7 Varieties of Cool Cucumbers

For gardeners, cucumbers are a flavor of the summertime. They are not well-suited for preserving, save pickles which taste nothing like cucumbers. Their cool, wateriness is a wonderful compliment to the hot weather and desire for extra hydration.

However, unlike squash, tomatoes, or peppers, most of us view cucumbers as a rather standard vegetable. They are green on the outside, white on the inside, and sliced for salads. Real adventurers might make a cool soup with them, toss some slices in a pitcher of water, or use them in smoothies.

Because the supermarket sticks to one or two types of cucumbers, many folks aren’t aware that there are some fun variations of the cucumber that gardeners can enjoy. They look a little different. They may taste a little different. They add a bit of adventure with cucumbers, a vegetable with set expectations.

Armenian Cucumber

While they look similar to and taste much the same as cucumbers, Armenian cucumbers are technically more closely related to muskmelons. They are a lighter shade of green, almost yellow, and curvier than cucumbers. Like cucumbers, they are best served sliced (or pickled).

Like normal cucumbers, Armenian cucumbers grow best in places with long, hot summers. They fruit on climbing vines and do best with consistently moist soil.

Dragon’s Egg Cucumber

The dragon’s egg cucumber originates from Croatia and, despite being a cucumber, looks more like a large egg. It’s got creamy white skin, and it doesn’t grow long like the cucumbers most of us are accustomed to growing or eating.

Dragon’s egg cucumber plants will start to produce at around two months. They grow on vines and perform best on a trellis. They love a lot of sunshine, rich soil, and plenty of moisture. Seeds are available at rare seed distributors, such as Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.

Chinese Snake Cucumber

Much like the Armenian cucumber, Chinese snake cucumbers seem like cucumbers in appearance and suggest it in flavor, but they are not the same species. Biologically, they are considered a gourd, aka snake gourd.

Snake gourds are keen to grow in similar conditions as cucumbers, but they require a much more substantial trellis where the long fruit has room to hang. While the plant can ramble across the ground, the fruits are susceptible to rot and disease when left this way.

Lemon Cucumber

This variety of cucumber, the lemon cucumber, grows more in the shape of a ball and has yellow skin. It doesn’t, however, have a citrusy flavor as the name might suggest. It tastes more or less like a standard cucumber.

The vining plant is much the same as other cucumber plants though it may put out a bit more fruit because it’s smaller and gets harvested more frequently.

Mini Me Cucumber

The Mini Me cucumber is more or less a cucumber as typically envisioned, only about 3 inches long. They are awesome for snacking, working well without slicing but simply grabbing to munch on the go.

Mini Me cucumbers mature quicker than other varieties. They can provide harvests in just 45 days. They are an F1 hybrid plant, so saving seeds probably won’t work with them.

Mexican Sour Gherkins (Cucamelons)

The cucamelon is actually a miniature watermelon rather than a cucumber, but it is super cute and can be eaten much like cucumbers. However, they don’t need to be sliced so much as the fruit is only about the size of a grape. Mexican sour gherkins taste very much like cucumbers with a hint of lime.

Again, a trellis for this plant to climb on is a great idea. It makes finding the tiny fruits much easier. They should be harvested before they grow beyond an inch long to avoid getting seedy and unpleasant to eat.

White Wonder

Originating in New York in the late 1800s, White Wonder cucumbers are oval-shaped, six to nine inches long, and change from white to cream-colored as they mature. They taste like cucumbers taste, but provide a bit of visual interest.

These plants grow as vines that like to be trellised for vigorous, healthy production. They can be directly sown when soil temperatures get to about 70 degrees.

Cucumbers are one of the easiest crops to grow in the summer, and a few plants usually produce more cucumbers than a family can keep up with. Since growing cukes at home inevitably result in giving loads away, this might be a fun way to wow friends and neighbors with something different.

Related Content:

• 7 Things to Do with Your Overabundance of Homegrown Cucumbers and Summer Squash
• How to Grow Cucumbers and Fun Ways to Use Them
• Pickles, Popsicles, Pasta and More: How Cucumbers Put the Chill in Summer Meals
• 15 Reasons to Get Excited About Cucumbers This Summer

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