Planting Cucumbers in Central North Carolina

Climate and Soil

• Cucumbers prefer fertile, loamy, well-drained soil that is slightly acid to neutral, sunny climates and frequent rain. The most common type of soil in the Piedmont region of North Carolina is Cecil soil, a deep, well-drained, sandy loam. Rainfall is 42 to 46 inches with 217 days of sunshine on average. Plant seedlings when the temperature 2 inches below the surface of the soil is between 55 and 65 degrees Fahrenheit. Seeds germinate best if it is 65 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

Planting Depth and Timing

• Plant cucumber seeds 1 inch deep, cover with soil and water immediately. It takes about eight days for sprouts to appear. Plant seedlings so that their bottom leaves are just above the surface of the soil. Irrigate immediately after planting unless it rains, and keep the soil moist but not soggy. According to the North Carolina State University Cooperative Extension Service, you should plant cucumbers between April 20 and May 15 and a second crop August 1 to 15.

Planting Beds

• Grow cucumbers in hills or slightly raised beds with furrows between them to assure adequate drainage. Form hills by mounding soil in a circle about a foot in diameter, make a depression in the center of the circle and plant three to five seeds in the depression. Space hills 3 to 5 feet apart and thin the plants so that there are two or three to a hill when they are about 4 inches tall. Make raised rows 4 to 5 feet apart by plowing or tilling so that the soil makes a slight mound. Plant seeds or seedlings 10 inches apart in the row.

Crop Rotation

• Do not grow cucumbers or plants of the same family in the same place two years in a row. Melons, squash and gourds are in the same family as cucumbers. Rotating crops, or moving them to different locations each year, helps prevent diseases that may overwinter in the soil, reduces insect problems and can improve the soil if you include a legume crop (peas, beans, clover) in the rotation.