Straight 8 - Cucumber

Cucumis Sativus

Story:  As the name suggests, this cucumber is touted as being a uniform producer, making straight, 8 inch, smooth cucumbers. The Straight Eight cucumber was first developed in the early 1900s by a man named J.H. Gregory who was looking for a way to create a cucumber that was easier to ship and store. It won the All American Selections produce for its category in 1935.

We grew it for the first time outdoors in 2023 and it got its roots eaten by chafer grubs so only got to harvest a few. Try it out - maybe in a greenhouse or polytunnel and let us know how it did for you.

When to sow: March - April indoors

Requirements: nutrient-rich soil, regular watering, and a lot of sun.

When to harvest seed: July-Oct

Need to isolate: Yes, or hand pollination of flowers

Seed Grown: Omved Gardens 

Seed harvested: 2023

Saving seed: Cucumbers cross readily with other cucumbers so either need to be isolated (Eg: grown in a polytunnel or greenhouse far away from other varieties). Or the flowers need to be hand pollinated so that they do not cross pollinate (Video coming soon). Once hand pollinated, allow the pollinated fruits to grow way beyond eating size, they will change colour (depending on variety). Once the vines begin to die back, bring the hand pollinated fruits inside and store them in a cool, dry place for two weeks (this helps the seeds fully mature). Cut the fruits open, scoop out the seeds (watch our video on this), wash and dry fully. Package, label and date. Save as many seeds as you can to share with friends, family and of course seen networks. 

Sending seed back: Please label all seed with variety, type, date and your contact, if you didn't get a chance to fill out our online data collection form, you can also send us a few lines about how it grew for you/flavour etc. A guideline amount of seed to send back to The Seed Saving Network is 1 tablespoon or more (about one cucumber fruit's worth). Send to: Omved Gardens, 1 Townsend Yard, N6 5JF.Image courtesy of the Incredible Seed Library. 

Please remember, if you’re an individual grower you can order up to 3 packets of seeds. If you order more than this, you will receive just three packs to begin with. This is to ensure we get plenty of data in return and to keep our stocks sustainable for years to come.* 

*Community groups and Experienced Growers can order larger quantities, please email us if this is the case.

If an item is out of stock we will send a close alternative.