I counted last year’s cucumber harvest on one hand. It was dismal. Whether it was the up-and-down weather, an unhealthy plant or a combination of the two, my cucumber was a disappointment. This year, however, will be the year of cucumber overload. I’m growing a variety that predicts a bushel of cucumbers—it’s even in the variety name! It’s called Pick A Bushel Cucumber.

I had gotten the seeds from my friend Diane Blazek, who is the executive director of All-America Selections (AAS). AAS is an organization that trials and selects varieties with proven garden performance. She had given me seeds for a bunch of different AAS Winners, including Pick A Bushel, which won the award for the Heartland and Great Lakes regions in 2014. What made Pick A Bushel a winner for the judges is that this variety sets fruits early. This is important for northern gardeners as they have a shortened summer growing season than their southern peers. Pick A Bushel is also a compact semi bush-type cucumber, meaning it doesn’t spread far, or about 2 ft. in this case. And lastly, the judges thought this variety was a prolific producer with crisp, sweet-tasting fruits that are just right for pickling.

Growing Pick A Bushel

Going against the seed packet’s advice of sowing the seeds directly into the ground after the last frost, I planted 2-3 seeds of Pick A Bushel in each of two 4-in. pots and put them under my lights in my indoor grow room. Somehow each and every seed germinated. Great news! But when you’re promised a bounty from just one plant, do you really need more than five plants?

I planted the cucumber plants outside the last week in May. By that time they had formed a good-sized plant, maybe 4-5 in. tall and already producing curly-cue vines. Although not a variety that spreads a lot, I have them growing up an incline of netting to save space in my small garden. They are correct, the variety doesn’t spread much and has more of a mounding habit. By mid to late June we were harvesting cukes, much earlier than I expected. The packet says fruits will be ready within 50 days of sowing. I would say it didn’t take much longer than that.

They are also correct when they it’s a prolific producer. I’m not keeping up with the pickling, having only made two jars of refrigerator pickles so far. I have had them fresh in salads, and they are quite good. I don’t have bushel baskets to measure how many we’re getting but at this rate I am sure I will far exceed it. Unlike last year’s no-name cucumber that petered out, Pick A Bushel looks like a thriving plant with much more to give.