Cucumber
2 of the 7 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Cucumber. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
an article of food, having yellow unisexual male and female flowers in the axils of the leaf stalks. The leaves are large, the stems weak and trailing. It is a native of the S. of Asia and of Egypt. It is mentioned by Vergil. It is said to have been common in England during the reign of Edward III., A. D. 1327-1377. Having gone out of culture during the Wars of the Roses, it was re-introduced under Henry VIII. from the Netherlands, between 1509 and 1547, probably about 1538. CUCKOO CÚCUTA, SAN JOSÉ DE, a town in the Colombian department of Santander, on the Rio Zulia, 35 miles S. of Puerto Villamizar. It is the third commercial town of the republic, a center of coffee and cacao cultivation. It was destroyed by earthquake in 1875, but has been well rebuilt. Pop. about 20,000. ROSARIO DE CÚCUTA, to the S. E., was the seat of the first Colombian congress in 1821, and the birthplace of the patriot, General Santander (1792-1840). It has large plantations of coffee and cacao.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
with squashes and melons, a member of the gourd family. The garden cucumber is native to southern Asia, but is cultivated in gardens as far north as the center of England. Of late the market demand for fresh cucumbers has led to the investment of money in forcing houses in which cucumber vines are trained to run on frames beneath a glass roof. The cucumbers hang down from the vines in easy reach. A small house will raise a surprisingly large number of cucumbers for winter and spring market. Garden cucumbers require a rich, sunny spot. Seed should not be spared, as the young plants are especially subject to the attacks of insects. The plant stops yielding as soon as a few cucumbers are allowed to turn yellow. Young cucumbers may be put down in brine for salt pickles, and later the salt may be soaked out and the cucumbers placed in vinegar for sour pickles. Gherkins are a small kind of cucumber suitable for pickles. See Gourd ; Vegetables