Cool As A Cucumber

The idiom "cool as a cucumber" came from a poem that was written in 1732!  Wow, some things have staying power.  But what does that saying mean?  Well, since cucumbers are largely made up of water, they stay cool to the touch.  We need things cool to the touch.  It's the first day of June.  It's been 80 degrees at 7:30 am in the morning and already getting into the 90's in the afternoon.  It is warming up quickly!

Our garden, fortunately, has been producing nice fruit.  We are picking at least 3 cucumbers everyday.  We planted three varieties: Mademore, Boston Pickling (my favorite), Organic pickling, and Suyo long.

I came back from the cucumber trellis yesterday with all varieties except for Suyo Long.  I planted them 3 weeks later, so we don't have any of those yet.  But I did get a surprise.  What is that thing in the center of the cucumber colander?

I am almost 100% certain it is a Lemon Cucumber!  A seed or two of that variety of seed must have gotten mixed into the seed package!

It is named appropriately.  It looks like a lemon, but it tastes like a cucumber.

On these hot summer days (and it is only June1!), what one needs to cool off is a nice, cool salad.  Lettuce is out of the question.  We finished that up in the garden months ago.  But a nice cucumber salad hits the spot.  We cut up cucumbers, fresh tomatoes, Creole onions we just harvested, fresh picked blackberries, salt and pepper, Balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil.  Then we grate a little Parmesan cheese on top.  It's better if you put it in the fridge and let it marinate for a few hours.

Holy Moly!  What a delicious, cooling salad.

We have been eating cucumber salad every single day!

A Good Investment

The roller coaster ride that has been the stock market this week has made me think about investments. I have heard people say they are fearful to look at the current market value of their 401-Ks, wondering about what tomorrow might bring and sorrowful to see portfolio gains become losses. ExxonMobil stock, described as a "widows & orphans" stock is down 31% for the year.

I found a good investment in the the garden that I wanted to share with you.  Its value isn't affected by Federal Reserve policy, the Chinese economic outlook, or America's GDP forecast.  A few weeks ago when the foliage on the cucumber plants was lush and green, I somehow missed picking a hidden cucumber.  I only saw it after it was as orange as a pumpkin.  Once they turn even a little bit yellow, they are bitter and inedible, but don't despair, this is a perfect cucumber - for saving its seeds, that is.

This variety is an heirloom, open pollinated Boston Pickling Cucumber variety.  It is not a hybrid and therefore, the seeds can be saved and planted next year or in future years.  Here's how we did it.  First, I allowed the cucumber to continue ripening until the plant itself died and it turned a little soft.

Way overripe and soft

I brought it inside and carefully cut it open, breaking it in half so that I wouldn't cut through any of the seeds.

Exposing the seeds of the cucumber

I used a spoon to scoop out the seeds, placing them in a bowl.  There is some pulp in the bowl along with the seeds, but that is nothing to worry about.  You don't need to pick it out.

I added some water to the bowl and stirred it up, mixing it all up nicely.

Added water to the seeds

Now, I just placed the bowl in the window sill and stir it up each day.  By the third day, it will have a mold growing on top of the water and the fermented cucumber concoction will stink like a rotten possum carcass on a blacktop road in mid-July.  

That's not an optimal fragrance for your kitchen window sill, but that is what you want - you want the cucumber seed to ferment. Fermenting the seeds mimics what happens in nature.  The fruit actually rots and the seeds inside ferment and this makes the seed water permeable, softens the seed coat and increases the germination percentage.

A smelly bowl of rotten cucumber seeds/pulp

I pour this stinky soup into a colander and run water over them.  The water breaks up the rotten pulp and cleans the seeds, allowing the smelly stuff to run on through, resulting in clean seeds.

Then I place the seeds on a plate and put it back on the window sill for a few days to completely dry. Every so often I stir the seeds with my fingers, turning them over and un-sticking them from the plate.

Drying the seeds

After day 2 or 3, the seeds are completely dry.

Dry cucumber seeds

I read somewhere that the average cucumber has 150 seeds in it.  Judging from the seeds in my hand, I'd estimate there to be 100 seeds there.  In the same publication, I read that the average heirloom cucumber plant will yield 2-3 pounds of fruit per plant.  One might think that I have a bunch of seeds in the palm of my hand. Actually, looking at it conservatively, I actually have about 200 pounds of cucumbers in my hand!

Seeds as an investment

There are lots of things that can go wrong between now and the harvest of the cucumbers next spring, but I would say that the seeds are a productive investment, with high yields, nice returns, a nice upside potential of unlimited growth.

Yes, the stock market may be subject to the vagaries of investor psychology, but my little ibuprofen bottle of Boston Pickling Cucumber seeds tucked away in my seed saving drawer will be there for me even if though Social Security won't! 

Cucumber seeds - (take 2 as directed)

Saving cucumber seeds, a good investment.  It also pays great dividends!