First cucumber is enjoyed

We picked our first cucumber of the year last week. It was delicious. I usually peel and slice them into a bowl. I add a generous splash of vinegar and a small sliced onion then fill the bowl with water and place it into the refrigerator to chill. But the first cucumber of the year demands to be eaten plain, the better to enjoy the fresh, clean taste.
The vining plant is an immigrant that originated on the Indian subcontinent. It now inhabits almost every continent on the planet. Its tendrils clamber over trellises, man-made supports and anything else the lightly colored extensions touch. Mine have escaped the confines of their tomato cage and are scurrying towards the far end of the bed.
It belongs to the Cucurbitaceae plant family and, as such, is related to melons and squashes. The flowers are a bright, sunny yellow that give way to oblong or sometimes club shaped fruit. It has broad green leaves that have grown back after an early season attack by some hungry deer. A generous application of pepper to the leaves seems to have discouraged the deer for now.
Botanists classify cucumbers as accessory fruits. The rest of us think they are vegetables. They are the fourth most widely cultivated vegetable (or accessory fruits if you are a botanist) in the world. They lag behind tomatoes, cabbages and onions. That’s not bad for something that is usually more than 90-percent water.
They are a great source of vitamins and other good for you stuff that scientists have yet to discover and name. The skin contains Vitamin C. I like the skin, but many people don’t so I usually peel them. A word to the wise - I once worked for a small produce company. They told me to always peel supermarket cucumbers as they were often coated with floor wax to make them shiny. Therefore, if you choose not to peel them, be sure to scrub them or at least know where they came from.
I have heard that some people don’t like to eat them. They use them as a beauty treatment and put slices of cold cukes over their eyes to reduce puffiness. Personally, I have never tried this as I think it is a waste of food.
Cucumbers are very easy to grow. Just tuck the seeds into the ground and wait. Before you know it, you will be stalking the neighbors bearing gifts of green goodness. The plants do like lots of water, as they are mostly liquid. Mulch is good for any plant as it helps keep the weeds away and the soil cool and moist. They like it warm but like us, they don’t care much for it when the temperature reaches the mid-nineties and stays there.
Like many plants, they prefer lots of sunlight and fertile soil. They like a pH of 6.0 to 7.0, which is close to what we have in this area. A side dressing of compost or well-aged manure is always appreciated. Keeping them picked encourages them to produce more fruit.
They can be picked at any size. I usually eat a few of them when they are only an inch or two long. By the end of the season there will be at least one yellow blimp drooping from the vine. I know from experience that this one will turn out to be mushy.
Many people make pickles out of them. I don’t care for homemade pickles. I prefer the ones that come pre-pickled in glass jars although we always canned pickles when I was growing up.
My son-in-law once used cucumbers in a fish dish he prepared. I had never thought of cooking them, but they were good. I’m sorry he doesn’t live closer so he could cook for us more often.
I like cucumbers, garden tomatoes and onion diced into ice cold V-8 juice with lots of pepper. I call it cheater’s gazpacho. On a hot summer day, it makes a refreshing lunch.
However they are used, the cucumbers are here and will soon be appearing on menus everywhere. Enjoy them while you can. I know I will.[[In-content Ad]]