Jean, Thank you for the notes!

I agree about their size. :( I didn't realize how puny they were until I saw my friend's cucumber plants which she planted only about a month ago. But she is already in the middle of her second harvest, when we have only had one (fruitless) flowering! Below is a picture of how they normally look. 2/5 plants are affected by these issues.

We didn't do very much to the soil before planting. It was mostly clay when we installed the raised bed boards, so we dug it out a few inches to get more depth.

The garden bed is probably about 6" deep from the top soil down to where we dug it out to the hard clay-like soil underneath.

They were seeded, in late February / early March. I don't know the exact seed date. We are in Houston, TX at hardiness zone 8b/9a.

The soil mix we used was store-bought raised-bed garden mix, from Miracle-Gro's Nature Care line (link). We filled initially with that, and the topped it off with potting mix of the same brand, sprinkling as needed when the soil settled and/or roots became exposed.

We haven't fertilized at all, except for putting in some of these fertilizer sticks when they were younger and we still had them lying on the ground.

Again, thank you for the advice!

many GWs do not perfer MG soils ...

and i am concerned your soil? is not deep enough .. and wonder how it drains with the clay below ...

that said.. i gave up on cukes long ago ... they are a PIA crop and not worth the effort ... and yes.. i also had neighbors who's thrived ... and i still hate them .... lol ... actuallly.. they gave me the few i needed ... and that was a lie ... lol

dont give up on growing stuff.. just because cukes can be a PIA.. ken

No fertilizer is one of the problems.

Shallow root depth, thus also insufficient moisture, are likely to be additional problems for the plants.

Soil depth should be minimum 8 inches -- i.e. the depth you can turn with a shovel or garden fork. Deeper is better.

The general process for seasonal flower and /or veggies is this:

- Dig the soil when it is moist, neither dry nor wet.

- Mix in at least 2 inches of compost. (Repeat with each successive planting season.)

- rake smooth

- distribute a granular veggie (or flower) fertilizer, the amount according to label directions. (Generally similar to a light salting of your dinner.)

- rake the fertilizer into the soil

- seed or transplant.

- follow up with sufficient water to moisten entire root zones.

Thank you, Ken! I will not give up.

Jean, What would you suggest for a fertilizer type/regimen? I bought some 5-1-1 fish fertilizer to mix with the water but I haven't used it yet.

Another option would be for us to dig out the bed to 10" deep, and follow the process you described above.

We water thoroughly every day. Always keeping the soil dark, which can be hard to do in these Houston summers! Admittedly, we didn't start out watering every day, so they probably had some effect on their growth. There is also a limited amount of sun in their area. The plants on the left hand side of the photo have more than the plants on the right.

I also have more of these seeds. Is it too late in the season for us to try a new planting? These are "Lemon Crystal" cucumbers that we got as a gift.

When to plant which crops can be a very local issue. The same goes for soil management.

Questions re when to plant should be directed to your county"s Extension service office. The Master Gardeners there have accurate info for your soil and climate.

Harris County Extension; Phone:281-855-5600 Web:http://harris.agrilife.org/