Why Do Cucumbers Have Spikes?

on October 16, 2022

Cucumbers are one of the most popular summer fruits to eat in summer salads. As a result of this many people grow many different types of cucumbers in their garden at home during the summer. However, if you have grown your own cucumbers you may have noticed that some varieties tend to have spikes on them and you may be wondering why this is the case. And why don’t supermarket cucumbers have spines?

The vast majority of cucumber species that are available do have relatively small spines on the surface of the skin and for those that are old enough to remember cucumbers used to be sold commercially with spines on them up until about the late 80s when supermarkets began to remove them because they had greater consumer appeal

However, it is interesting to note that the preference for spines on cucumbers is something that is limited to western countries, in Asia the preference is for cucumbers with spines.

The main reason that cucumbers developed thorns or spikes was to reduce their attractiveness to animal life to discourage the fruits from being eaten too early on in the fruits life. This is important for the survival of plant species because if the seeds are not allowed to mature properly plants will not be able to propagate on an ongoing basis.

Additionally, this adaptation also often aids with the retention of moisture which is particularly important for cucumbers because they consist of 95% water.

In the case of cucumbers, which is an annual fruit that originated in the tropical rainforests at the base of the Himalayas, it is generally classified into four different groups which are the Indian group, the Eurasian group, the East Asian group, and the Chinese group. Due to the wide geographic location of these cucumbers, they have developed significantly different characteristics depending upon the region in which they have come.

For example, within the china group, generally, those that originated in the northern part of china have significantly more spines present than the ones that appeared in the southern parts of China.

How Are The Spines Remove From Cucumbers

The vast majority of cucumbers that are sold commercially are treated via machinery which is designed to wash and clean the skins of the cucumbers and in the process of doing this, the spines are removed due to the abrasive nature of the cleaning process. Cucumbers are coated with water and transferred through commercial washing stations using rollers which naturally remove the spines an example of this is shown in the short video below.

If you are growing cucumbers at home the spines on the outer part of the cucumber can be easily removed while wearing gardening gloves or alternatively using a wet towel to wipe the surface of the skin which is usually sufficient to remove spines in most cases.

However, there are some varieties of cucumber such as the African Horned Cucumber which have very large spikes and generally need to be removed with a knife to allow the cucumbers to be peeled before they can be eaten.

Are There Any Varieties Of Cucumbers That Don’t Have Any Spines?

While the majority of cucumber varieties available do have spines there are also a few varieties that have either no spines or very minimal amounts of spines which includes things like Lebanese cucumbers and also English greenhouse cucumbers which are specifically designed to be grown in greenhouses.

You will notice in most cases that these varieties will have relatively thin skins and do require additional protection when they are sold commercially which is why some cucumbers have a plastic wrapping around them while others do not.

How Do You Eat A Really Spiky Cucumber?

If you choose to grow a really spiky variety of cucumber you may be wondering how you go about eating it given that it has so many spikes. Typically, there are two methods that are commonly used. The first method is to simply cut the cucumber in half and then scoop out the flesh with a spoon.

The second method that is commonly used is to simply remove the spines with a knife and then peel the cucumbers which do take quite a bit longer but if you are wanting to cut up the cucumber into particular shapes. However, if the skin on the cucumber is really tough you may have to use a knife to remove it from the flesh.

Can You Eat The Skin Of Cucumbers With Spikes?

Whether you can eat the skin of cucumbers with spikes will greatly depend upon the particular variety of cucumbers that you are eating and how tough the outer skin actually is. The varieties of cucumbers that are available in the supermarket and are not covered in plastic are actually cucumbers that do have spikes on them when they are grown.

The skin of those types of cucumbers can be eaten quite happily though it is a little bit tougher than things like Lebanese cucumbers which have relatively thin skin that can easily be consumed.

However, there are some varieties of cucumbers that have skins that simply cannot be eaten as they are extremely thick and more akin to the skins you might see on cantaloupe or a rockmelon. These skins tend to be quite tough and are generally not that appetizing unless of course, you treat the skins in some way, such as pickling the fruit.

Do Thicker Skinned Varieties Of Cucumber Last Longer?

Thicker-skinned varieties of cucumber definitely do last longer than thin-skinned varieties. They generally resist becoming mushy for a longer period of time because they are able to hold the moisture within the cucumber in for longer without deteriorating.

Generally, to maximize the shelf life of any cucumber it is best to store it in the vegetable crisper within your fridge which will usually allow it to last a week or so before it starts to go off. However, when the cucumber does start to become mushy you can still recover the areas of the cucumber that are yet to go soft which will allow you to get something out of the cucumber.