How to Have Success with Cucumbers

There’s nothing like fresh, crispy cucumbers in the summer. I usually find them easy to grow - but many people find them challenging - so here are some tips for success.

I love cucumbers. I like them in salads, I like them pickled, and I even like them cooked (yes there’s a way to do it). I grow them every year and usually get so many that at some point in late summer, I don’t know what to do with them all. I’ve always found them very easy to grow - but last year my cucumbers were pathetic and I only got a third of the yield that I typically get. I spent a good deal of time thinking about what went wrong with those plants - and every year I get questions from viewers and friends asking what went wrong with their cucumbers - so I thought it made sense to write a dedicated article all about how to have success with cucumbers.

These cukes are 3 feet high now in the middle of July, already have flowers, and will be 6 feet high in a few weeks!

Start with Seeds

Garden centers sell cucumber transplants every year, and people buy them hoping for an “instant garden”, and this can happen, but it is also very likely that those transplants will fail. Cucumbers do not like being transplanted. I don’t know if it’s the shock of changing soil temperatures, or damage to the root hairs, or what it is - but they really suffer when they are transplanted, and sometimes they become stunted and grow poorly, or become so weak that they fall victim to some pest or disease and die. In my experience, they do much better when they are started from seeds in the ground. That way they get full sun, real soil, and are fully adapted to the extremes of being outdoors all day long, which helps them become strong, healthy plants.