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Kedrostis foetidissima

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Photo by MagicChris.


The top of the caudex by Noah Christtreu from his own collection.


The caudex by Noah Christtreu from his own collection.


Photo by MagicChris.


Male flower by Himesh Dilruwan Jayasinghe,  Powo.science.kew.org.


Male flower by Himesh Dilruwan Jayasinghe,  Powo.science.kew.org.

Author: Célestin Alfred Cogniaux, 1881
Family:  CUCURBITACEAE
Origin:  Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Caprivi Strip, Chad, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Yemen, Zambia, Zaïre, Zimbabwe
Soil:  Mix
Water:  Medium
Sun:  Medium
Thickness:  10-15 Centimetres
Height:  2 Metres
Flower:  Yellow
Propagate:  Seeds/Cuttings
Names:  Chunane, Holobido, Angwe, Kanuke, Ziizi, Tetirigi Kitel, Monkey Pebber
Synonyms:  Might be: Melothria foetidissima, Guy Edouard Roberty, 1954.
Trichosanthes foetidissima
, Nicolaas Joseph von Jacquin, 1788.
Bryonia rostrata,
Rottl.1803.
Bryonia perrottetiana,
Nicolas Charles Seringe, 1828.
Cyrtonema divergens
A. Rich. 1847.
Zehneria obtusiloba
Sond. 1862.
Rhynchocarpa foetida,
Charles Baron Clarke.
Kedrostis rostrata, Célestin Alfred Cogniaux, 1881.  
Pepo foetidissima,
Nathaniel Britton, 1913.
Kedrostis obtusiloba
, Cogn. 1916. Melothria louisii, Frans Hubert Edouard Arthur Walter Robyns, 1943.
Aechmandra rostrata, Arn.
Bryonia foetidissima,
Schumach.
Bryonia obtusiloba,
E.Mey.
Bryonia perrottetiana,
Ser.
Bryonia pilosa,
Roxb.
Bryonia prostrata,
D.Dietr.
Cyrtonema convolvulaceum,
Hochst.
Cyrtonema foetens,
Hochst. ex Hook.f.
Melothria foetida,
Desr.
Melothria obtusiloba,
Cogn.
Rhynchocarpa foetida,
Schrad.
Rhynchocarpa foetidissima,
Walp.
Rhynchocarpa rostrata,
Naudin.

This Monoecious member of the Cucurbitaceae family was given this name by Célestin Alfred Cogniaux in 1881. It is found in most of Africa and the Arab peninsular. It is growing in a well drained soil with some water and some sun. The vines reach two metres, and the caudex can grow to ten or even fifteen centimetres in diameter. The flowers are yellow, the small fruits red.

The genera name from Greek kedrostis, 'white Bryony', the ancient name of a scrambling cucurbit. The species name means 'fault smell'.

Apparently, the plant have a strong unpleasant scent when crushed. Hence the species name.

 


Fruit by Roger and Alison Heath, Powo.science.kew.org.