Template:Short description {{#invoke:other uses|otheruses}} Template:Pp-move Template:Pp-semi-indef Template:Use dmy dates Template:Speciesbox
The cucumber (Cucumis sativus) is a widely-cultivated creeping vine plant in the family Cucurbitaceae that bears cylindrical to spherical fruits, which are used as culinary vegetables.<ref name="Encyclopedia Britannica">"Cucumber." Encyclopædia Britannica. [1998] 2019.</ref> Considered an annual plant,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> there are three main types of cucumber—slicing, pickling, and seedless—within which several cultivars have been created. The cucumber originates in Asia extending from India, Nepal, Bangladesh, China (Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangxi), and Northern Thailand,<ref name="nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Plant Breeding Reviews">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name=powo>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="tandfonline.com">Template:Cite journal</ref> but now grows on most continents, and many different types of cucumber are grown commercially and traded on the global market. In North America, the term wild cucumber refers to plants in the genera Echinocystis and Marah, though the two are not closely related.
DescriptionEdit
The cucumber is a creeping vine that roots in the ground and grows up trellises or other supporting frames, wrapping around supports with thin, spiraling tendrils.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The plant may also root in a soilless medium, whereby it will sprawl along the ground in lieu of a supporting structure. The vine has large leaves that form a canopy over the fruits.Template:Citation needed
The fruit of typical cultivars of cucumber is roughly cylindrical, but elongated with tapered ends, and may be as large as Template:Convert long and Template:Convert in diameter.<ref name="ZhangLi2019">Template:Cite journal</ref>
Cucumber fruits consist of 95% water (see nutrition table). In botanical terms, the cucumber is classified as a pepo, a type of botanical berry with a hard outer rind and no internal divisions. However, much like tomatoes and squashes, it is often perceived, prepared, and eaten as a vegetable.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Flowering and pollinationEdit
Most cucumber cultivars are seeded and require pollination. For this purpose, thousands of honey beehives are annually carried to cucumber fields just before bloom. Cucumbers may also be pollinated via bumblebees and several other bee species. Most cucumbers that require pollination are self-incompatible, thus requiring the pollen of another plant in order to form seeds and fruit.<ref name="Nonnecke">Template:Cite book</ref> Some self-compatible cultivars exist that are related to the 'Lemon cucumber' cultivar.<ref name="Nonnecke" />
A few cultivars of cucumber are parthenocarpic, the blossoms of which create seedless fruit without pollination, which degrades the eating quality of these cultivar. In the United States, these are usually grown in greenhouses, where bees are excluded. In Europe, they are grown outdoors in some regions, where bees are likewise excluded.Template:Citation needed
Traditional cultivars produce male blossoms first, then female, in about equivalent numbers. Newer gynoecious hybrid cultivars produce almost all female blossoms. They may have a pollenizer cultivar interplanted, and the number of beehives per unit area is increased, but temperature changes induce male flowers even on these plants, which may be sufficient for pollination to occur.<ref name="Nonnecke" />
In 2009, an international team of researchers announced they had sequenced the cucumber genome.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
A study of genetic recombination during meiosis in cucumber provided a high resolution landscape of meiotic DNA double strand-breaks and genetic crossovers.<ref name = Wang2023>Template:Cite journal</ref> The average number of crossovers per chromosome per meiosis was 0.92 to 0.99.<ref name = Wang2023/>
Herbivore defenseEdit
Phytochemicals in cucumbers may discourage natural foraging by herbivores, such as insects, nematodes or wildlife.<ref name="shang">Template:Cite journal</ref> As a possible defense mechanism, cucumbers produce cucurbitacin C,<ref name=":0a">Template:Cite journal</ref> which causes a bitter taste in some cucumber varieties. This potential mechanism is under preliminary research to identify whether cucumbers are able to deter herbivores and environmental stresses by using an intrinsic chemical defense, particularly in the leaves, cotyledons, pedicel, carpopodium, and fruit.<ref name=":0a" /><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Nutrition, aroma, and tasteEdit
Raw cucumber (with peel) is 95% water, 4% carbohydrates, 1% protein, and contains negligible fat. A Template:Convert reference serving provides Template:Convert of food energy. It has a low content of micronutrients: it is notable only for vitamin K, at 14% of the Daily Value (table).
