Suyo Long Cucumber
Cucumis sativus 'Suyo Long'
An heirloom Chinese cucumber with long, ribbed, sweet, bitter-free fruit that thrives in hot weather — about 61 days.
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‘Suyo Long’ is an open-pollinated heirloom Chinese cucumber that produces long, deeply ribbed fruit up to 15 inches. The flesh is sweet and bitter-free, and the plant takes summer heat in stride.
A heat-loving heirloom
Where many cucumbers sulk in hot weather, ‘Suyo Long’ keeps producing. The crisp, sweet fruit is excellent fresh in salads and equally good for pickling. This is a USDA Certified Organic, open-pollinated variety, so you can save your own seed.
Care tips
Grow the vines up a trellis to keep the long fruit straight and easy to harvest. Pick regularly to keep the plant productive.
Fun Fact
Cucumbers are technically fruits — they develop from a flower and contain seeds. 'Suyo Long' fruits can reach 15 inches and, unlike many cucumbers, grow sweeter rather than more bitter as they enlarge.
Habitat & form
Where it's from and what to expect.
- Native range
- South Asia (the species); this heirloom was developed in China
- Plant type
- Vegetable
- Mature size
- Fruit grows up to 15 in. long.
- Bloom
- Long, ribbed fruit up to 15 in.; about 61 days to harvest.
- Hardiness
- Warm-season annual; frost-tender — plant out only after all danger of frost has passed.
Care
How to keep it happy.
- Sunlight
- Full sun.
- Water
- Even, consistent moisture — about 1 in. of water per week. Irregular watering makes the fruit bitter and misshapen.
- Soil
- Rich, fertile, well-drained soil high in organic matter; slightly acidic to neutral pH (about 6.0–6.8).
- Pruning
- Maintenance: train the vine up a trellis and pinch off the lowest side shoots and leaves to improve airflow and keep the long fruit hanging straight.