Guv's Gardens
Photo: H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Sun
- Full sun.
- Soil
- Warm, rich and well-drained.
- Soil pH
- About 6.0-7.0.
- Water
- Regular, consistent moisture.
- Hardiness
- Frost-tender; all Australian climate zones.
- Height and spread
- Vines about 1.8-3 m when trellised (bush types smaller).
Guv's tipTrain cucumbers on a trellis or support, keep the moisture consistent, and pick them young and often. Simple as that.
Through the year
Timings are for temperate Australia. Tropical and arid gardens follow different seasons.
When to plant
Temperate and cool areas: spring after frost (Tasmania Oct-Jan). Subtropics: from mid-winter. Tropics: late summer to early spring (avoid the wet season).
Harvest or flowering
7-12 weeks from planting; pick young and often.
Pruning
Train on a trellis or support.
Making more plants
Seed.
Watch out for
Whitefly
Look for: Tiny white flying insects under leaves; sticky honeydew; leaf yellowing.
What to do: Yellow sticky traps, insecticidal soap or a registered pyrethrum spray applied to leaf undersides.
Powdery mildew
Fungal (powdery mildew fungi).Look for: White powdery spots or coating on leaves and stems.
What to do: Give good airflow and sun, water at soil level, remove badly affected leaves, and use a registered fungicide (e.g. sulfur) if needed.
Always read and follow the label on any treatment, and check it is approved for use where you live.
Safety and spread
Pets and people: Non-toxic to dogs, cats and horses (ASPCA); generally safe for dogs.
Weed risk: Not listed as a weed on Weeds Australia or the Queensland restricted invasive plant list.
Growing somewhere else? See this plant for the UK and the USA.
The Plant Doctor and the Guv's book
Printable pest and disease charts with real photographs, and all 50 Australia plants in one book.