Depending on variety, cucumbers may have a mild melon aroma and flavor, in part resulting from unsaturated aldehydes, such as Template:Nowrap, and the cis- and trans- isomers of 2-nonenal.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The slightly bitter taste of cucumber rind results from cucurbitacins.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Research from 2018 found that polyphenol content was higher in unpeeled cucumbers.<ref>Yunusa, Alkasim & Dandago, Munir Abba & Ibrahim, Sa’adatu & Abdullahi, Nura & Tsoho, Adamu Usman & Barde, Aminu. (2018). Total Phenolic Content and Antioxidant Capacity of Different Parts of Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.). Acta Universitatis Cibiniensis. Series E: Food Technology. 22. 13-20. 10.2478/aucft-2018-0008.</ref>
VarietiesEdit
In general cultivation, cucumbers are classified into three main cultivar groups: slicing, pickling, and seedless/burpless.
Culinary usesEdit
FruitEdit
SlicingEdit
Cucumbers grown to eat fresh are called slicing cucumbers. The main varieties of slicers mature on vines with large leaves that provide shading.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Slicers grown commercially for the North American market are generally longer, smoother, more uniform in color, and have much tougher skin. In contrast, those in other countries, often called European cucumbers, are smaller and have thinner, more delicate skin, often with fewer seeds, thus are often sold in plastic skin for protection. This variety may also be called a telegraph cucumber, particularly in Australasia.<ref>Cucumber – 5+ a day, New Zealand Retrieved 18 May 2018</ref>
PicklingEdit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}
Pickling with brine, sugar, vinegar, and spices creates various flavored products from cucumbers and other foods.<ref name="avi">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Although any cucumber can be pickled, commercial pickles are made from cucumbers specially bred for uniformity of length-to-diameter ratio and lack of voids in the flesh. Those cucumbers intended for pickling, called picklers, grow to about Template:Convert long and Template:Convert wide. Compared to slicers, picklers tend to be shorter, thicker, less-regularly shaped, and have bumpy skin with tiny white or black-dotted spines. Color can vary from creamy yellow to pale or dark green.Template:Citation needed
GherkinEdit
Gherkins, also called cornichons,<ref name="kitchn">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> or baby pickles, are small cucumbers, typically those Template:Convert in length, often with bumpy skin, which are typically used for pickling.<ref name="zon">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="wifss">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="india">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The word gherkin comes from the early modern Dutch gurken or augurken ('small pickled cucumber').<ref>Template:Cite dictionary</ref> The term is also used in the name for Cucumis anguria, the West Indian gherkin, a closely related species.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
BurplessEdit
Burpless cucumbers are sweeter and have a thinner skin than other varieties of cucumber. They are reputed to be easy to digest and to have a pleasant taste. They can grow as long as Template:Convert, are nearly seedless, and have a delicate skin. Most commonly grown in greenhouses, these parthenocarpic cucumbers are often found in grocery markets, shrink-wrapped in plastic. They are marketed as either burpless or seedless, as the seeds and skin of other varieties of cucumbers are said to give some people gas.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
ShootsEdit
Cucumber shoots are regularly consumed as a vegetable, especially in rural areas. In Thailand they are often served with a crab meat sauce. They can also be stir fried or used in soups.<ref name= "Cook's Guide" >Template:Cite book</ref>
ProductionEdit
| Cucumber production – 2022 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Country | Template:Small | |
| Template:CHN | 77.3 | |
| {{#invoke:flag | Turkey}} | 1.9 |
| {{#invoke:flag | }} | 1.6 |
| Template:MEX | 1.1 | |
| World | 94.7 | |
| Source: FAOSTAT of the United Nations<ref name="faostat">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation | CitationClass=web
}}</ref> | |
In 2022, world production of cucumbers and gherkins was 95 million tonnes, led by China with 82% of the total.<ref name=faostat/>
Cultivation historyEdit
