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Vegetables · Vine

Growing cucumber

Cucumis sativus · also called Khira, KheeraA fast-growing warm-season vine producing crisp, hydrating fruits.

Temperate Himalaya: Kashmir valley, Shimla, Kullu, Uttarakhand hills

Our team has checked this guide against the sources at the end of the page.Includes AI suggestions where no published guide covers a detail
Green cucumbers lying on the soil among the vines, with yellow flowers
Photo: Stephen Ausmus, USDA ARS · PDM

At a glance

Cucumber in the Temperate Himalaya

  • Season

    Spring to summer, sown in April and May4

  • Sowing to last picking

    About 80 to 100 days from sowing to the last picking.

    No published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

  • Sow

    April to May4

    Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

  • First harvest

    50 to 55 days after sowing3

    Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

Across India

When to sow it

Twelve growing regions, January to December. Your region comes first.

Wait until April

The next sowing here is April to May.

Sowing now in:West coast
  • Sow
  • Nursery
  • Transplant
  • Harvest
  • Under cover
  • Today
Temperate HimalayaKashmir valley, Shimla, KulluSub-tropical foothillsJammu, Kangra, DehradunCold desertLadakh, Lahaul and Spiti · Under cover only
Compare all 12 regions
Cold desertLadakh, Lahaul and Spiti · Under cover onlySub-tropical foothillsJammu, Kangra, DehradunNorth-west plainsPunjab, Haryana, DelhiGangetic plainseastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal plainsNorth-east hills and valleysAssam, Meghalaya, SikkimArid westRajasthan, Kutch, north GujaratCentral plateauMadhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, VidarbhaDeccan plateauinterior Maharashtra, Telangana, north KarnatakaSouth interiorBengaluru, Mysuru, interior Tamil NaduWest coastKerala, Goa, KonkanEast coastcoastal Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, coastal Andhra
Today
See the dates as a table
RegionSowNurseryTransplantHarvest
Temperate HimalayaApril to MayMid-June to July
Cold desertUnder cover onlyUnder cover: April to mid-MayUnder cover: Mid-June to mid-September
Sub-tropical foothillsFebruary to MarchJune to JulyUnder cover: JanuaryUnder cover: First half of JanuaryUnder cover: Last week of December to first week of JanuaryUnder cover: By the first half of February
North-west plainsFebruary to MarchJune to JulyUnder cover: Mid-NovemberUnder cover: Mid-SeptemberUnder cover: JanuaryUnder cover: First week of OctoberUnder cover: First half of February
Gangetic plainsMid to late FebruaryLate June
North-east hills and valleysFebruary to mid-April
Arid westFebruary to mid-MarchLate June to July
Central plateauMid-January to FebruaryJune to mid-July
Deccan plateauJune to July
South interiorJuneJanuary to April
West coastJanuary to MarchSeptember to December
East coastJuneJanuary to April

From seed to harvest

One season, day by day

Days from sowing

  1. Before sowing

    Well-rotted organic manure3Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

    15 to 20 t per hectare · Work into the soil · Before field preparation

  2. Day 0

    Sow

    Vermicompost

    2 kg per m² · Mix into the top of the bed

  3. Day 5 to 7

    Seeds come up1,2,3,8Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

  4. Day 21

    Jeevamrut

    500 ml per plant · Pour round the base of the plant · Three weeks after sowing

  5. Day 50 to 55

    First picking3Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

    Pick every 2 to 3 days for 4 to 6 weeks.

  6. Day 80 to 100

    Last pickingNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Water every 2 to 3 days, more at flowering and fruiting.3Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

What it needs

Soil, sun and warmth

  • Soil pH1,2,3

    6.5 to 7.5

    Well-drained loam or sandy loam, rich in organic matter

  • SunlightNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

    At least 6 hours a day

    Full sun, at least 6 hours a day.

  • Temperature2,8

    Grows best at 18 to 24 °C

    Frost: none tolerated.

    Monthly temperatures for the Temperate Himalaya aren't in the library yet.

Water and feeding

Watering3Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

Water along the channels every 2 to 3 days, and more often at flowering and fruiting. Water lightly in rainy weather.

Weeding3

Hoe and hand weed two or three times, in and between the channels. Earth up twice, a month apart.

