Maine is famous for its potatoes and lobsters and not so much for its cukes – but here is a wonderful heirloom from the Boothby family in Livermore, Maine, passed on to us by Will Bonsall through the Seed Savers Exchange. The Boothyb’s Blond Cucumber is a crisp, medium sized slicer, 6-8 long, with a very pleasant flavor and texture; even more appealing is its rich yellowy cream color with contrasting black spines. Shape is longer and broader than the short oval lemon cukes and its color is deeper and richer than the European white cukes.

20 seeds

PLANTING

Cucumis sativus

Germination:4-10 days

Germination Temperature:Optimum soil temperatures 70-85F

Seed Sowing Depth:1/2-1″ deep

Sowing Indoors:3-4 weeks before last frost.Provide70-85Fsoil temperature.Sow 2-3 seeds per cell/pot.Sowing into individual biodegradable peat/cow pots reduces rootdamage when transplanting. Transplant 36-48″ apart after last frost.

Sowing Outdoors:Sow after last frostwhen soil temperature is over70F.Sow a few seeds every 36-48″.

Harvest:Check andpick every day to keep the harvest flowing.

Tips: Boothby’s Blond Cucumber should be planted in fertile soil, amended with compost or well rotted manure and kept well watered. Trellising the vines allows for good air circulation, takes up less space and provides shade for heat sensitive crops like lettuce. They benefit from growing on black plastic and by using row covers for weed, insect control, and more rapid growth.