I like to experiment saving seeds from food too. Its iffy, you cant be sure if the seeds are ripe or if the food is a goofy hybrid with whacko seeds. If you need to go for the sure thing, I think you can get seeds for a buck at the hardware store.

:)

Agree with the previous post - most store produce cukes are hybrids specifically bred for market and so will likely be either sterile hybrids or at best won't breed true. And there is also the problem that seeds can only mature while the fruit is on the vine. Once the fruit is picked the seed embryos cease development and the odds of that seed germinating is slim.

But, if you want to spend the time and effort and $ on the potting mix - go for it - you might get lucky. ;)

Cheap seeds are readily available and seed trades/exchanges are posted by the 100's on the exchange forums here. Check them out.

Dave

Thanks for the replies.

I suppose it does make sense just to buy some seeds. I'll look around sometime later next year when the seasons are right and expand my collection.

Regards,
Ailos

I planted a cucumber called "Spacemaster" this year from seeds I received in a trade. I had in addition to the cucumbers other varieties of vines planted in my garden so I didn't keep any seeds from my garden because of cross-pollination. I had given my sister several plants to plant in her garden. I asked her to allow two to go "to seed". They got almost orange before I picked them. I put the seeds in water to ferment them for a few days. Ailos, if you want a few seeds, click on my name and email me your address. They don't vine too much and they are 7 1/2 inches long.

dem_pa

Keep in mind that 1 pack of seeds, assuming you don't want 50 cuke plants at a time, will keep for several years when stored correctly. That's years of cukes from just one packet! ;)

Dave

Agree with previous posters. Store-bought cukes are immature... or one would hope so, since they are tastier that way. They will never develop seed, regardless of how long they are allowed to ripen. However, you might be able to find mature cukes in an Asian market... they just may look a little different than what you are used to.

As cucumbers ripen on the vine, they change color; but not always yellow (although most American cukes turn yellow). Some are orange, brown, reddish, or cream-colored.

If you intend to save seeds, there are two consideration:
(1) If the cuke is a hybrid, the next generation will be unstable, and most likely of inferior quality.
(2) If there are other cucumbers growing nearby, you will most likely have cross-pollination, unless you hand pollinate.