I have grown many different varieties of cucumber over the years including modern all-female hybrids and traditional open-pollinated ones like Telegraph. These videos are about my two favourite.
SYRIAN
If this was the only cucumber I could grow this would be it! I find it easy to cultivate, with heavy crops of unimpeachably delicious fruit absolutely at their best when the size in the photo. From an April sowing I can be sure of a crop from late June until October.
DEKAH (aka Dekan)
This Ukrainian heritage variety from the Crimea was held by the Heritage Seed Library and is now available commercially again. A rough skin, which hides a finely flavoured fruit. I also like to harvest the fruit when immature and pickle as a gherkin
BOOTHBY’S BLONDE
What a lovely name for an easy to grow and heavy cropping ridge cucumber – one that is allowed to grow on the ground. Very tasty small yellow fruit that you can harvest all summer long both under cover and outside.
MUNCHER
A hybrid commercial variety now widely sold as Mini-muncher. Small fruits with heavy crops that can be harvested over a long season. Not nearly as good as my Syrian cucumbers and you cannot save the seed, but recommended non-the-less