We were so lucky to have volunteer Armenian cucumbers come up in the hoophouse, for the most part where they were growing last year. I wonder how that can be, since we harvested them all. When they started to produce, I noticed to my amazement that some of them where the light green variety. We got at least one from Anna last year and I was so surprised then because I thought they were all dark green like ours. Apparently we composted some seed from Anna's cuke or gave the seeds to the red wiggler worms and somehow they ended up in just the right place in the hoophouse. And that was a very good thing too because I was so late with my seedlings and eventually they died before I got them in the ground.
So this year we have both varieties, most weigh between 3 and 4 lbs each and here you see them before they were peeled:
If I had a juicer, I'd use the seeds in drinks as they are the most nutritious parts of veggies. But since I don't have one, I just cut the cukes into manageable pieces, peel and then slice the long way. All the seeds are in the middle and I scoop them out with a spoon for the worms or compost.
Fortunately a neighbor got me a bag of lemons today because I like to have the cukes in a dressing made from lemon, dill, agave syrup and sometimes finely chopped onions. I dilute with water to taste.
Armenian cucumbers are actually MELONS, so people who can't eat cukes might well be able to eat these guys.
Because I had some of the Peacevine cherry tomatoes, I decided to also make a cucumber / tomato salad with some red onion and I used only balsamic vinegar as dressing.
Here you see the finished product with the tomato / cucumber salad already half eaten because the first pics didn't turn out well (I need a new camera). I finished it off by now along with some of the cuke salad. Had to make room in that bowl since I don't like to store food in the plastic bowls. I really enjoy eating the lemon dill cukes on those hot days, makes for a nice cool snack and I think it actually tastes better after a day in the fridge.
From Twining Vine Garden about the Peacevine tomatoes:
Description:
65 Days. Prolific producer of 2 cm red, round, amazing zippy tasting fruit. Found to produce 'gamma amino butyric acid' a natural sedative hence its name 'Peacevine'. So have your moment of Zen, as if sitting in the garden eating vine ripe cherry tomatoes wasn't tranquil enough! Staking vine type (indeterminate).
Notes:
This open pollinated cultivar has the highest vitamin C content of 30 comparable varieties tested. Use strong stakes with this one! Don't wear a white t-shirt while raiding this tomato as the dribble factor is quite high. Offspring of 'Gardener's Delight' and cousin of 'Sweet 100'.
Cultivation:
Sow 5 mm deep. Keep moist; plastic cover improves success. Opt. germination temp: 18-25 C. Days to germ: 5-10. Bigger the roots at transplant (mid May) bigger the harvest. Prune sparingly. Protect from rain; water at plant base never foliage except foliar feeds. Heavy feeder; use balanced organic fertilizer. Excess nitrogen= leaves no fruit; no calcium=blossom end rot; extreme heat=blossom drop. See our tomato article under 'Confessions of a Mad Gardener' for growing information.
Our clusters aren't nearly as big as on the websites selling the seeds and I just started harvesting last week. I planted 3 seedlings (rather late, as everything this year) and they are now at least 6 feet tall. It was very hot for a few weeks and I haven't had much time to manually pollinate (with an electric toothbrush from the dollar store) either, but the plants are looking great, have many flowers now and I'm hoping for a big fall harvest. Have to take some pics for posting here.
Usually I eat them before I can even get them into a salad, snacking as I get to the kitchen or even in the hoophouse. Maybe it's that sedative getting me addicted! 🙂
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