Bitter Cucumbers

[Smiles Jr.]

We're having a taste problem with our cucumbers this year. It could be the irregular (or lack of) watering with the drought. It could be the type of cucumbers I planted. Some of our cukes have a sorta bitter taste. I have thrown more than half of our cuke harvest into the compost bucket so far this season. For the first time I selected Burpee "Picklers" and I pick them at around 4" long. The skin is terribly bitter so I have peeled every one of them. Obviously this adds considerable work.

We put up 10 qt. of dill pickles yesterday and I just hope they taste alright in January, February, and March. All of the cukes were peeled which might make the pickles soft and wimpy so I added one additional grape leaf to each jar. We'll see.

Have any of you had this problem? Have you found a fix?

 

[catjac1975]

They should still be sweet when they are small. I think the drought has a lot to do with hit. I always have good luck with Straight Eight.

 

[lesa]

Yup, it is water, or lack of it. Most of my cukes are planted in rows with soaker hoses (which have been turned on every other day.) I had a few random plants that went into rows without water. They still grew, but they are horrible! I took a bite of one, and literally spit it out. The cukes in the watered rows are perfect...I don't feel too bad about it, since the chickens will eat them, either way. I hope your pickles turn out....

 

[digitS']

I find it interesting that the pumpkin fields around here receive very little irrigation. Watermelon, as I understand it, has very low water requirements. But, cucumbers . . . I plant them close to the sprinklers.

They almost seem to do best in soggy soil. Now, don't take that as real advice. My soil drains so quickly that I hardly know what "soggy" means.

I think that cucumbers may do just fine where they have afternoon shade, like from a house. I can't remember having done that, however, just think it might help with them.

Not being one who pickles anything, I put all my garden hopes on slicers. I like pickles, tho'. Yes, Best of Luck with your pickles, Smiles.

Steve

 

[HotPepperQueen]

When we have bitter cucumbers, we peel and slice them and soak them in salt water. They aren't bitter after an hour or so.

 

[Collector]

Last year we grew straight 8s and they were bitter. We are growing the same kind this year and they are not bitter at all. I have no idea what makes them bitter or not, maybe it is the amount of water they get. Hope you can solve this mystery.

 

[vfem]

I've had this before, even with good watering!

I usually peel the skins off and the rest of the cuke is fine, seems to be only in the skins in ours. I wish I knew what it was exactly... usually I rip them out and start over. We get a lot of mildew issues with ours so I always thought that was it.

 

[Smiles Jr.]

I've had this before, even with good watering!

I usually peel the skins off and the rest of the cuke is fine, seems to be only in the skins in ours. I wish I knew what it was exactly... usually I rip them out and start over. We get a lot of mildew issues with ours so I always thought that was it.

Hey now! You may have hit upon a good explanation for the bitterness. I have found several cukes with what looked like mildew on them. They went to the compost immediately but the others may have been tainted as well. Things that make you go . . . Hmmmmmmmm.