WhenWhatHow muchHow
Before field preparationWell-rotted organic manure15 to 20 t per hectareWork into the soil
At sowingVermicompost2 kg per m²Mix into the top of the bed
Three weeks after sowingJeevamrut500 ml per plantPour round the base of the plant

Sources3Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

Varieties and yield

Typical rangeNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

500 to 750 kg a kanal

Yields vary with the plot, the seed and the season.

Varieties grown here4,3

  • Japanese Long Green

    GBPUAT, Uttarakhand hills

  • Poinsett

    GBPUAT, Uttarakhand hills

  • Pusa Uday

    GBPUAT, Uttarakhand hills

  • Sheetal

    GBPUAT, Uttarakhand hills

  • Pant Kheera 1

    GBPUAT, Uttarakhand hills

  • Pusa Gynoecious Cucumber Hybrid-18

    IARI hybrid recommended by AICRP for Zone I (J&K, Himachal, Uttarakhand), spring-summer and kharif

Good neighboursNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Keep it away from

Pests and diseasesNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Organic and cultural controls only.

  • Pest

    Red pumpkin beetle

    Signs

    Orange beetles chew holes in the seed leaves and young leaves soon after the seed comes up.

    What to do

    • Pick the beetles off by hand in the early morning, when they move slowly.
    • Dust young plants with wood ash.

    Prevention

    • Cover young plants with fine net until the vines start to run.

  • Pest

    Aphid

    Signs

    Small soft insects cluster under the leaves and on shoot tips, and the leaves curl.

    What to do

    • Wash them off with a strong jet of water.
    • Spray a neem-based organic spray.

    Prevention

    • Leave ladybirds and other natural enemies alone.

  • Disease

    Powdery mildew

    Signs

    White powdery patches on the leaves, mostly in late summer.

    What to do

    • Pick off badly affected leaves.

    Prevention

    • Space the vines so air moves between them.
    • Water the soil, not the leaves.

  • Disease

    Downy mildew

    Signs

    Yellow angular spots on top of the leaf with grey down underneath, worst in wet weather.

    What to do

    • Remove affected leaves.

    Prevention

    • Water in the morning so the leaves dry before night.
    • Clear old vines after the crop.

Seed and the season's end

Saving seed2

Keep at least 1000 m between cucumber varieties so the seed stays true to type. Pull out off-type and sick plants.

When the seed is ready

Leave seed fruit on the vine until it turns brown.

Cleaning the seed

Scoop the pulp into fresh water and leave it one to two days. Rub the seed free by hand and keep the heavy seed that sinks.

After the last pickingNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Pull the vines out after the last picking in late July or August. Compost healthy vines and burn or bury diseased ones. Do not grow cucurbits in the same bed the next year.

Destroy old cucurbit vines so downy mildew has nowhere to overwinter.

Rotation

Where root knot nematode is a problem, rotate with rice, oats, wheat or taramira.

Growing under cover8Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

In the mid and high hills, plastic low tunnels cut damage from hail, cold, frost and strong wind. In the valley, an early crop can be sown under a low tunnel in late March and uncovered once the frost risk passes in late April.

From the shop

Linked from this guide by our team.

Sources

Where this comes from

Our team has checked this guide against the sources at the end of the page.Reviewed by our team on 13 November 2026.

These published guides are the sources. Where none of them covers a detail for this region, the page shows an AI suggestion and labels it.

  1. 1Cucumber: crop production guide (Horticulture, vegetables)TNAU Agritech Portal, Tamil Nadu Agricultural UniversityRead the source
  2. 3Pusa Gynoecious Cucumber Hybrid-18 (Indian Horticulture, May to June 2021, pages 40 to 43)ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Division of Vegetable Science (Munshi, Behera, Sureja, Tomar, Singh and Dey)Read the source
  3. 4Advisory for Kharif Season in Uttarakhand (2 May 2020)G B Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Directorate of Extension EducationRead the source
  4. 8Package of Practices for Vegetable Crops 2020 (chapter 6, Cucumber; cucurbit pest and disease management; hybrids; cropping systems; protected and river bed cultivation)Directorate of Extension, SKUAST-JammuRead the source

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