Cultivated for at least 3,000 years, the cultivated cucumbers "Cucumis sativus" were domesticated in India from wild "C. sativus var. hardwickii".<ref name="nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com"/><ref name="Plant Breeding Reviews"/><ref name="tandfonline.com"/> where a great many varieties have been observed, along with its closest living relative, Cucumis hystrix.<ref>Asian News International. 21 July 2010. "Cucumber, melon's common ancestor originated in Asia." NewsTrack India. Retrieved on 4 June 2020.</ref> 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.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> 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.<ref name="Encyclopedia Britannica" /><ref name="Renner 2007">Template:Cite journal </ref><ref name="Doijode">Doijode, S. D. 2001. Seed storage of horticultural crops. Haworth Press. Template:ISBN. p. 281.</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Roman EmpireEdit
According to Pliny the Elder, the Emperor Tiberius had the cucumber on his table daily during summer and winter. In order to have it available for his table every day of the year, the Romans reportedly used artificial growing methods (similar to the greenhouse system) using mirrorstone, Pliny's lapis specularis, believed to have been sheet mica:<ref name="AncientInventions">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Pliny the Elder. [77–79 AD] 1855. "Vegetables of a Cartilaginous Nature—Cucumbers. Pepones Template:Webarchive." Ch. 23 in The Natural History XIX, translated by J. Bostock and H. T. Riley. London: Taylor & Francis. – via Perseus under PhiloLogic, also available via Perseus Project.</ref>
<templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" />
Indeed, he was never without it; for he had raised beds made in frames upon wheels, by means of which the cucumbers were moved and exposed to the full heat of the sun; while, in winter, they were withdrawn, and placed under the protection of frames glazed with mirrorstone.{{#if:Pliny the Elder"Vegetables of a Cartilaginous Nature—Cucumbers. Pepones"Natural History XIX.xxiii|{{#if:|}}
— {{#if:|, in }}Template:Comma separated entries}}
{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Blockquote with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | author | by | char | character | cite | class | content | multiline | personquoted | publication | quote | quotesource | quotetext | sign | source | style | text | title | ts }}
Reportedly, they were also cultivated in specularia, cucumber houses glazed with oiled cloth.<ref name="AncientInventions" /> Pliny describes the Italian fruit as very small, probably like a gherkin. He also describes the preparation of a medication known as elaterium. However, some scholarsTemplate:Who believe that he was instead referring to Ecballium elaterium, known in pre-Linnean times as Cucumis silvestris or Cucumis asininus ('wild cucumber' or 'donkey cucumber'), a species different from the common cucumber.<ref>Pliny the Elder, Natural History XX.iii Template:Webarchive.</ref> Pliny also writes about several other varieties of cucumber, including the cultivated cucumber,<ref>Pliny the Elder, Natural History XX.iv Template:Webarchive–v Template:Webarchive.</ref> and remedies from the different types (9 from the cultivated; 5 from the "anguine;" and 26 from the "wild").
Middle AgesEdit
Charlemagne had cucumbers grown in his gardens in the 8th/9th century. They were reportedly introduced into England in the early 14th century, lost, then reintroduced approximately 250 years later. The Spaniards (through the Italian Christopher Columbus) brought cucumbers to Haiti in 1494. In 1535, Jacques Cartier, a French explorer, found "very great cucumbers" grown on the site of what is now Montreal.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Early-modern ageEdit
Throughout the 16th century, European trappers, traders, bison hunters, and explorers bartered for the products of American Indian agriculture. The tribes of the Great Plains and the Rocky Mountains learned from the Spanish how to grow European crops. The farmers on the Great Plains included the Mandan and Abenaki. They obtained cucumbers and watermelons from the Spanish, and added them to the crops they were already growing, including several varieties of corn and beans, pumpkins, squash, and gourd plants.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The Iroquois were also growing them when the first Europeans visited them.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
In 1630, the Reverend Francis Higginson produced a book called New-Englands Plantation in which, describing a garden on Conant's Island in Boston Harbor known as The Governor's Garden, he states:<ref>Higginson, Francis. [1630] 1906. New-Englands Plantation. Salem, MA: Essex Book and Print Club. Template:OCLC. p. 5.</ref>
The countrie aboundeth naturally with store of roots of great Template:Sic and good to eat. Our turnips, parsnips, and carrots are here both bigger and sweeter than is ordinary to be found in England. Here are store of pompions, cowcumbers, and other things of that nature which I know not...
