Cucumber

Cucumber: plant 40 cm (16 in) apart in the row and 75 cm (30 in) between rows, 1 per square. Good neighbours: Dill, Bush beans, Pole beans.

Key facts

Spacing in the row	40 cm (16 in)
Between rows	75 cm (30 in)
In a 30 cm (1 ft) square	1 per square
Sun	Full sun, 6–8 hours a day
Root depth	40 cm (16 in)
Height when grown	150 cm (59 in)
Crop rotation group	Anywhere in the rotation
Support	Climbs: give it a trellis or teepee

Sowing and germination

How it is started	Sown straight into the bed, started in trays
Seeds per hole	2
Plants kept after thinning	1
Seeds per metre of row	5
Sowing depth	2 cm (0.8 in)
Soil temperature	from 16 °C, best 18–35 °C
Days to emerge	3–6 days
Light while germinating	Light makes no difference
Before sowing	nothing needed
When to sow	Indoors 3 weeks before the last frost; outdoors after the last frost; soil at least 18 °C

From seedling to plant

After emergence	20–25 °C; take the cover off as soon as they show
Pricking out	at 1 true leaves
Takes transplanting	Only with care, keep the root ball
Hardening off	5–7 days
Life cycle	Annual
Cold tolerance	Tender, hurt by frost
Soil	Rich, with compost, free draining, pH 6–7
In a pot	30 L, 40 cm (15.7 in)
Watering	Water when the soil is dry two fingers down; at flowering, while fruit sets
Feeding	Hungry; at planting, at flowering, while picking
Support and training	A trellis or net; tie in as it grows, pinch the tips

Harvest and planning

Days to first harvest	50–65 days, from sowing
Ready when	The fruit is the size you want, still young
Harvest window	Picked again and again, 6–10 weeks
Sow again every	21 days
Typical yield	3–8 kg per plant
Botanical family	Cucurbitaceae
Watch out for	Powdery mildew, downy mildew, aphids

Good neighbours

◐ good with a condition · Why, with the sources →

Plan Cucumber in your garden

Open the free planner, drop Cucumber onto a bed and see how many plants fit.

Start Planning Your Garden

Sowing and harvest

Sow indoors	Apr
Sow outdoors	May–Jun
Harvest	Jul–Sep

My dates for this crop

My country Last spring frost where I live

Give the date once and this page, the sowing calendar and the planner all follow it.

Months for a temperate climate: about a month later in the north and a month earlier in the south. Give your own last frost date for exact dates.

What to plant next to Cucumber →

From the same family

Plants of the Cucurbitaceae family share diseases and pests, so they follow each other in the rotation only after a break.

Sources

The values on this page marked as checked come from these sources: spacing, sowing depth, germination, soil, timing and safety notes, each against the source named here.

Cucumbers, Melons and Squash (426-406) — Virginia Cooperative Extension, Virginia Tech for: sowing depth, when to sow, between rows, spacing in the row; checked 2026-10-30
Cucumber in the Garden (2020) — Utah State University Extension for: sowing depth, when to sow, spacing in the row; checked 2026-10-30
Soil Temperature Conditions for Vegetable Seed Germination (GN 154, after J.F. Harrington, UC Davis) — UC Cooperative Extension, UC ANR for: days to emerge, soil temperature; checked 2026-10-30
Growing Cucumbers in the Home Garden (C 1034) — University of Georgia Cooperative Extension for: between rows; checked 2026-10-30
Growing cucumbers in the home garden — Iowa State University Extension for: spacing in the row; checked 2026-10-30
Soil temperature conditions for vegetable seed germination (J.F. Harrington; reviewed 2024) — Oregon State University Extension for: soil temperature; checked 2026-10-30

More in Squash, cucumbers and melons

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