Most flowers on cucumbers are male and don’t produce fruit. Fruit-producing female flowers appear later. Cucumbers may not fruit due to poor pollination, extreme weather, or inconsistent watering. If ...

The bitterness in cucumbers (and some other vegetables like zucchini) comes from cucurbitacin, a chemical the plants produce as a defense against environmental stress and wildlife. In the wild, the ...

With crop rotation, you avoid planting the same vegetables in the same places every year. In fact, Iowa State University Extension notes that “For crop rotation to be most effective, gardeners should ...

Cucumbers are among the most popular garden vegetables, and growing them can be rewarding and delicious. Cucumbers thrive in Iowa’s warm summer and quickly produce a bounty of fresh, homegrown ...

Q: Last year, my cucumber plants kept wilting, no matter how moist the soil was. How can I help them fare better this year? A: You probably ran into bacterial wilt, a common disease that affects ...

Cucumber leaves turning yellow indicate that the cucumber plants are stressed by pests, diseases, or other factors. Taking action at the first signs of leaf yellowing increases the chances that the ...