CUCUMBERS . Two varieties of cucumber are very common in Palestine. The Cucumis sativus (Arab. [Note: Arabic.] khyâr ), a smooth-skinned, whitish cucumber of delicate flavour, is a prime favourite with the Arabs. It is cool and juicy, but for cultivation requires abundant water. The second ( C. chate , Arab. [Note: Arabic.] [in Jerusalem] faqqûs , [in Syria] qiththâ ) is a long slender cucumber, less juicy than the former. The reference in Numbers 11:5 is probably to the latter, which is an Egyptian plant. The ‘ lodge in a garden of cucumbers’ ( Isaiah 1:8 ) is the rough booth erected by the owner, raised, as a rule, high upon poles, from which he may keep guard over his ripening vegetables. When the harvest is over, the ‘lodge’ is not taken down but is allowed to drop to pieces. It is a dreary ruin of poles and dried branches during more than half the year.
E. W. G. Masterman.