220 CALIFORNIA VEGETABLES 



Cucumbers Under Cover. Very little is done in California in 

 house-growing of cucumbers. A little forcing is done by market 

 gardeners, but the business is risky because of the slight demand 

 and the fact that open-air cucumbers from early regions come so 

 soon after the late crop from frostless places is disposed of. Grow- 

 ing under cover of glass or cloth is done without providing artifi- 

 cial heat. The natural temperatures and protection from frost are 

 relied upon. It is quite common to start plants under cover, and 

 plant out early even at risk of replanting. Growers usually keep a 

 stock of plants ready for this purpose. 



Garden Culture of Cucumbers. In the garden very elaborate 

 arrangements may be made to secure early cucumbers. Growing 

 the plants on inverted sod and planting out as a whole hill, as de- 

 scribed in Chapter XI, is satisfactory. Planting on the sides of 

 ditches has already been mentioned. Growing hills or single plants 

 in tin cans or other receptacles and protecting them until safe to 

 plant out is also an easy way to get an earlier crop than otherwise. 

 This method is in fact employed on quite a large scale by Chinese 

 growers in the Marysville region of the Sacramento valley in this 

 way : About the latter third of February, the time varying with the 

 season, the seeds are planted in old tin cans that have otherwise out- 

 lived their usefulness, to give the plants a good start in spite of 

 frosts. Rich soil with lots of manure is used in the cans, and after 

 the plants are a couple of inches high, and weather permits, the cans 

 are split open so as to let the roots out without disturbing the soil, 

 and set out in raised beds, where they start bearing about the mid- 

 dle of May. The cucumbers are picked every morning and are 

 well irrigated and the next morning are ready to pick again. They 

 have about a two months start in the market over the bay districts 

 and the San Joaquin truck gardens. 



Some use is made of deep holes partly filled with tramped horse 

 manure and then with earth, and growing plants on top of the hill 

 thus formed, protected with glass or cloth. With such arrange- 

 ments double care must be had to supply enough water. The south 

 side of a fence or building is a good place for fast spring growth. 

 In short, moderate heat, copious watering and rich soil are the se- 

 crets of good cucumbers, and there is much chance for ingenuity in 

 securing these conditions. 



For Pickling. Cucumbers for pickling are largely grown in 

 the early autumn from midsummer planting. As stated before, 



