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Cucumis sativus
Also called Garden cucumber, Cowcumber
The cucumber is a fast-growing annual vine grown for its edible fruit, which is eaten raw or pickled. It needs warmth, steady moisture and something to climb or ground space to sprawl over.
The cucumber (Cucumis sativus) is a widely-cultivated creeping vine plant in the family Cucurbitaceae that bears cylindrical to spherical fruits, used as culinary vegetables. Considered an annual plant, there are three main types: slicing, pickling, and seedless.
The cucumber originates in Asia, in a region extending from India, Nepal, Bangladesh, China (Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangxi), and Northern Thailand.
Cultivated for at least 3,000 years, "Cucumis sativus" were domesticated in India from wild "C. sativus var. hardwickii". where a great many varieties have been observed, along with its closest living relative, Cucumis hystrix. The three main cultivar groups of cucumber are Eurasian cucumbers (slicing cucumbers eaten raw and immature), East Asian cucumbers (pickling cucumbers), and Xishuangbanna cucumbers. Based on demographic modelling, the East Asian C. sativus cultivars diverged from the Indian cultivars about 2,500 years ago. It was probably introduced to Europe by the Greeks or Romans. Records of cucumber cultivation appear in France in the 9th century, England in the 14th century, and in North America by the mid-16th century.
West Indian gherkin · Cucumis · Aardvark Cucumber · Cucumis hystrix · Cantaloupe · Armenian cucumber · Melon · African horned cucumber · Gooseberry gourd · Cucumis · Melon
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Cucumber by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
Pet safety from the ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists.
