In Summer 2023 I was living in a place where, aside from two small vegetable beds left by a previous tenant, container gardening was pretty much my only option. Prior to this year, for nearly two decades I’d had a half-acre of land with raised beds to grow my crops in, and for many years I produced a good yield. However, around 2018 or so I started having a horrible gopher and mole problem, and even when I dug up the beds and put in rodent-preventative measures, I still seemed to be losing more and more plants to these animals. Needless to say, when I found myself in my new place in Summer 2023, I was already sort of tinkering with container gardening, but it hadn’t become my primary way of growing crops. I knew now that I had to get really serious about it if I was going to produce anything near what I had in previous years. Yet I was definitely nervous that I wouldn’t come anywhere near what I’d grown on my previous half-acre of land. Boy was I wrong! In this post I want to share my tips for growing cucumbers in containers.
I’m going to start by admitting that I buy vegetable starters at the local nursery in my town. The nursery starts all of the plants by seed right there on location, and so I trust the quality more than if I went to Home Depot, Lowe’s or other retailers. That’s not to say you can’t get quality plants at these types of places, but I just like knowing who has been caring for my plants prior to me bring them home, and I also like supporting local business. My local nursery has been family-owned and many of them even live in the several homes that have been built on the property, and so you definitely feel the family vibe when you walk into the nursery.
One of the main reasons I buy starters rather than plant from seed is because I live in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Northern California, the part of California that has actual winters, and often times we don’t have workable soil until late-April or even May. My growing zone is Zone 8a, so starting seeds outdoors early in the spring isn’t typically an option for me, and since I’ve never had a proper greenhouse and don’t have room indoors to start seeds, buying starters for many of my plants just works best for me. There are some crops that I do start seed, however, and I cover those in other posts. As for my starters, cucumbers are definitely a plant I buy already going, and I stick to just two types. Burpless cucumbers provide a good quality cucumber that we can enjoy in the latter end of summer right off the vine or chopped up in salads and other dishes. The other variety I grow is a pickling cucumber, and these are used for exactly what their name implies…pickling! As I’ve stated in other posts, I grow with the intention to preserve as much as possible for us to live on for the upcoming year, and my kids love pickles! So ensuring that I have plenty of pickling cucumbers is a necessity. In previous years I’ve grown about 4-6 plants of each of these, however, this year I kept it small since I was experimenting with container growing and I didn’t want to waste money if it didn’t work. I have discovered that I can actually grow cucumbers quite well in containers which means in future years I will be able to preserve large amounts.
I purchased two plants of each, so four plants total, in late April with the intention of planting in early May. I often purchase the plants a couple of weeks before I can actually put them in the ground because starters sell out quick at a nursery and I want to ensure I get what I need. Cucumbers are not frost tolerant, and so in those last weeks of April and into early May I cover the cucumbers (along with several other of my plants) to make sure they survive those last cold nights. Typically in my area, Mother’s Day weekend is a safe time to plant, though as I right this post it is nearing late June and I’ve had to go out and cover my plants the last couple of nights. Not all of California is warm and sunny all year!!
Once the time had come to plant, I used a container that was 1ft X 2ft, filled with organic soil and steer manure, mixed together. I placed each of the varieties in the same container, though moving forward I will likely use two different containers, one for each variety. After getting the starters in the ground I placed large tomato cages around the plants. I used two, so one went around the Burpless and one went around the pickling. This was in large part a way to keep my cats from getting in and digging up my plants, but also, cucumbers do quite well when grown vertically and so the tomato cages provide a cat deterrent and the space for the plant to grow. You can also use a trellis, which is what I have done in the past, but I am finding that with the limited size of the containers the tomato cages are getting the job done in this trial and error year of planting. As I write this post (late-June), I currently have very nice growth on my cucumbers, and even have a few flowers going. For the location I live in and the fact that I am attempting to grow this crop in an entirely new way, I feel really good about the progress so far! I will return with an update as the summer progresses and don’t forget to check out the recipes using my cucumbers that I will provide within my “In the Kitchen” section.
What I will do differently next year:
- Buy more plants! I started out small this year because I was trying a new way of growing cucumbers and didn’t want to waste money if it didn’t work. Obviously this means I will have less to preserve than in previous years, but I felt that starting small was the safer bet this year. Moving forward I will definitely grow, particularly of the pickling variety.
- The tomato cages worked great to keep the cats out, and they have provided vertical stability for the plant to grow on, however, moving forward I will definitely prop up a large-sized trellis along the containers for the plants to grow. I want to maximize the yield by using the space properly and I think having a large trellis will allow for this.
- I will only plant two plants in each 1ft X 2ft container. This year I did four in this sized container, and it is working, but to get the most out of my yield I think having them further spaced will be better.
What I will do the same:
- I purchased these starters in late April and planted in early May. I will do this again because I think that getting in the soil earlier has helped the plants get going quicker. In the past I’ve waited until late-May and even early-June in some years, and that was too late. Planting this early does require keeping them covered when it is cold though, so I have to be aware of that.
- I will use the tomato cages early on, but once the plants start going I will transition to a trellis. I can put netting around the containers to keep the cats out.
- The plants are getting early morning sun, mid-day shade, and late-afternoon sun, and this seems to be working for them. I will provide this type of space for them moving forward as well.