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A young caudex by
Bernard Gacongne
The leave by
Bernard Gacongne
The female flower by
Bernard Gacongne
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This member of the Cucurbitaceae
family was described by
Achille Richard in 1824. It is found in most of
the Mediterranean and Macronesia, growing in rich but drained soil with some
water and lots of sun. The swollen rootstock can grow to eight
centimetres, the vines will grow to 80 centimetres, and
the flowers are dark yellow. The plant can only be reproduced by
seeds.
The spraying cucumber
developed a unique strategy for the spreading of its seeds: While the fruit
ripens, pressure develops inside, and one side of the fruit grow
more than the other. When the
fruit separates from the stalk, being touched by an animal,
the sticky seeds squirt out, adhering to the animals skin and
falling of from it some days later, which is the way this plant disperse
its seeds. Hence the name Squirting cucumber.
SubFamily:
Cucurbitoideae, Tribe: Benincaseae
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