Back to main Search Page

Cucumis sativus - L.

Cucumber

Author	L.	Botanical references
Family	Cucurbitaceae	Genus	Cucumis
Synonyms
Known Hazards	The sprouting seed produces a toxic substance in its embryo[65].
Range	Possibly native of the E. Indies, but the original habitat is obscure.
Habitat	Not known in a truly wild situation.
Edibility Rating	4 (1-5)	Medicinal Rating	2 (1-5)

Physical Characteristics

Annual Climber growing to 2m.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats

Cultivated Beds;

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Fruit; Leaves; Seed.

Edible Uses: Oil.

Fruit - raw or cooked. The cucumber is a common ingredient of salads, being valued mainly for its crisp texture and juiciness[1, 2, 7, 46]. However, it is very watery, with little flavour and is not very nutritious[K]. Many people find the fruit to be indigestible, this is due to the high cellulose content[7]. The fruit varies widely in size between cultivars but can be up to 1 metre long. It can be available from mid summer until early autumn from outdoor grown plants. Seed - raw[57, 86]. Rich in oil with a nutty flavour but very fiddly to use because the seed is small and covered with a fibrous coat[K]. Young leaves and stems - cooked as a potherb. Oil from seed[61]. Said to resemble olive oil, it is used in salad dressings and French cooking[183]. The oil contains 22.3% linoleic acid, 58.5% oleic acid, 6.8% palmitic acid and 3.7% stearic acid[218].

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.

Aperient; Diuretic; Skin; Tonic; Vermifuge.

The leaf juice is emetic, it is used to treat dyspepsia in children[218]. The fruit is depurative, diuretic, emollient, purgative and resolvent[7, 21, 201, 218]. The fresh fruit is used internally in the treatment of blemished skin, heat rash etc, whilst it is used externally as a poultice for burns, sores etc and also as a cosmetic for softening the skin[218, 238]. The seed is cooling, diuretic, tonic and vermifuge[4, 218]. 25 - 50 grams of the thoroughly ground seeds (including the seed coat) is a standard dose as a vermifuge and usually needs to be followed by a purgative to expel the worms from the body[4]. A decoction of the root is diuretic[218].

Other Uses

Cosmetic; Repellent.

Cucumber skins have been shown to repel cockroaches in laboratory experiments[218]. The fruit is applied to the skin as a cleansing cosmetic to soften and whiten it[4, 7, 238]. The juice is used in many beauty products[4, 7].

Cultivation details

Requires a rich, well-drained moisture retentive soil and a warm very sunny position[200]. A frost-tender plant, the cucumber is commonly cultivated for its edible fruit, there are many named varieties[46, 183]. Many of these varieties are only suitable for protected cropping in Britain though there are a number that have been specifically bred for cool temperate areas and these succeed outdoors in most summers[200]. Many of the cultivars, especially the greenhouse forms, should have their male flowers removed in order to prevent fertilization, since the fertilized fruits have a bitter taste. A number of cultivars have been developed that only produce female flowers[142]. Cucumbers make good companion plants for sweet corn, beans and sunflowers[18], but they dislike growing with potatoes and aromatic herbs[20]. The roots of cucumber plants secrete a substance that inhibits the growth of most weeds[201].

Propagation

Seed - sow early to mid spring in a greenhouse in a rich soil. Germination should take place within 2 weeks. Sow 2 or 3 seeds per pot and thin out to the best plant. Grow them on fast and plant out after the last expected frosts, giving them cloche or frame protection for at least their first few weeks if you are trying them outdoors.

Cultivars

There are many named varieties of this annual vegetable, with new forms being developed each year. At present there is not time to enter these in the database and it is recommended that you consult the book 'The Fruit and Vegetable Finder' which is updated regularly and can be obtained from libraries.

Links

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.

[7] Chiej. R. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. MacDonald 1984 ISBN 0-356-10541-5
Covers plants growing in Europe. Also gives other interesting information on the plants. Good photographs.

[18] Philbrick H. and Gregg R. B. Companion Plants. Watkins 1979
Details of beneficial and antagonistic relationships between neighbouring plants.

[20] Riotte. L. Companion Planting for Successful Gardening. Garden Way, Vermont, USA. 1978 ISBN 0-88266-064-0
Fairly good.

[21] Lust. J. The Herb Book. Bantam books 1983 ISBN 0-553-23827-2
Lots of information tightly crammed into a fairly small book.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[57] Schery. R. W. Plants for Man. 0
Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[65] Frohne. D. and Pfänder. J. A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Wolfe 1984 ISBN 0723408394
Brilliant. Goes into technical details but in a very readable way. The best work on the subject that I've come across so far.

[86] Organ. J. Gourds. Faber 1963
Deals with squashes and their relatives. Interesting and readable, it gives cultivation techniques and some details of plant uses.

[142] Brouk. B. Plants Consumed by Man. Academic Press 1975 ISBN 0-12-136450-x
Readable but not very comprehensive.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[201] Allardice.P. A - Z of Companion Planting. Cassell Publishers Ltd. 1993 ISBN 0-304-34324-2
A well produced and very readable book.

[218] Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985 ISBN 0-917256-20-4
Details of over 1,200 medicinal plants of China and brief details of their uses. Often includes an analysis, or at least a list of constituents. Heavy going if you are not into the subject.

[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.

Readers Comments

Plants for a Future does not verify the accuracy of reader comments, use at your own risk. In particular Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. You should always consult a professional before using plants medicinally.

Cucumis sativus

Satjay Mon Nov 26 2007

Heard that it has qualities to control diabetis

Cucumis sativus

jyoti prasad mukherjee Sat Aug 1 2009

want more about medicinal plants.

Add a comment/link:

Discussion Monitor

To have posts to this page mailed to you enter your email address here:

(Your email address will not appear on the webpage or be passed on to third parties).