40 Cucumber Varieties You Should Grow

With over 100 cucumber varieties to choose from, deciding which cukes to plant in your garden can feel overwhelming. Here we discuss a few favorites, highlighting the characteristics that set them apart and make them a great choice for any home garden. Cucumbers rank among the most popular plants grown in home gardens, right alongside tomatoes and peppers. After all, is a summer salad complete without a homegrown cucumber?

Most cucumber plants produce separate male and female flowers. For them to produce fruit, a pollinator must land on the male flower and then transfer pollen to the female flowers. Parthenocarpic cucumbers produce mostly female flowers, making this process even easier and ensuring more fruit. These varieties are also often referred to as self-pollinating.

The types of cucumber you’ll commonly find in the grocery store are slicers and English cucumbers, though as you’ll see below, there are so many different varieties and types. Whether you’re looking for cucumbers for fresh eating, pickling, seedless options, or just to add some visual interest to your garden, there is a cucumber for you.

Marketmore 76

Probably the most common heirloom cucumber variety, ‘Marketmore 76’ produces uniform fruit that holds up well during shipping, making it a popular choice for market growers. Dr. Henry Munger at Cornell University developed the Marketmore cucumber, and this open-pollinated strain was released in 1976. It is resistant to angular leaf spot.

Straight Eight

Named for their perfectly straight, eight-inch-long fruits, ‘Straight Eight’ cucumbers each have a small seed cavity. This variety is the epitome of a slicing cucumber. The fruits taste best eaten raw but can also hold up to pickling. Grow these on a trellis to give them plenty of room to reach their mature size.

Silver Slicer

Similar in size and appearance to ‘Straight Eight’, this cultivar has white skin and delivers a sweet slice. Cucumbers often turn bitter in summer heat, but ‘Silver Slicer’ tolerates warmer weather without losing its sweet flavor.

It is also resistant to powdery mildew, making it a great choice for growers in humid climates.

Longfellow

Jerome B. Rice Seed Co. of Cambridge, New York introduced ‘Longfellow’ in 1927. Fruits grow up to 12 inches long, making this variety longer than most modern-day slicers. The dark green fruit can appear almost black.

Arkansas Little Leaf

This bush-type variety produces compact plants perfect for container growing. It is highly resistant to bacterial wilt, cucumber mosaic virus, mildews, scab, and leaf spots.

The thin-skinned fruits are small, three to four inches, and more closely resemble a pickling cucumber. However, they can also be eaten fresh.

Mini Munch

Often referred to as a snacking or lunchbox cucumber, ‘Mini Munch’ produces thin-skinned cucumbers with a crisp texture perfect for eating raw. This bush cucumber grows well in small spaces and resists powdery mildew. Fruits reach about three to four inches long.

Early Fortune

Also known as Special Dark Green because of its deep green skin, Jerome B. Rice Seed Co. of Cambridge, New York introduced this American slicing cucumber in 1910. The plant produces cucumbers with a crunchy texture and a slightly sweet flavor.

Japanese Climbing

As the name suggests, this vining cucumber loves to climb. Growing it on a trellis is a must, as the vine can reach six feet long. Its flavor is tender, crisp, and slightly tart.

‘Japanese Climbing’ is perfect for slicing but can also be used for pickling.

Spacemaster

This bush variety with compact vines suits small spaces well and can even grow in a hanging basket. ‘Spacemaster’ produces large, flavorful cucumbers with a crunchy texture, perfect for slicing and fresh eating.

Sugar Crunch

True to its name, ‘Sugar Crunch’ delivers remarkably sweet flavor and a crispy texture. This plant produces medium green, thin-skinned fruits.

Persian Cucumbers

Persian cucumbers are excellent slicers with thin skins and a mild flavor. The main distinguishing factor between these and other slicing varieties is that they are nearly seedless and have a marked crispness that makes them delicious for eating raw. The fruits of this compact-vined plant stay small.

Bush Champion

‘Bush Champion’ is a great cucumber to grow if vertical gardening isn’t possible. It produces large fruit with a light crispness and mild flavor.

Pickling Cucumber Varieties

Unlike slicing cucumbers, pickling varieties have thicker skin and lower water content, which helps them stand up to the pickling process and retain some crispness. These cucumbers can also be eaten fresh, but they truly shine when pickled. 

Boston Pickling

This heirloom is probably the most popular pickling cucumber variety and the most widely available at local nurseries. The plants produce a high yield of short, spiny cucumbers perfect for pickling. Make sure to pick them when they are three to four inches long; otherwise, they can turn bitter.

Picklebush

This Burpee exclusive is known for being especially tolerant of powdery mildew and cucumber mosaic virus. It’s a great option for gardeners who have struggled with these issues in the past. The bright green fruits also resist watermelon mosaic virus.

A&C (Ace Pickling)

Abbot and Cobb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania introduced this variety in 1928. ‘A&C’ cucumbers grow rather large for picklers, about 10 inches long, with dark green flesh.

Calypso

At three inches long, ‘Calypso’ picklers resist many diseases. This high-yielding hybrid provides plenty of cukes for pickling. Pick them small and often to encourage more production.

Chicago Pickling

This dual-purpose cucumber can also be harvested at a larger size, around seven inches, for use as a slicer. Harvest on the smaller side, around three to four inches, for pickling.

Wautoma

Developed by the USDA, ‘Wautoma’ is another highly disease-resistant variety. It is bitter-free and produces virtually seedless cucumbers. The fruits are medium green with bumpy skin.

County Fair

This bush variety is perfect for small spaces and containers, performing well on a balcony or patio. ‘County Fair’ resists bacterial wilt and does not require a pollinator.

