieties to choose from.
This year I planted mini-whites, lemon, Japanese burpless and a basic slicing cuke.
here they come
The reason I say they may be too easy to grow is that there aren’t a whole lot of ways to use them.
children guessed, but only a few; and down they forgot, as up they grew
But back to growing, just plant the seeds after danger of frost when the soil temperatures are warm (70 F or better) and let ‘em rip.
I prefer to trellis mine, up a structure or up strings; but you don’t have to. It does save space and helps prevent them from grabbing onto other veggies.
there's a bug in my cuke flower
Most cucumbers need bugs to pollinate them.
If you don’t get a lot of cukes, this may be why.
Some varieties are ‘parthenocarpic’ and can do without pollinators, you may want to try one of those.
aww... how sweet
This year I got smart and planted a lot of flowers around my veggie garden- I saw more bees than I’ve seen in years.
Woohoo!
and another
Once your cucumbers start producing they kind of go mad- pick often and they’ll keep on coming.
Herein lies the down side of cucumbers- what to do with them?
burp not
Gazapacho soup, pickles and salads are the most obvious-here’s 2 of our recipes.
I also added some to a berry juice I made, and have tossed a few in quesadillas when SaveTheWorld wasn’t looking.
“Mom- did you put cucumbers in this?”
Geez, she’s just like her Dad, tastes everything.
“I did, but I counteracted it with a little truffle oil” -in reality, I was hoping the oil would mask the taste of the cucumber.
I love them, she doesn’t.
A moment while she considers…
“I like it. I’m surprised, because I don’t like cucumbers; or at least, I didn’t.”
Score.
the poem reference (e.e. cummings is one of my favorties.)
Categories: cucumbers, how to grow
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