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Greenhouse vs outdoor cucumber seeds

Updated: October 2026

You have either a greenhouse or a sunny allotment bed, Greenhouse vs outdoor cucumber seeds is a choice of contract, not a choice of brand. Indoor types are for cover and often come with a rule about male flowers. Ridge types are for a sheltered outdoor spot, and they need insects. Grow a ridge variety in the same greenhouse as an all-female type and Gardeners' World says the fruit can turn bitter and seedy. Our [cucumber seeds comparison](/hub/seeds-and-plants/cucumber-seeds) lists the captured prices. This page is the place. We matched listings to RHS guidance on 16 October 2026 and did not grow the plants. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You have either a greenhouse or a sunny allotment bed, Greenhouse vs outdoor cucumber seeds is a choice of contract, not a choice of brand. Indoor types are for cover and often come with a rule about male flowers.

Our top picks

Mr Fothergill's Mr Fothergill's Socrates F1

Best overall

Mr Fothergill's Mr Fothergill's Socrates F1
8.8/10about £4.99
View offer
Mr Fothergill's Mr Fothergill's Marketmore 76

Best value

Mr Fothergill's Mr Fothergill's Marketmore 76
8.6/10about £2.39
View offer
Mr Fothergill's Mr Fothergill's Telepathy F1

Alternative

Mr Fothergill's Mr Fothergill's Telepathy F1
7.6/10about £3.49
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Two cucumbers, not one
  2. 2.When the greenhouse packet is the one to buy
  3. 3.When the outdoor packet is the one to buy
  4. 4.Packets that say both

Two cucumbers, not one

Greenhouse fruit is typically long and smooth, or a short snack type bred for cover. Ridge fruit is shorter and rougher. The RHS puts indoor varieties in a greenhouse, polytunnel, or large cold frame, and outdoor or ridge varieties in a sunny, sheltered spot. Many greenhouse cucumbers, especially all-female F1s, set fruit without pollen. A male flower in that house, or a ridge plant shedding pollen beside them, can pollinate the fruit. Gardeners' World tells you not to grow the two together for that reason. How to see a male flower is on the all-female cucumber seeds page.

When the greenhouse packet is the one to buy

Buy a greenhouse packet when you have cover you can keep warm enough, and you want long fruit or a snack cucumber under that cover. Socrates F1 is the top pick: all-female, a greenhouse or tunnel, £4.99 for about five seeds, rated 4.4 from 102 reviews. Skip it if you have no cover. Telepathy F1 is the long greenhouse packet if you will remove male flowers, at £3.49 for about five seeds. It does not say all-female. Mini Munch names greenhouses, containers, polytunnels, and patios, at £2.95, and does not print all-female. Do not put Marketmore beside it and assume the fruit will stay mild.
Mr Fothergill's Mr Fothergill's Socrates F1

Testsieger

Mr Fothergill's Mr Fothergill's Socrates F1
8.8/10about £4.99
View offer

When the outdoor packet is the one to buy

Buy an outdoor packet when you have a sunny, sheltered bed and you do not have cover you can keep warm. Expect a ridge cucumber, not a long smooth greenhouse fruit. Marketmore 76 is the best value: about 25 seeds at £2.39, and 4.3 from 235 ratings. The RHS Marketmore page allows outdoors or under glass. The Marketmore 70 page says not to remove the male flowers. Marketmore can go under glass. It should not share that glass with an all-female greenhouse type. The style name says mini, which conflicts with the ridge-slicer bullets. Unwins Burpless Tasty Green at £1.78 is classified as outdoor. Crystal Lemon is a round yellow fruit, 100 seeds at £3.10. If you are still unsure of the space, the checks sit on the buying guide. Sowing dates are on the how to sow cucumber seeds page.

Packets that say both

Some listings refuse the fork. Tasty King F1 costs £2.49 and is rated 4.0 from 26 reviews. The bullets say indoors or outdoors, and a separate attribute says outdoor. Merlin, at £1.99 with 5.0 from one rating, does not say greenhouse or outdoors. Patio Snacker lists Winter as a blooming period and does not name a place. Ultrey Mini Stars has reports of unmarked bags. A place word you cannot match to a named variety is not a decision. If you have cover and the listing states a flower rule, choose Socrates for an all-female mini or Telepathy if you will remove male flowers. If you have only a sunny bed, choose Marketmore and leave the male flowers. Do not grow that ridge plant in the same greenhouse as Socrates.

Common questions

Can outdoor cucumber seed go in the greenhouse?
Sometimes, and not beside an all-female type. The RHS Marketmore page allows that variety outdoors or under glass. Gardeners' World still says never to grow a ridge type with an all-female greenhouse type, because pollen can make the greenhouse fruit bitter and seedy. If your house is already sown with Socrates, keep Marketmore in the outdoor bed. If the house contains only the ridge type, the RHS wording is more permissive.
Do I need a greenhouse at all?
No, if you choose a ridge variety and a sunny, sheltered spot. Marketmore 76 is the outdoor packet in this set with the strongest review count. The crop will depend on the summer, and the fruit will not be a long greenhouse cucumber. You do need cover for Socrates, which the listing ties to a greenhouse or tunnel, and for Telepathy, which names a greenhouse or cold frame. A cold patio is not that cover.
Which packets in this set are clearly outdoor?
Marketmore 76 is the clear outdoor ridge slicer. Unwins Burpless Tasty Green is classified as an outdoor cucumber, with the male-flower reviews as a caveat if you wanted all-female seed. Crystal Lemon carries an outdoor attribute and is a round yellow fruit, not a ridge slicer. Mini Stars claims outdoor, balcony, or patio use, and the unmarked-bag reviews make that claim hard to trust. Tasty King's outdoor attribute conflicts with bullets that say indoors or out.
Which are clearly for a greenhouse?
Socrates names a greenhouse or tunnel and prints all-female. Telepathy names a greenhouse or cold frame and tells you to remove male flowers. Mini Munch names greenhouses, polytunnels, containers, and patios, without an all-female line. Those three are the covered or container packets. Socrates is the one that states the flower type. Telepathy states the job you must do. Mini Munch states the places and leaves the flower type unprinted.
Why would mixing them spoil the flavour?
Because pollen from the ridge plant can fertilise an all-female or other greenhouse cucumber that is meant to fruit without pollination. Gardeners' World describes the result as bitter, seedy fruit. The RHS also treats bitter cucumber as something not to eat, with a pet-toxicity note on all-female cultivar pages. Stress from irregular water and heat can bitter a cucumber as well. The mix is the avoidable cause. Keep the types in different places.

Related pages

Best cucumber seeds

Cucumber seeds

All-female cucumber seeds: pinch out the male flowers

Best cucumber seeds UK: match the packet to the place

How to sow cucumber seeds in the UK: warmth comes first

Sources

Public UK sources used for sowing, flower rules and seed marketing. Last checked on 16 October 2026.

  1. RHS, How to grow cucumbers (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  2. Gardeners' World, How to grow cucumbers (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  3. The Seed Marketing Regulations 2011 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  4. GOV.UK, Apply to have seeds certified for marketing in England and Wales (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  5. RHS, Cucumis sativus Socrates (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  6. RHS, Cucumis sativus Marketmore (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  7. Suttons, How to avoid bitter cucumbers (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  8. RHS, Cucumber mosaic virus (retrieved 16 October 2026)