There are two types of cucumbers common to the home gardener - pickling cucumbers and slicing cucumbers. Growing in a field on a hot summer day, the interior flesh is 20 degrees cooler than the outside air temperature. Store for up to 3 days in the refrigerator in loose or perforated plastic bags. Supermarket cucumbers are covered with an edible wax to protect them from moisture loss. The wax gives them an unnatural sheen.
Fresh cucumbers are dull green in color.
Do not leave over-mature, yellow cucumbers on the vine. If a single cucumber is left on the vine, the vine will stop producing altogether. But there is no practical use for baseball bat size cucumbers. They are tough and the seeds are woody. Harvest when they are 8 inches long or smaller.