Admiring the most commonly pickled vegetable in all its varieties.

In This Podcast: Do you know the difference between a cucumber and a cucumber melon? Neither did Jay Tracy, but a conversation with a desert gardening guru helped him discover this tasty, drought-tolerant plant that is easy to grow in hot climates. Learn all about how to grow cucumber melons, how he avoids cross-pollination, and why landrace varieties are more resilient. Jay also shares some of his favorite varieties, his secrets for pre-sprouting vs direct seeding, and how to win some seeds!

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Jay began gardening in 2006 in Tucson Arizona, then moved to Fairfield, California for cooler weather and health reasons. In Fairfield, he has three large garden beds - one at home, two at nearby friends’ houses - and one greenhouse. His blog Scientificgardener.com is where he records his experiments and discusses his love of gardening.  

Early in his gardening life he found an interest in growing cucumbers and has experimented with common and not-so-common varieties, and with each success, he expands to even more rare varieties. Over time this hobby has expanded to a small business known as the Cucumber Shop. 

Visit www.urbanfarm.org/cucumbershop for the show notes on this episode, and access to our full podcast library!

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490: Jay Tracy on Cucumber Melons.