Cucumis cinereus
(Cogn.) Ghebret. & Thulin
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Troos van der Merwe, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Troos van der Merwe, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Laura, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
Description
A herb or vine. It has tendrils 4-5 cm long. The leaves have 5 lobes spread like fingers on a hand. They are heart shaped at the base. Male flowers are in groups of 5-19. Female flowers occur singly. The fruit are oval and orange. They are 1.5-2.5 mm long and 1 cm wide.
Edible Uses
The leaves are eaten.
Distribution
It is a subtropical plant.
Where It Grows
Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, South Africa, Southern Africa, Swaziland,
Synonyms
Cucumella cinerea (Cogn.) C. JeffreyKedrostis cinerea Cogn.Kedrostis gracilis R. Fern.Melothria cinerea (Cogn.) A. Meeuse
References (3)
- Cunningham, 1985, (As Cucumella cinerea)
- Peters, C. R., O'Brien, E. M., and Drummond, R.B., 1992, Edible Wild plants of Sub-saharan Africa. Kew. p 100 (As Cucumella cinerea)
- Swaziland's Flora Database http://www.sntc.org.sz/flora (As Cucumella cinerea)
