Cucumber ‘Fanfare’

Cucumber 'Fanfare' (All-America Selections photo)

* Common name: Cucumber ‘Fanfare’

* Botanical name: Cucumis sativus ‘Fanfare’

* What it is: An award-winning cucumber variety that produces a heavy yield of non-bitter, 8-inch-long, slender slicing fruits on disease-resistant vines that are more compact than most cuke varieties.

* Size: Grown up a fence or trellis, 4 to 6 feet tall.

* Where to use: Mainly vegetable gardens, but compact enough for use in pots. Best production in full sun.

* Care: Plant seed directly in garden in early May and then every 2 weeks through June for a continuous harvest. Keep soil consistently damp. Work compost into soil at planting, then scatter a balanced organic fertilizer around the base every 3 or 4 weeks. Cukes are best trellised rather than let to sprawl over the soil. Watch for and control cucumber beetles.

* Great partner: Beets or carrots.