Love cucumbers, but never tried growing them in your garden? Well, now's the time to start.

A gardener's favorite because they are easy to grow and produce abundant crops, cucumbers love to climb on anything they can wrap their vines around. They grow up toward the sun and leave the green fruit dangling below the leaf canopy.

Cucumbers come in two types: vining and bush varieties. This is a vining variety and it produces more cucumbers when it's allowed to run straight up a sturdy structure where it can get plenty of light and have air circulating around its stems. Cucumbers are so productive that a few plants can keep a family supplied for the entire summer. Plant cucumbers when the ground has warmed up. They can't tolerate frost.

Cucumbers need soil that's rich in organic matter and is well drained. Because cucumbers grow fast they need lots of nutrients. Add several inches of compost to the bed to give them extra food. Use a garden fork to work in the compost, and then rake the bed smooth. Good soil makes cucumbers stronger and healthier. Healthy plants have a better chance of fighting off diseases and of surviving a pest attack.