How to Pick a Cucumber From Your Garden

We’ve been growing cucumbers in our garden and it seemed like they just grew overnight. Today, they were finally big enough for me to pick – well, one was.

I let it grow to the size of an average cucumber you’d see in the grocery store. I was waiting for the tiny spikes on the outside of the cucumber to go away, but found that washing it with a wash cloth or green scrub pad took the spikes right off.

You don’t want the cucumber to get too big, otherwise you’ll end up with mostly seeds and pulp. So pick them when they are about 8 inches longer – probably no longer than 10 inches.

The cucumber in our garden

Go to the vine and hold on to the cucumber while squeezing the stem (attached to the cucumber) until the cucumber breaks free. This way you are not damaging the vine and are creating a new start for another cucumber.

Wash your cucumber off (removing the little spikes) and serve up with salad or eat on the side!

**INTERESTING FACT: Cucumbers are both a fruit and a vegetable. Cucumbers are part of the gourd family (like squashes) and in the same genus as muskmelons (a fruit).**