mini cucumbers (for Grace)

 

 

sharing this for grace after reading about her bread and butter pickles.

 

I've been growing mini cucumbers indoors, for the first time this year.  two little plants no bigger than knee height arrived as a gift from one of the ladies my partner works for.  that was around the end of may.  I repotted them into about 7 inch pots and within two or three days they  had shot up and started to flower, was amazed at how quickly they grow.

these little ones in the first two photographs are tiny, no bigger than my little finger.

 

I gave them some bamboo support to grow up and when they reached just over five feet nipped the tops out and then nipped out the ends of the side shoots to encourage more bushing . .  apparently they produce more fruit this way.  they've given us two to four mini cucumbers a day . . .  they taste amazing, so sweet.  the image below is one at full growth. they are around the size of a large fat finger . . .  slightly bigger.  I left one or two to grow a little bigger but when I bit into one of those they were really blown and mushy inside . .  not nice at all.

 

the plants are about ten week old now and struggling.  they usually keep going until September, October i'm told.  the fruits started to look paler, I thought maybe it was due to them being root bound now in the pots . .  so started giving them a little seaweed feed.  no improvement and then noticed mass stickiness on the floor around the plant . .   and realised they've become infested with whitefly . .  they are viscious . .  masses of them . .  taking all the goodness from the plants.  the lower leaves were covered in eggs underneath.  I removed those and tried a natural organic spray but they're not improving.  its quite sad to see them struggling, but they've had a good lifespan and produced loads of cucumbers during the last 10 weeks.  great in salads and just to munch on.  so easy growing until the whitefly infestation . .  I just don't know how to deal with them.  I don't like chemical sprays, but apparently they are gaining immunities against those anyway.  I tried removing them by hand at first like I do with greenfly but they are cloudy little beasts :)  the plants are still producing the odd cucumber . .  if I get enough for a jar full i'll try your pickle, grace . . .  its sounds delicious. otherwise . . .  next year. 

*grace . .  you asked if you could grow them. i'm not sure what temperatures they can stand, its pretty hot in the little wood and glass lean-to on the back of our place . .  like a greenhouse. it only gets full sun in the morning but theres lots of light all day long.  they don't take up much room.