Cucumbers and gherkins are a group of cucurbitaceous vegetables that are mainly used as salad vegetables. Cucumbers are large fruits while gherkins are small fruits. Scientific name of cucumber is Cucumis sativus. Gherkins are known as 'small cucumbers' as it belongs to the same family as cucumber and its scientific name is same as that of cucumber i.e. Cucumis sativus, but cultivar is different. Cucumbers: Cucumbers are mainly used as summer season salad vegetables. Cucumber fruits have cooling and strengthening properties and also capable of quenching thirst during summer months. Gherkins: Gherkins are small, prickly, cylindrical green fruits which are with thin green rinds and white flesh. Small immature fruits of gherkins are used for pickling and hence it is commonly called as 'pickling cucumbers'.