Creeping Cucumber Melothria pendula
- Phonetic Spelling
- mel-OH-three-ah PEN-dyoo-lah
- This plant has low severity poison characteristics.
- See below
- Description
-
Slender, climbing vine in the cucumber family with tendrils beside the leaves. The leaves are alternate, simple, palmately 3-5 lobed and the flowers solitary and axillary, 5-parted. The fruit is a green or black berry with white seeds.
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
-
- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
-
- Tags:
-
-
Attributes:
- Genus:
- Melothria
- Species:
- pendula
- Family:
- Cucurbitaceae
- Life Cycle:
- Perennial
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- USA, NC
- Distribution:
- Mostly Coastal Plain and lower Piedmont, also in AL , AR , DC , FL , GA , IL , IN , KS , KY , LA , MD , MO , MS , NC , OK , PA , SC , TN , TX , VA
- Climbing Method:
- Tendrils
- Edibility:
- The berries, when unripe and light green can be eaten raw but can have a strong laxative effect, especially when black and ripe.
-
-
Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Edible
- Herbaceous Perennial
- Native Plant
- Poisonous
- Habit/Form:
- Climbing
- Appendage:
- Tendrils
-
-
Cultural Conditions:
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Piedmont
-
-
Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Black
- Green
- Fruit Value To Gardener:
- Edible
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Fall
- Summer
- Fruit Type:
- Berry
- Fruit Length:
- 1-3 inches
- Fruit Description:
- 1 inch long ovate green watermelon type fruits that dangle at the end of the pedicel. Turns black when ripe.
-
-
Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Fall
- Summer
- Flower Shape:
- Saucer
- Flower Petals:
- 4-5 petals/rays
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- The flower of Creeping Cucumber is held on a long pedicel. The yellow blossom has 5 lobes and is 1/4 inch across or smaller.
-
-
Leaves:
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Leaf Margin:
- Lobed
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Description:
- ivy-shaped with two lobes in a palmate pattern, tendrils growing beside the leaves.
-
-
Stem:
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
-
-
Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Naturalized Area
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Edible Garden
- Native Garden
- Problems:
- Poisonous to Humans
- Weedy
