The netting isn't very clear in your picture. I start hills of cucs with a cage support and then allow to climb onto netting. I just unrolled this AM for my single row of inside cucs. I can't sell more than 10 by of cucs at any of my markets.

Love the idea. Thank you for sharing. The trellis material is green, and it was early morning. What advantage do you see in doing your trellis this way as opposed to the trellis going all the way to the ground?

Also what is "10 by" ? Bushels?

Yes, bushels. Typo. The mesh netting I purchased years ago at auction is only 4 ft. High and I want it positioned higher because as cucumbers grow they quickly reach the top and then start climbing everywhere. If mesh were 6 ft. High I would still keep higher although I have always planted cucs in end row where plastic ceiling is almost reachable. I prefer to pick most cucs from the outside although that just isn't possible. When I pick inside I will frequently set full containers between cages to retrieve from the outside; I couldn't do that if the mesh went to the ground.

Placing cages is a bit tricky because I have 2 driplines 10" apart for watering cucs. I've already punctured a line but managed to get cages in this year without problems. You probably also water the night prior to market; it really makes plump cucumbers.

Guess I should clarify since I noticed you are growing picklers; I don't grow picklers, at least not inside tunnels. I market 99% of my cucumbers by the piece (always picked the morning of market day). Tasty Green and Tasty Jade are what I plant in tunnels. I am selling plants and will plant a burpless pickler, Ballerina. This is the variety you at least should consider.

Ballerina looks just like Vertina, the variety I really like. I haven't found much info, only pictures.

We sell slicers, not the long burpless varieties. I prefer to sell the picklers because they produce more and I get more for them. We sell them for $2.50 a pound and rarely bring any home. Also our older customers by 5-7 each week, one for each day and they aren't wasted.

Jay

10 bushels of cucumbers would be tons for me. 48 pounds to a bushel, so about 1 lb per cuc,(crazy guess) so about 48+ times 10 = 480-500 cucumbers a market? If I sell 125-150 slicing cucumbers each Saturday, I am happy. Sometimes I feel as if people from other parts of this country would laugh at my markets. I don't even think I compare to some of you.

Your assessment is probably accurate for most of us marketing cucumbers. Cucumber production comes in like a bell curve; it rises rapidly to a peak that exceeds sales prospects and then declines gradually over the next 6-8 weeks. That is why I rely on followup plantings. It is during that peak in production that nobody wants more than they have been buying from the beginning purchases that we just simply can't stop picking. My wife tells me to plant less but then there aren't enough for beginnings and endings of that production curve.

I'm now getting to the point where my cucumber plants have no place to go so I suspect I should have another rotation planted.

The problem is that it has been too wet lately and I can't work other soil. I might just have to nurse this crop along and suffer lost production as these peak out and start to decline in production.

Mine have reached the top of the building and are blooming and producing very well. I have another planting to put a 60 foot row in another building. That should carry production into the early fall, I hope. It worked last year. Then I will need to start prepping for fall and winter production.

I understand your issues with rain. That was my problem for the month of May and early June. I should have several hundred zucchini producing all colors, sizes and shapes. I am still picking the original 150 in the movable high tunnel and production is starting to drop off. I started hundreds of zucchini, cucumbers, and melons several weeks ago and they are ready to plant. My problem now is we are straight to summer temps now. 95-105 with heat index of 105-115. It is HOT! I will be transplanting these guys straight into the ground and water like heck. All the ground I did prep for melons has terrible weeds in it an black plastic mulch down. I am going to pull it up, retill and start over and put down white plastic. Sometimes you win other times you don't. The winter squash I planted on white plastic before we left on vacation for a week, are doing really well.

Here are what mine look like. I just picked 75 pounds tonight.

I picked over 20 from this one location. You can't see all the ones below or above.