(Backyard Gardener - Photo Illustration - MetroCreativeConnection)

Hello Mid-Ohio Valley Farmers and Gardeners. Home food preservation is expected to be very popular this year as more people are turning to gardening. Media outlets are reporting up to 300% increases in vegetable seed sales this spring. Everyone enjoys tomato juice, frozen corn, and canned green beans from the garden. However, do not forget about the pickles. Pickling vegetables is a tried and true method of preserving the harvest from the garden. Cucumbers have always been a favorite for pickling as well as fresh eating in salads and other recipes.

Pickling is preserving a food with acid (typically vinegar) and salt. The key to safe pickling is making sure that the acid is high enough to kill any microorganism that can lead to spoilage and illness. There are four types of pickles: fermented or brined, quick pack, fruit, and relishes.

Be safe when preserving food at home. Follow researched and tested recipes and processing methods to make sure the job is done correctly and safely. The National Center for Home Food Preservation nchfp.uga.edu/ is the best source for current research-based recommendations for most methods of home food preservation. This is through the University of Georgia. Many other University Extension Service fact sheets are available online for preserving numerous vegetables and fruits from pickles to jams to tomato juice.

No matter if you plant slicer cucumbers for salads or pickling varieties (everybody loves grandma’s homemade pickles), now is a great time to plant cucumbers. These plants are sub-tropical and love warm weather. Cucumbers (Cucumis sativus) are a favorite here in the Mid-Ohio Valley. Cucumbers are easy to grow if you give them good soil, full sun and plenty of moisture.

Cucumbers are a member of the Cucurbitaceae family and are related to squash, melons, and pumpkins. These vine crops nicknamed cucurbits all thrive in warm weather. In addition, long taproots and branching surface roots enable cucumber plants to access soil moisture even in dry weather.

Cucumbers are heavy nitrogen feeders and require fertile soil. They also need plenty of water so the soil moisture should be constantly monitored. They may develop a bitter taste in dry sites or a delay in harvest. Keep in mind cucumbers are pollinated at different times, so multiple hand-harvests over the field are necessary, usually every other day.

Some varieties form long vines that may spread or be trellised; others are bush types that fit more easily into a small garden. Cucumber fruits are produced only when insects carry pollen to the female flower. They are monoecious, meaning the male and female flowers on the same plant are separate. Honeybees (and other native pollinators) are essential for pollinating cucumbers. Be cautious of using insecticides, and only apply in late afternoon to minimize effects on bees. Seedless cucumbers are parthenocarpic and do not require pollination for production.

Some suggested varieties for Mid-Ohio Valley gardens are Sweet Slice Burpless, Straight 8, Poinsett, Dasher II and Marketmore 80 for slicing cucumbers. Good pickling varieties are Boston Pickling, National Pickling and Regal. Bushmaster and Spacemaster are good for container gardening.

You can plant transplants, but I still recommend direct seeding cucumbers. Sow seeds about 1/2 inch deep. For vining types that will be allowed to spread out in the garden, seeds should be sown two inches apart. Allow about two or three feet of space between rows. After emergence, thin seedlings to stand 8 to 12 inches apart.

The vines may also be trained to climb a three- to four-foot trellis, Cucumber plants will not climb the trellises satisfactorily by themselves. Training the main stem is required until it reaches and extends over the top wire. About three or four trips over the planting are required to complete the vine training. Trellising cucumbers also allows more air circulation to minimize infection by fungal diseases such as downy mildew.

Cucumbers should be ready for harvest in about 50 to 70 days depending on the variety. Pick as frequently as necessary to avoid oversized fruit. The more you pick, the more the vines will produce. Harvest when cucumbers are about two inches long up to any size before they begin to turn yellow.

There are several insect pests you may encounter on your cucumbers. Squash vine borers attack and bore into the vines killing the plant. Squash bugs can feed on plant sap and injure young plants. Cucumber beetles can damage plants by eating leaves as well as stems and fruit. A common problem is misshapen fruit, often due to low fertility or poor pollination. Contact me with questions at the WVU Extension Office at 304 424 1960 or at jj.barrett@mail.wvu.edu. Good Luck and Happy Gardening!

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Question of the Week: My rhubarb plant’s production has declined. What can I do?

It sounds like your rhubarb may be stressed. Midway through the summer, fully mature rhubarb plants form flowering stalks. I would remove the stalks by cutting them near the base. This will focus the plants energy back into the root system rather than producing seed. Next year plants should quality, edible stalks. Rhubarb loves organic matter so compost may help as well.

Typically, plants are stressed by aging, poor nutrition, and drought and will flower heavily. To keep plants healthy and vigorous, dig, split and replant every 4-5 years. Harvest is usually about eight weeks. Do not harvest more than half the stalks from each plant and only harvest up to mid-July. Late harvest can weaken plants and reduce next year’s yield.