Crop Profiles provide current agricultural data to government agencies (EPA and United States Department of Agriculture [USDA] Office of Pest Management Policy [OPMP]), IR-4, State lead agencies, Extension, farmers, agricultural commodity organizations, health professionals, and others with an encyclopedia of crop production and pest management information for U.S. agricultural crops on a state-by-state basis.

Six contributors from North Carolina State University (Ryan Adams, Wendy Britton, Katherine Jennings, Lina Quesada-Ocampo, Jonathan Schultheis, and James Walgenbach) have released a new full crop profile for the NC cucumber. The profile details worker activities; production practices, counties, and facts; pests including insects, pathogens, weeds, nematodes, and mites. Each pest is outlined by name (common and scientific), importance, symptoms, chemical controls, products/brands, biological controls, physical controls, and cultural controls.

Chemical controls are also outlined in detail including fumigant, fungicide, herbicide, insecticide, miticide, and nematicide. Each chemical control has active ingredient(s), a description, brands, CAS, PC, Pests, REI, PHI, and FRAC.

Key Facts:

• North Carolina is ranked #3 in cucumber production (processing and fresh market) in the U.S. and in 2020 represented 11% of total U.S. production.
• Over 90% of the North Carolina counties grow and sell commercial cucumbers.
• Cucumber beetles and pickleworms are the most important pests of cucumbers in North Carolina.
• Other pests exist but are not limiting factors in cucumber production in most years.
• Cucumbers are grown in two production seasons (spring and summer), and the average time from seeding to first harvest is 36 to 45 days.
• Cucumbers are adapted to a wide range of soils, but grow best on fertile, well-drained, loamy soils.
• Soil pH should be between 6 and 6.5.
• Pollination of cucumber flowers by bees is important for production of quality fruit. Both honeybees and bumble bees serve as excellent pollinators.
• In North Carolina, most cucumbers are hand harvested.