In New England Prospect (1633, England), William Wood published observations he made in 1629 in America:<ref>Wood, William. (1634). "Of the Hearbes, Fruites, Woods, Waters and Mineralls", pp. 13–18 in New England Prospect. London.</ref>
Age of Enlightenment and laterEdit
In the later 17th century, a prejudice developed against uncooked vegetables and fruits. A number of articles in contemporary health publications stated that uncooked plants brought on summer diseases and should be forbidden to children. The cucumber kept this reputation for an inordinate period of time, "fit only for consumption by cows," which some believe is why it gained the name, cowcumber.Template:Citation needed
Samuel Pepys wrote in his diary on 22 August 1663:<ref>Saturday 22 August 1663 (Pepys' Diary). Pepysdiary.com. Retrieved on 25 November 2012.</ref>
[T]his day Sir W. Batten tells me that Mr. Newburne is dead of eating cowcumbers, of which the other day I heard of another, I think.
John Evelyn in 1699 wrote that the cucumber, 'however dress'd, was thought fit to be thrown away, being accounted little better than poyson (poison)'.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
According to 18th-century British writer Samuel Johnson, it was commonly said among English physicians that a cucumber "should be well sliced, and dressed with pepper and vinegar, and then thrown out, as good for nothing."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
A copper etching made by Maddalena Bouchard between 1772 and 1793 shows this plant to have smaller, almost bean-shaped fruits, and small yellow flowers. The small form of the cucumber is figured in Herbals of the 16th century, however stating that "[i]f hung in a tube while in blossom, the Cucumber will grow to a most surprising length."Template:Citation needed
GalleryEdit
- Organic Gardener Holding a Fresh Salad Cucumber.jpg
Salad cucumber
- An Indian yellow cucumber.jpg
An Indian yellow cucumber
- Kurkkuja.jpg
A Scandinavian cucumber in slices
- Cucumber grated.jpg
Grated cucumber
- Komkommer (Cucumis sativus 'Gele Tros').jpg
Komkommer (Cucumis sativus 'Gele Tros')
- Hmong cucumber.jpg
A varietal grown by the Hmong people with textured skin and large seeds
- Lemon cucumber J1.JPG
Lemon cucumber
- Mizeria.jpg
Dish with cucumber cut pieces (mizeria)
- PicklingCucumbers.jpg
Pickling cucumbers
- Spreewaldgurke2.jpg
Gherkins
- Leaves of Cucumber (a creeping vine plant).jpg
Leaves
- Cucumber vine in New Jersey.jpg
A tendril emerges from cucumber vines to facilitate climbing
- Cucumbers growing on a string lattice structure.jpg
A string lattice supports vine growth
- Cucumber plants.jpg
Cucumber plant
- Harvested vegetables(Cucumbers).jpg
Harvested Cucumber among other vegetables
- Harvested vegetables(Tomatoes, Cucumbers and Aubergine) 2.jpg
Harvested cucumber among other vegetables
See alsoEdit
- Armenian cucumber, a variety of melon that resembles a cucumber
- Cucumber blessing
- Cucumber cake
- Cucumber juice
- Cucumber raita
- Cucumber sandwich
- Cucumber soda
- Cucumber soup
- Sea cucumber, named for its resemblance to the fruit