Pickling Cucumber Plant
By webeishere
@webeishere (36313)
United States
August 27, 2008 11:38am CST
This is a photo of one of my pixckling cucumber plants. This is alongside my garage right out my back door. There is a difference to these plants as opssoed to regular cucumber plants. These cucumbers are grown specifically for making pickles. They grow smaller and fatter than regualr cukes do. These contain less water as regualr cukes as well. Did you know the differnce between the cucmbers and pickling cucumbers before now? Have you ever grown pickling cucumbers?
HAPPY POSTINGS FROM GRANDPA BOB!!~
3 people like this
17 responses
@tyc415 (5706)
• United States
27 Aug 08
Yes, cucumbers for pickling have those little bumps all over them too. There are a lot of yellow blooms on that plant and is that some red tomatoes I see on the plants on the ground or something else, maybe I am just seeing things. I have me a jar of bread and butter pickles in the fridge right now and I bet mine are nowhere near as good as yours, mine are store bought.
2 people like this
@webeishere (36313)
• United States
27 Aug 08
yes lots of future pickles there in the photo. And that is my Grape tomato plant nearby. Here is a close up of one of the huge leaves of the pickle plant. I canned 4 quarts of bread and butters this past weekend. I added a little too much salt though but they are still good.
HAPPY POSTINGS FROM GRANDPA BOB!!~
@loved1 (5328)
• United States
27 Aug 08
I had no idea there were special cucumbers that you could grow just for making pickles! I have never liked home canned pickles but this year I had an abundance of cucumbers given to me. I made a really great cuke relish and canned it for this winter. What do you do with all of your cucumbers? Do you pickle all of them?
2 people like this
@webeishere (36313)
• United States
27 Aug 08
My cucumbers are eaten in salads etc. the pickling cucumbers have been canned a few times this year. I have many more pickles left on the plants to can more in a weeks time or so. The pickling cucumbers do not taste all that great eaten right from the vine. they all get canned.
HAPPY POSTINGS FROM GRANDPA BOB !!~
@creematee (2810)
• United States
27 Aug 08
Hi Bob!
Well, it's looking good. My cukes just aren't growing that well this summer. At least not as prolific producers that they were last year.
If you have any extra... can you send some my way??? I'm still waiting for enough to make at least ONE batch of pickles!! :)
1 person likes this
@webeishere (36313)
• United States
27 Aug 08
i have a fridge full of canned pickles I made actually.
Come out and get some. HAHAHA!!
HAPPY POSTINGS FROM GRANDPA BOB !!~
@crazy_ol_lady (1014)
• United States
27 Aug 08
Hi Grandpa,
Are you planning on making pickles this year? Currently I have a batch of sweet pickles in the process of making. I don't grow the pickles, I buy them at the farmer's market and then pickle them. Living in town, my lot is small. I would need more room for the vines if I were to grow vining plants. Good luck with your crop of pickles, and happy pickling. LOL
Have a nice day..
@webeishere (36313)
• United States
27 Aug 08
As far as pickling goes, read some of my other discussions.
Pickling cukes, as you see in the attatched photo, climb so you need only a small space to grow them. They would grow in a pot on a patio as well. try it next year in a semi large pot.
HAPPY POSTINGS FROM GRANDPA BOB !!~
@webeishere (36313)
• United States
28 Aug 08
Are you talking about regular cucumbers? Or pickling cucumbers now?
HAPPY POSTINGS FROM GRANDPA BOB !!~
@tamarafireheart (15384)
•
27 Aug 08
Hi GRANDPA BOB,
I do love pickled cucumber but I have never grown them myself. I had to buy them at a supermarket, you are very clever.
Tamara
1 person likes this
@webeishere (36313)
• United States
27 Aug 08
This is not a cucumber plant. It is a "pickling cucumber" plant. the fruit is specifically for pickling. They do not look like the regular cukes nor do they taste the same. they are growen for making pickles. theres a big difference in taste as well as texture and appearance of these and regular cucumbers.
HAPPY POSTINGS FROM GRANDPA BOB !!~
@lovespecialangel (3632)
• United States
31 Aug 08
Actually, I didn't know the difference before now. I've never grown them before and my regular cukes didn't turn out this year. I am hoping next year will be better.
@sweetdesign (5142)
• United States
28 Aug 08
I only knew the difference cause I grew up on a farm and around my grandmother. My grandparents had a huge garden and so did we. We pickled a lot of things and grew pickling cucumbers for that purpose also. If I had the land I would go back to living pretty much the way my grandparents did and live off the land (of course I would still keep my tech toys and have to have my pc). I would love to be able to be more self reliant.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (169406)
• United States
27 Aug 08
I think I have always grown the eating kind, but that did not stop me from making pickles of them. I am sure they would have been better quality, though, if they had been pickling cucumbers. I also grew a variety called burpless cucumber. The only kind hubby let me leave the skins on. It was more tender. They were thin and about two feet long.
1 person likes this
@byfaithonly (10698)
• United States
28 Aug 08
I will admit, gardener that I am, I did NOT know there was a difference between pickling cucumbers and regular cucumbers until a prior conversation with you. Goes to prove your never too old to learn new things.
@ElicBxn (64169)
• United States
2 Sep 08
I didn't know that pickles were different than "eating" cukes. I've guessed from what you've been telling us there must be.
I do think it's different that you do the pickling and stuff, the only people I've ever heard of doing it were women.
you want me to send you my address to ship some of those pickles down here?
@Feona1962 (7526)
• United States
30 Aug 08
I didn't know that there were special cucumbers and all that...All I knew was that my grama made pickles every year and they were the best...we used to sit and wait for the lids to pop.. Homegrown is the best..Happy pickling..
@checapricorn (16060)
• United States
27 Aug 08
[i]ohhh...new information for me here! really? I was thinking it's all the same! SO, maybe what I got here Grandpa B is not good for pickling! ANyway, I love the idea of providing them some brace instead of having it laid in the ground!
I will copy that next time! LOL![/i]
@terri0824 (5203)
• United States
30 Aug 08
I've never really given it much thought, but it does make sense that there would be different types of plants of cukes for the different types of uses they have. I always just thought that the cukes were picked earlier for the ones that are pickled!
