How Late Do You Plant Cucumbers?

Cucumber Growth

• There are dozens of cultivars of cucumbers, each with a different fruit size, shape or flavor. Another important aspect of these cultivars is maturation time frame. After sowing, cucumber plants can take as little as 40 days to produce harvest-size pickling cucumbers, or as late as 70 days for the first fruits to form. Look at seed packets or labels to know exactly how much growing time is needed before cucumber fruits are harvestable. As long as you remove cucumber fruits from the vine, the plant will continue to flower and produce more fruits. It may be possible to get three to four months of productivity from a cucumber if temperatures are warm, pests are absent and the soil is evenly fertile and moist.

Sowing Time Frame

• Plant cucumber seeds or small seedling transplants any time the soil is at least 60 degrees Fahrenheit and there are at least 60 days before frosts can occur. Usually, American gardeners sow cucumbers in spring and summer and allow the vines to flower and produce the elongated fruits in summer and early fall. In temperate-climate regions with long growing seasons, such as across most of the Deep South, cucumbers can be sown in successive plantings through late July for harvests across September.

Regional Considerations

• In cooler summer areas where the frost-free growing season only lasts from May to September, the latest cucumber planting occurs no later than late June. In the hot deserts of the Southwest, or the humid subtropical parts of Florida and southern Texas, don't sow seeds later than early April. The intense summer heat eventually withers cucumbers plants in these regions. Plant again in late August to mid September for a fall crop harvest.

Regional Advice

• Because climates vary across the United States, especially regarding summer heat and the onset of frost, contact your local cooperative extension office. Horticultural agents or master gardeners can answer questions about cucumber growing times in your region and more accurately advise you about planting later in the season. Certain varieties of cucumbers may perform better in your region's soils and weather than others, ensuring success in the home vegetable patch.