Cucurbitaceae FAMILY

Cucumis aculeatus

Edibility

2/5

Medicinal

0/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Botanical Description

Cucumis aculeatus is a perennial plant producing annual stems 2- 3 metres long from a thickened fleshy perennial rootstock. The stems trail along the ground or climb into other plants, attaching themselves by means of tendrils[ 328 Title African Flowering Plants Database Publication Author Website http://www.ville-ge.ch/musinfo/bd/cjb/africa/recherche.php Publisher Conservatoire et Jardin Botaniques. Year 0 ISBN Description Contains information on over 150,000 plant names (including synonyms) giving a description and habitat, plus a distribution map. ]. The stems are armed with yellow-green, recurved prickles of varying degrees of stoutness, some fine and hair-like, some thorn-like[ 328 Title African Flowering Plants Database Publication Author Website http://www.ville-ge.ch/musinfo/bd/cjb/africa/recherche.php Publisher Conservatoire et Jardin Botaniques. Year 0 ISBN Description Contains information on over 150,000 plant names (including synonyms) giving a description and habitat, plus a distribution map. ]. The plant is harvested from the wild as a local source of food.

Habitat & Origin

Origintropical

Native RangeEast tropical Africa - Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, eastern DR Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania.

HabitatBushland, wooded grassland, grassland; edge of gallery forest with Euphorbia, savannah; disturbed Juniperus forest; at elevations from 1,000 - 2,400 metres[ 328 Title African Flowering Plants Database Publication Author Website http://www.ville-ge.ch/musinfo/bd/cjb/africa/recherche.php Publisher Conservatoire et Jardin Botaniques. Year 0 ISBN Description Contains information on over 150,000 plant names (including synonyms) giving a description and habitat, plus a distribution map. ].