Posted from 08/12/06:
Good fences make good neighbors, they say. Good fences also make good cucumbers.
A chainlink fence is perfect. So is any other fence or trellis that cucumber vines can easily climb.
The fence's value is clear: The fruit from vines allowed to sprawl on the ground is often curled, while fruit from vines with vertical support grows long and straight.
Growing cucumbers on a fence also saves a lot of space.
Cucumber vines love hot weather, but if they don't get enough water they'll produce bitter-tasting fruit. Fortunately, most of the bitterness is concentrated in the stem end. If you slice off and discard the stem end, the remaining part of the fruit usually tastes fine.
There's another good reason to keep cucumber vines watered in dry weather. Stressed plants attract cucumber beetles, the biggest threat to a good cucumber crop in Midwest gardens.
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Cucumber beetles are about the size of ladybugs, only yellow. As they feed, they spread a disease called bacterial wilt, which will wipe out cucumber and melon vines in a jiffy. Once a vine is infected, there is no way you can save the plant. If a vine suddenly wilts even though the soil is moist, pull and dispose of that plant before the disease spreads.
The easiest way to thwart cucumber beetles is to grow a cucumber variety they don't like, such as County Fair, a pickling variety, or a non-bitter slicer such as Sweeter Yet.
When the number of cucumber beetles is high, you may need to resort to a pesticide for control. If you're among the growing numbers of people who prefer to eat organic vegetables, you'll appreciate that organic controls for pests such as cucumber beetles are now more widely available in retail stores and mail-order catalogs.
Possibilities include products containing pyrethrum or rotenone, both natural products extracted from plants. Either will knock down pests fast but will not linger long to create a problem for the environment or for those who eat the produce. But wear a mask if applying any dust, which can be an irritant.
Spinosad insecticides, made from naturally-occurring bacteria, are a new organic control.
I recently read that demand is so high for organic vegetables that the supply can't keep up. That's no problem when you grow your own. In fact, sometimes the supply from the garden exceeds the demand. Even if you can't use another cucumber right now, it's important to keep on picking and sharing the extras. The more cucumbers you pick, the more the vines produce. Any unpicked fruits left to yellow on the vine will signal the plant it's time to quit.
