One of the crops a farmer can do for a quick return on investment is the cucumber.
In less than 60 days you will be harvesting.
Cucumber is a high value crop that does well in a greenhouse environment.
The good thing about cucumbers is that there are so many varieties that farmers can choose to pursue and master.
However, the English cucumber is the most popular because of its outstanding field performance.
Specialise
English cucumbers are sweet, slender, straight and have fewer, less noticeable seeds than many other cucumbers. You’ll also see them called greenhouse cucumbers, hot house cucumbers, European cucumbers and seedless cucumbers.
English cucumbers are about 14 inches long and about 1-1/2 to 2 inches in diameter. They’re grown off the ground, hanging or on a trellis, to get their characteristic shape. They’re also self-pollinating, which allows them to be grown indoors in greenhouses because they don’t need bees, animals or wind to help them produce seeds and fruit.
Cucumbers aren’t the only produce that comes in an English variety. There are English parsnips, watercress, lavender and thyme, too. And English cucumbers are just one of many with a country- or region-specific name. Here are some other cucumber varieties you may have heard of, especially if you’re a gardener:
Japanese cucumber
Armenian cucumber
Persian cucumber
Mediterranean cucumber
Chinese cucumber
Mexican sour cucumber
Brown Russian cucumber
Parisian cucumber
The quickest way to identify an English cucumber at the grocery store is by its shrink wrap.
These thin-skinned fruits need the extra protection of plastic so they don’t get bruised or dried out in transit. Tender skin is one of the reasons English cucumbers are less bitter than other varieties. And the plastic is in lieu of the wax coating you’ll often find on American slicing cukes.
The money side
Cucumbers are a get rich quick crop in that it is easily absolved by the market.
Some cucumbers are ready for harvest in 45 days depending on agriculture practices.
A cucumber plant can give you an average of 12 fruits. On the market, averagely, a cucumber is going for US$0,60.
Retailers are paying US$0.30 per cucumber whilst supermarkets are selling at US$1 per cucumber.
Depending on how many crops you have, you stand a chance to make good money.
Gwabanayi is a practising journalist. — 077 286 5703