National Pickling Cucumber

Be sure to check out our Cucumber Growing Guide to learn more about how you can successfully grow cucumbers at home. National Pickling Cucumber was developed many decades ago by the National Pickle Packers Association as the standard cucumber variety for pickling. This open-pollinated, heirloom variety produces heavy yields of blunt, thick cucumbers that are dark green with black spines. The ends are slightly tapered so that they fit and pack into a pickle jar extremely well. This is a prolific variety with continued production and many harvests throughout the growing season. National Pickling Cucumber can be harvested at 2-3" for gherkin-style pickles, or allowed to reach 4-5" for fresh eating. At their peak quality and size, cucumbers are about 6" long. This is a great variety for making cucumber salads or fresh vegetable trays, but it is known for the high-quality pickles that can be made with them. Slice them to make traditional hamburger chip pickles, or quarter them to make delic