Poona Khira
A traditional Maharashtra open-pollinated type, thicker-skinned than Poinsette and grown as much for local salad demand as for distant markets.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Cucumber
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- Zaid / summer
- Maturity period
- 60–65 days
- Expected yield
- 100–130 q/ha
- Suitable soil
- Loam
- Release
- No formal institutional release found in sources checked this phase — a long-standing traditional Pune-area heirloom cultivar
About this variety
Poona Khira is a traditional open-pollinated heirloom cucumber from Pune (historically "Poona"), Maharashtra — not attributed to any formal ICAR or university breeding programme in the sources checked this phase, consistent with this record's own framing as a traditional type. Its signature trait is a ripening colour change from pale/white or yellow skin through golden-yellow to a final brown, cracked, russeted surface; two directly-fetched seed-trade pages report 50–70 days to harvest, close to this record's own 60–65 days.
Key characteristics
Yield & maturity
Maturity period
60–65 days
Expected yield
100–130 q/ha
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
Pest & disease considerations
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Genuinely heat-tolerant and prolific, well suited to hot-season (zaid) planting when many other cucumbers struggle
- Distinctive colour-changing skin and mild, sweet, crisp flesh give it a strong local market and street-vendor niche in Pune
- Open-pollinated, so seed can be saved
Things to consider
- This record's diseaseResistance field names downy mildew specifically, but the sourced descriptions found this phase only describe general "disease resistance" and hardiness without naming particular diseases — not a contradiction, just an unconfirmed specific
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Maharashtra
Frequently asked questions
Was Poona Khira bred by an agricultural institute?
No institutional breeder is named in the sources checked this phase — it reads as a long-standing traditional Pune-area heirloom cultivar rather than a documented ICAR/university release, consistent with this record's own framing.
Why does Poona Khira's skin change colour as it ripens?
Sourced descriptions consistently describe the fruit starting pale/white or yellow and turning golden, then finally brown and cracked/russeted as it fully ripens — best picked and eaten before that final stage for the crisp texture this record's note describes.
Sourced from: Poona Kheera Cucumber — The Amazing Seeds, Cucumber Poona Kheera — Kings Seeds NZ. editorial policy.