Outdoor Cucumbers

[Lumpy]

Hello all, As I know longer have a greenhouse I thought about outdoor cucumbers but know nothing at all about them.
I would like a bush type as I don't really have anywhere for a plant to trail up or across.
So if anybody can recommend a variety that would be brilliant.
Sue
p.s we live ilincs and notts

[Two_Sheds]

I don't really have anywhere for a plant to trail up or across.

They are very happy to trail and wind their way amongst your other plants. My Crystal Lemon have been living with French beans, asparagus, lettuce & onions this year.
Now that most have died back, I can see dozens of fat little cukes that I didn't manage to eat (they are v.prolific)

[Zelenina]

Spacemaster is a good variety with compact plants. I've also seen one called Bushy but I haven't tried it. Those are both open pollinated so you can save seeds from them, but there are also several F1 hybrids that stay compact.

[FlawlessVictory]

I can confirm spacemaster to be a good cropper, Marketmore Is also really reliable. I'm also trying out Bedfordshire Prize & Delikatesse this year. They have a great taste and I usually peel them as the skin can be a bit tough.

[Lumpy]

Thank you all!
I like the idea of the Crystal Lemon - do you think it would share its home with a bush variety pumpkin. It's just that the pumpkin is grown in a stack of old tyres - 3 high so I wondered if they would be happy with each other?
Spacemaster sounds like a good choice as it looks like it is not to meandering.

[marcofez]

I'm also a fan of 'spacemaster'. Good cropper.

[Zelenina]

I like the idea of the Crystal Lemon - do you think it would share its home with a bush variety pumpkin. It's just that the pumpkin is grown in a stack of old tyres - 3 high so I wondered if they would be happy with each other?

Pumpkins are generally rougher, tougher plants than cucumbers and have bigger leaves. So I doubt if the cucumber would do well in that situation.

[Alicante]

Although it is not a bush type, marketmore is a decent outdoor cucumber to grow. No matter what the weather i find it produces a good crop and tastes good as well.

[Zelenina]

My best cucumbers so far have been Muncher from the Organic Catalogue and Suyo Long from Brown Envelope Seeds. But they are also not bush types. I grew them up netting against a wall.

[Noosner]

Yes, I've also had decent results with marketmore outdoors, and love rubbing the little spines off the skin... I wouldn't say they were as crisp and crunchy as greenhouse cukes but the taste is good.

[Two_Sheds]

Pumpkins ... have bigger leaves. So I doubt if the cucumber would do well in that situation.

I can happily confirm that Crystal Lemon will do well in that situation. My own, as I said above, have been growing prolifically in mixed beds. I didn't realise quite how many cukes there were until autumn killed off most of the garden, exposing dozens of little round yellow cukes all over the place.

They were left to scramble under, over and into all the other plants, including pumpkins.

[pigletwillie]

Marketmore and crystal lemon are my two staples. The crystal lemon crop massively so eat them small.

[FlawlessVictory]

I didn't see the bush in the first post sorry! Fancy trying Crystal Lemon

[Penellype]

I grew Vega this year, which is one of the small fruiting varieties. It climbed the frame I provided then the leylandii hedge and the runner beeans - it didn't seem to care what it was competing with. the one in the greenhouse got in amongst the tomato plants. The only trouble with this sort of thing is getting at the fruits to cut them.