Cucumber

plants · vegetables · gardens

A creeping vine. Cucumbers grow on long, sprawling vines that love to climb up trellises or spread across the ground. They need warm weather and plenty of sunshine to thrive.

Three main types. Slicing cucumbers are the big ones you eat fresh in salads, pickling cucumbers are smaller and crunchier for making pickles, and seedless cucumbers are extra convenient because they have fewer seeds.

Flowers come first. Before you get a cucumber, the plant produces pretty yellow flowers. After the flower is pollinated, a tiny cucumber starts to grow where the flower was.

Grown worldwide. Cucumbers are one of the most popular vegetables on Earth, grown in gardens and farms from tropical countries to cooler climates. China grows more cucumbers than anywhere else.

Mostly water. Cucumbers are about 95 percent water, making them super refreshing and low in calories, perfect for snacking on a hot day.