When to plant cucumbers & how to store them until pickling?

I live in zone 5b (almost 6). I want to grow some Moscow bush cucumbers. I don't remember when I planted these last year (they are heritage seeds), but I'd like to get as many pickles as possible off the plants this year. Our (~90% statistically) frost free date is May 15th. Do I need to wait until then, wait longer, or plant anytime now? By the way, this variety did well for me even with the haphazard care I gave them.



Thanks!!!

This message was edited May 4, 2009 9:55 PM

I think you would get a lot better answers if you post this over in the Canning, Freezing, and Drying forum. I make pickles but I'm not familiar with Moscow so unsure how well they store.

I probably should have split the question up and posted the second part where you mentioned.

I think the first part is best posted here, since it is about planting time. I edited the first post here to delete the part related to canning.

This message was edited May 4, 2009 9:56 PM

Sorry Melissa, obviously I got focused on the storage and pickling part.

I had a great crop last year, but with one of the 'burpless' varities. Even this far south ours didn't start really taking off until we had 80f plus days. It was the one crop that really thrived in 90f weather. That and the zinnias.

I planted some at the start of March, and we have flowers, even a couple of female flowers on ours now. Ma's Cow...huh? I guess they're cultivated in colder climates? I dunno, but I am interested, I always thought cucumber was for really hot places.

I don't have any advice but I do love growing them and would like some advice with pickiling also, so I'll watch this thread.

Good luck and happy plantings.

neworleansdude,
I see you're not a subscriber so can't go to the canning forum. What kind of advice on pickling are you looking for? I also raise the burpless type because they're good for eating and make wonderful pickles.

We've got similar climate here, though I usually grow Marketmore and Straight 8's. Cukes are hard to germinate outdoors in cool soil. After several tries, I learned to start them indoors in Jiffy strips and potting mix. They only need about 2 - 3 weeks of sprouting time before transfering to the garden about second week of June. Be careful though, the sprouts are very tender so be gentle with them.

Maybe pick up a good pickling book at the local library, the Ball Canning Guide is a great book if you can find it.

Al

Nature: what I did last year was harvest the cucumbers, slice them and put them in a pickle jar I bought from a store. Saved the juice, but it was kinda low so I added some dill (fresh from my garden), white vinegar, pepper, and water. I put too much vinegar in and they didn't turn out all that great.

I think I need to make up my own batch, and previously what I had seen online I thought my combo method was going to work well, but it didn't.

I have a couple of cukes with female flowers now, but we're moving in a month so I don't know if I'm going to try to move them or just leave them for the folks that rent this place after us.

Ug, I have stuff going on right now, but you seem like a nice person and it's good to talk to someone from the South since plants act differently here...so this is my response.

Peace out.

Hi again neworleansdude,
You just might get a few cukes out of those plants before you move. You know how fast they grow! You're absolutely right about plants behaving differently down here. Hope everything goes smoothly for you and your gf during your move. Sounds like you will have a bigger garden space in your new digs which will be nice for you. Happy gardening :-}

Actually it's going to be a smaller garden space. The folks that own the home now (we're still hoping on closing this Monday or Tuesday, I'm sorta freaking out) did a lot of landscaping. Lots and lots of shrubs, which I know require less time but aren't nearly as pretty to look at as flowers or useful like the herbs and veggies. I want to rip up about 1/4 of it it and sell, or give away, just not sure if that's going to fly with my gal. Right now we have a huge shared back yard in a shot-gun double, and it faces south-east, so, tons of sun. At the new (hopefully) place the back yard is smaller and north-east facing.

There is an absolutely amazing cypress tree in the front, which rocks, I think it's probably 200+ years old to be as big as it is. Problem with it is that it's knees/knobs randomly reach out up to 30 feet away from the trunk. So I think most anything I do in the front yard - even if I dig up some of the shurbs and grass -will either need to be something with shallow roots or consider building a raised bed.

DG rocks, and before this summer is over I'm going to set aside the money to buy a digital cam and the software so I can start sharing some photos. I haven't measured but I'm guessing this cypress has a diameter of 6 to 7 feet. Obviously it's not solid round, there are nooks and crannies a few that look good to tuck a garden gnome into.

We'll see!

I'd be like you neworleansdude--take out some of those shrubs for a garden. Can't eat those shrubs! Have you looked into square foot gardening? It looks like a good idea for those who don't have a lot of space for their garden.
I love cypress trees. I planted one down by our creek. It's amazing how fast they grow. Yours sounds like it has some real character. I'll bet you can make some really unique flowerbeds tucked in and around all those knees.
Also, will you have a porch at the new house? A lot of herbs can be grown in pots. And don't sweat too much over the closing on your house--it's not too bad. Do y'all have a real estate agency to represent you? Can't stress the importance of having someone there who knows all the ins and out of buying a house. Good luck and let us know how everything turns out. Hopefully by next week you'll be moving into your new home :-}

I planted 3 cukes the first week in April in Jiffy 7 pellets; a straight 8, an English garden and an Italian. Once they germinated I put them on the bathroom windowsill. They are all over a foot tall now, getting aggressive and sending out tendrils. One of them tried to grab the wife the other day. They would be outside already, but 8 days of rain and thunder prevented me hardening them off. They are going out this week for sure here in 6a.

ROFL Wulfsden--did you cross them with Kudzu? I've raised Burpee Burpless for years but, on a recommendation from a friend, I'm trying Sugar Crunch this year. Sure hope they're as good as she said they are.