Supremo

A high-yielding pickler with moderate disease resistance, ‘Supremo’ produces fruits with dark green skin and a mild taste.

Double Yield

Early to mid-season harvests make ‘Double Yield’ a great variety for short-season growers. The plants produce light green fruits with black spines. They can also be eaten raw.

Excelsior

‘Excelsior’ produces four- to five-inch, spiny fruits. This self-fruitful variety performs well in areas where pollinators may be lacking, such as greenhouses or under row covers. It also does well on a high-rise patio or balcony.

Endeavor

These Kirby cucumbers have a crisp texture and sweet taste, making them good for fresh eating as well. The plants resist cucumber mosaic virus and downy mildew.

National Pickling

‘National Pickling’ cucumbers have thin skins and a refreshing taste, much like most cucumber varieties. They are known for their high yield and crispness, making them an excellent choice for the home pickler.

Seedless/Burpless Cucumber Varieties

These thin-skinned types generally have very few seeds. Any seeds present are usually so small that they’re barely noticeable, much like the English cucumbers you may find wrapped in plastic at your local grocery store.

Burpless cucumbers contain lower levels of cucurbitacin, the compound that makes some cucumbers taste bitter. Cucurbitacin levels are highest in the skin, so burpless cucumbers are generally thin-skinned with a sweet taste. Most burpless cucumbers can also produce fruit without pollination.

Sweet Success

‘Sweet Success’ produces 12-inch-long, dark green fruits with a sweet taste. This parthenocarpic variety sets fruit without pollination.

Burpless Beauty

Known for its crisp texture and lack of seeds, ‘Burpless Beauty’ grows dark green cucumbers on a vine that does best supported by a trellis. Give it space to sprawl, and you’ll harvest plenty of seedless cukes.

Garden Sweet Burpless

This variety produces medium green, 10- to 12-inch-long fruits with faint stripes resembling a pickling cucumber. This seedless cucumber can be eaten fresh or pickled.

Muncher Cucumber

‘Muncher’ is another dual-purpose cucumber, great for both slicing and pickling. It resembles the Persian cucumber, and its sweet flavor makes it wonderful shredded in tzatziki or pickled for relish.

Tendergreen

‘Tendergreen’ has medium green skin with black spines and is extremely tender and sweet. If left on the vine to fully mature, its smooth skin can appear almost black.

Green Dragon

‘Green Dragon’ produces long, slender cucumbers with light green skin. The plants resist cucumber mosaic virus, powdery mildew, downy mildew, and scab.

Summer Dance

These Japanese cucumbers are glossy, deep green, and grow to produce nine-inch fruits. They can be eaten raw or pickled and are especially good for making bread-and-butter pickles.

Beit Alpha

Developed in Israel, ‘Beit Alpha’ is becoming popular in America. This heirloom variety is parthenocarpic, making it ideal for growing inside greenhouses or even during winter in an indoor grow tent, since pollinators aren’t required for fruit to form.

Perseus

‘Perseus’ is a hybrid Beit Alpha type that shares similar qualities. The key difference is that this variety does require pollinators to set fruit.

Chelsea Prize

This English cucumber grows to 12 to 15 inches long and most closely resembles the English cucumbers you find in the grocery store. It has thin skin, very few seeds, and a refreshing taste.

Unique Cucumber Varieties

Cucumbers come in many sizes, shapes, colors, and growth habits. Below are a few unique types worth trying in your garden.

Suyo Long

As the name suggests, ‘Suyo Long’ produces very long and often curved fruit, reaching up to 18 inches at maturity. This heirloom originates from China and delivers a mild, burpless flavor.

Lemon

The heirloom Lemon cucumber has been around since 1894. These round, tennis-ball-sized cucumbers have creamy yellow skin and a mild flavor that is less likely to turn bitter.

Although they look like lemons, Lemon cucumbers have a classic cucumber flavor and thin skin.

Kiwano, aka Jelly Melon

Kiwano is technically not a cucumber but rather a melon (Cucumis metuliferus). It is also commonly known as an African cucumber melon or horned melon. The plant has bright orange, spiky skin, but the inside is green with large seeds that resemble cucumber seeds. It tastes like a cucumber and is often treated as one.

Little Potato

Originally from India, ‘Little Potato’ has brown, blotchy, thin skin and resembles a small potato. Its flavor is mild, even lemony.

Crystal Apple

These cucumbers grow into three-inch, oval fruits that are pale yellow and look like apples. The Arthur Yates seed house of Sydney, Australia introduced this variety.

Boothy’s Blond

Imagine a standard pickling cucumber, short and blocky with bumpy skin, but with a yellow complexion. ‘Boothy’s Blond’ produces sweet, crisp fruits that are great for fresh eating or pickling. 

Edmonson

‘Edmonson’ is a hardy cucumber with disease resistance, pest resistance, and excellent drought tolerance. It has white skin that matures to a deep red-orange and works well for pickling.

Miniature White

These specialty cucumbers are not grown commercially and are generally found on small farms and in home gardens. Harvest them at or under three inches long for the best taste. Their white skin adds visual interest to your cucumber beds.

Poona Kheera

Another variety originating from India, ‘Poona Kheera’ is similar to ‘Little Potato’. Fruits begin light green and slowly mature to resemble russet potatoes. This heirloom has smooth skin, juicy flesh, and a crisp taste.

Armenian Cucumber

Like the kiwano, Armenian cucumbers are not actually cucumbers but rather a melon. However, their appearance resembles an English cucumber (though lighter in color), as does the taste. They are grown and consumed much like cucumbers.

Frequently Asked Questions