Salt and Pepper Cucumber

For some reason, I have had a pretty good track record with easy-growing tasty white cucumbers. One of the very first cucumbers I grew in Tucson was a white cucumber – I believe it was White Wonder. I started it very early in the season in a pot set right against the front of my house because of the radiant heat that would come off the brick. It didn’t produce a whole lot (probably because it was in a container) but it did taste good.

The Salt and Pepper Cucumber

June 26th, 2018

July 2nd

July 11th

July 18th

July 28th

August 8th

Salt and Pepper was one of the very first cucumbers to grow for me. As the soil was far from good, I can honestly say that this variety does well in poor soils. It also matured more quickly than a lot of the other cucumbers.

August 8th

I would have to say that it is not the kind of cucumber you could expect to last through the whole season, so it would be wise to do succession plantings with this variety. This does not mean that the plants succeed – though hopefully they will. Rather, succession plantings are when we plant an initial crop earlier than plant another one the next month, then another one the following month. In this way, we can enjoy a season full of cucumbers - or any other fast-growing vegetable that matures quickly and finish up earlier.

This cucumber starts out white, with distinct black colored spines. As the fruit matures, its skin becomes more of a creamy yellow. The taste of this variety is a good, with a very slight tangy aftertaste. Nothing too special, but definitely worth growing if you are going to grow regular cucumbers – especially at the beginning of the season.



 

August 13th

Growing Marketmore 76

My decision to grow out Marketmore 76 came from my desire to try out a classic. Other than eating cucumbers like this from the grocery store, I have never grown a “regular” grocery store type cucumber.

June 20th, 2018.

June 26th

July 2nd

July 11th

July 18th

July 28th

August 8th

This cucumber variety grew fine. It matured at a regular pace and had no problems. I enjoyed seeing all of the fruit. The first couple of cucumbers did not fill out properly, but after a while they did just fine. Average shape of this cucumber is the normal straight cucumber shape. Most of the cucumbers filled out without a problem.

August 23rd

August 30th

 

And here it goes with taste: The taste was a little better than a market cucumber. I would have to say it was pretty good – especially when it is homegrown. It is amazing how, just by growing your own cucumbers at home – you can get a cucumber that tastes much better than what you would purchase in the store.

September 8th

September 29th

None of mine turned out bitter, but it had the usual sappy flavor exhibited in most regular cucumbers that makes it difficult to have more than one. My overall take on this variety: If you want a completely average standard cucumber, this is the one for you.