The Family Kitchen Gardener (1856)/Cucumber
CUCUMBER.
Cùcumis Satìvus.—Concombre, Fr.—Gurke, Ger.
The Cucumber is a fruit of great antiquity, found wild in all warm countries, and is cultivated to an amazing extent all over the world—a surprising fact, when contrasted with its nourishing qualities, few or none of our culinary vegetables having less nutriment, it being of a cold and watery nature, and to persons of a weak and delicate constitution very indigestive. When dressed with oil, vinegar, and pepper, it is freely used to cool the feelings and sharpen the appetite: hence the common saying, “as cool as a cucumber.” Of the many sorts in cultivation, we select the following, as being dissimilar, and worthy of culture, either for the frame or open air.
Early Short White Prickly.—Fruit from four to six inches long, of a sea-green color, with white spines; forces very well, and is grown extensively for market. It does not get yellow so soon as the Early Short Prickly, which is of the same size, of a dark green color, with black spines.
Long Early Frame.—This is used both for forcing and open air culture. It grows from six to ten inches long, a good bearer and a very excellent variety.
Manchester Prize.—Dark green, with black spines. An English variety; of great excellence either as a fruit or abundant bearer; generally grown in the gardens of the wealthy about Philadelphia, and is often seen at our Exhibitions twenty inches to two feet long.
Kerrison’s Long White Spine, in size and form similar to the former. The spines or prickles are white: a good bearer.
Long Prickly grows about ten inches long; dark-green color, black prickles; a great bearer. This variety, with the two first named, are the most certain for general crops; the other long sorts are equally as crisp, if not more so, but they are not so plentiful bearers, neither do they produce seed in any quantity. If different sorts of Cucumbers are grown contiguous to each other, they are certain to mix, and the seed from them will not produce the genuine variety. There are also white Cucumbers, and white with black spines, but their taste is flatter and more insipid.
Culture in the open air is of the simplest character. Merely dig out a hole, about a foot wide and deep; fill it with rich, sandy soil; raise it above the surface about six inches: the hills should be six feet apart each way. Any time in May, sow a few seeds therein, and the result is certain. If the weather be warm, they will grow in a few days; if the nights are cold, protect them. There is frequently a little bug, which preys upon the tender leaves; if so, soot and wood ashes sprinkled over them, while wet with the dew, will retard the progress of the depredator. As soon as the vines have made three rough leaves, nip the points off to make them branch out. They will fruit sooner by it. Three vines to one hill is quite enough. To have young fruit in February and March is rather a nice operation, but any one who can command a few loads of warm horse-manure, can have them from April to October. That farmers in the country may have the article either for family use or for sale, a few hints may be in place on
Forcing Cucumbers.—The first requisite is to obtain four feet square of warm stable-manure; turn it up into a heap for eight or ten days, to allow the rank vapor to pass off, when it may be placed into any form to suit a sash. The general size is four by six feet, and three or four feet high at the back, sloping to two and a half or three feet at front. Either make or have made a frame of boards, at least fifteen inches deep, three feet wide, and five feet long, or the full size of the sash. Let the dung-bed be a foot all round larger than the frame. Should heavy rain or snow fall, or it be a severe frost, the manure should be protected with a covering of straw. Care, however, should always be taken that the reduction of the heat in the dung is not carried too far, before making up the bed, as, when that is the case, too little heat will afterwards be produced, and the young plants will be of a yellow color instead of a rich green. The bed should be built square up, and regularly beaten down with the fork. When finished, put on the frame and sash; keep it close for a day or two, to draw up the heat; air should then be admitted for a few days, during the day, by tilting up the sash at the back a few inches, to allow the steam to pass off, which it generally does in four or five days or less. Supposing the bed now in order, put in a quantity (three barrow-loads) of light, rich loam: none better than that from the surface of the woods. In two or three days the earth will be sufficiently warm for sowing the seeds. If the plants are to be removed into other frames, sow them in pots; if not to be removed, sow them in a hill made in the centre of the bed, by placing one barrow-full more of earth in it. Sow a few dozen seeds to meet contingencies, or any extra supply, in pots, in case of damping off—which frequently happens in cloudy Winter weather. Cover the sash at night with straw mats, or any similar protection, and surround the bed with litter or boards, to keep the piercing winds from carrying off the heat. The seed should be two or three years old; (it is better than new seed, which goes more to vine than fruit.) It will be up in twenty-four hours, and in two or three days will grow into strong plants. During their growth, admit fresh air every day at the back; give the young plants as much light as possible; when they have attained their third rough leaf, nip the point off the vine, to cause it to branch. If the soil or the plants appear to be dry, give them water in the forenoon, which has been kept in the bed during the previous night, that it may be in a warm state. The plants succeed best when they are transplanted, and plant them deep enough for the earth to reach to their seed-leaves. As the plants grow, roots will protrude from their stems, to which earth may be drawn. The roots will also appear through the hill, to which a farther supply of fresh soil may be added. When the plants have grown and the sun is very warm, they may flag or droop: if so, sprinkle a few straws or a very thin mat on the glass, right over them, about mid-day; but it is best to grow them without this precaution; and it is unnecessary, when they have sufficient moisture, heat, and depth of soil. The requisite temperature is from 65° to 75°, and from 75° to 100° by day. Experience can manage these affairs with sight and feeling, but the untutored require the aid of a thermometer and a stick to poke into the dung-bed, to ascertain the internal heat of the material. When it begins to decline, give it a fresh lining of manure all around, of eighteen inches in thickness, and as high as to cover half of the frame. The vines, if well managed, will bloom within a month from the day of sowing. The male and female flowers are on the same plant, and art may render assistance, by taking the male blossom and putting its centre within the female, which is easily distinguished by having at its base a form of a cucumber, half an inch long. After being impregnated, it will be fit to cut in two weeks. These operations may be begun and gone through any time from Christmas to March. To cultivate cucumbers extensively, all that is requisite is a preparation of manure, frames, and sash. Use the above described bed for growing the seedling plants, transplanting them into larger frames or pits, (see fig. 15,) three plants being sufficient for each sash, and fifty to seventy fruit may be cut from each light. When the author was gardener to the late Henry Pratt, Esq., of Lemon Hill, near this city, he cut Cucumbers in February, and had them for the table regularly till they could be obtained from the open ground.
Cucumbers can also be cultivated under hand-glasses; (see Fig. 13.) Dig out a pit early in April, eighteen inches deep and wide, fill it with warm manure, and cover with six or eight inches of rich light soil, in which sow the seed. Hand-glasses are made of various sizes, but such as are eighteen inches square will be found the most useful. Admit air during sunshine, as directed for frames, and if cold nights prevail, cover them with mats or litter of any kind. Cucumbers for pickling should be sown from the end of June to the 15th of July. Either the Short Prickly or Long Green is suitable for the purpose. There is also a small Cluster Cucumber used by some for bottling or mixing with a finer sort of pickles. Where Cucumbers are grown for family use, it is of great advantage to cover the ground with straw, which will keep the sun from parching the soil in hot, dry weather, and prevent the blossoms and young fruit from being covered with soil during heavy rains.