Cucumbers Turning Yellow?

It’s happened again. Lots of hot. Lots of dry. No rain and crunchy grass. Artichokes are beginning to bloom prematurely. Tomatoes are bursting their skins. Lettuce is bolting. And lots of fruit and vegetables are at risk of over ripening. Are your cucumbers turning yellow? Let’s take a look at what’s happening and what you can do.

Despite all of the concerning conditions, we’re not officially in a drought. Yet. (The Champlain Valley is indeed experiencing “abnormally dry” conditions resulting from below-average rainfall this summer. ) Nevertheless it’s proving necessary to supplement natural irrigation with our own. Glen and Tony spent time yesterday and today brainstorming watering solutions for the lawn, and we’ve increased our late night irrigation in the vegetable garden.

But a few cucumbers have already turned yellow.

Reduced moisture and elevated heat generally stresses crops, and cucumbers turning yellow (or orange) is a textbook example of what happens when these fruit over ripen. (Fruit? Yes, botanically cukes are fruit, and culinarily cukes are veggies.) And once cucumbers turn yellow, they’re too bitter to be palatable.

Bitter. It’s true. I taste tested just to make sure they were no longer suitable for human consumption. They aren’t, though our caretaker assured us that his wife can still turn them into pickles. (Source: Why Are My Cucumbers Orange?)

But before you flood your veggie patch in response to drought — or just leaving your cucumbers to languish on the vine too long before harvesting — “it’s worth noting that overwatering (or an extended period of rain) can also cause cucumbers to become yellow.”

Bottom line? Best to pick and pick often *before* your cucumbers start turning yellow.

Orange Yellow Cucumbers Riff

Knifing the crisp, crunchy
flesh on the bias, 
or end-to-end slivered, 
speared, crescent mooned, 
this orange cucumber is 
bellicose and celestial, 
a bursting chrysanthemum, 
a blazing headdress, 
a sun dried citrus slice, 
a September sunrise smeared 
across a mountain 
muddled horizon. 
The oranging skin 
is a warning: 
I’m overripe, 
too mature, 
untasty, even bitter,
 and I’m 100% unfit 
for human consumption.
— Geo Davis, "Orange Cucumbers Riff" (Source: Orange Cucumbers) 

Cucumber Curiosity

A decade ago, in early August 2015, I published, “Why Are My Cucumbers Orange?”, a post that quickly became popular. It remains popular to this day, and this time of years it’s often the most requested post on the entire website. Out of 1,366 posts published to date! Over the years I’ve offered a couple of follow-ups:

• Why Are My Cucumbers Orange?
• Why Are My Cucumbers Yellow?
• Orange Cucumbers
• See all cucumber related posts…

Why is this such a pressing concern? I guess we all love cucumbers!