OF THE CAROLINAS & GEORGIA

Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Rosids: Fabids: Cucurbitales

WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Melothria pendula   FAMILY Cucurbitaceae   Go to FSUS key



INCLUDING PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Melothria pendula var. pendula   FAMILY Cucurbitaceae

SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)

Melothria pendula

SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America

Melothria pendula

INCLUDING Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)

Melothria pendula var. aspera

INCLUDING Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)

Melothria pendula var. crassifolia

INCLUDING Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)

Melothria pendula var. pendula

SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 177-06-001:

Melothria pendula   FAMILY Cucurbitaceae

INCLUDING Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)

Melothria microcarpa

INCLUDING Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)

Melothria nashii

SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)

Melothria pendula

INCLUDING Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)

Melothria pendula var. aspera

 

COMMON NAME:
Creeping Cucumber


         To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.

image of Melothria pendula, Creeping Cucumber

USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913    pnd_mepe3_001_lvd

        

image of Melothria pendula, Creeping Cucumber

JK Marlow    jkm180623_2978

June    Greenville County    SC

Tall Pines Wildlife Management Area

image of Melothria pendula, Creeping Cucumber

JK Marlow    jkm170826_808

August    Spartanburg County    SC

image of Melothria pendula, Creeping Cucumber

JK Marlow    jkm120914_911

September    Greenville County    SC

Swamp Rabbit Trail

image of Melothria pendula, Creeping Cucumber

JK Marlow    jkm120914_915

September    Greenville County    SC

Swamp Rabbit Trail

Fruit green to black, ovoid, about 1cm, pulpy, w 20 white seeds, poisonous, per Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999).

image of Melothria pendula, Creeping Cucumber

JK Marlow    jkm120914_915b

September    Greenville County    SC

Swamp Rabbit Trail

Female flowers solitary, about 1/4" across; male even smaller in a cluster, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005).

image of Melothria pendula, Creeping Cucumber

JK Marlow    jkm120914_919

September    Greenville County    SC

Swamp Rabbit Trail

An instructive picture of inferior ovary developing into young fruit...

image of Melothria pendula, Creeping Cucumber

Richard and Teresa Ware    rtw_melothria_pendula_c

September        

image of Melothria pendula, Creeping Cucumber

JK Marlow    s060909_a

September    Greenville County    SC

The tendrils are unbranched, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).

image of Melothria pendula, Creeping Cucumber

JK Marlow    s060909_b

September    Greenville County    SC

Leaves toothed, shallowly to deeply palmately 5-lobed; base deeply cordate, per Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005).


click here to see other plants that look similar to this COMPARE palmately veined leaves of vines

image of Melothria pendula, Creeping Cucumber

JK Marlow    s060909_b2

September    Greenville County    SC

Fruit is green, melon-like, about 0.4" long, per Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005).

 

 

WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Melothria pendula   FAMILY Cucurbitaceae

INCLUDING PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Melothria pendula var. pendula   FAMILY Cucurbitaceae

SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Melothria pendula

SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America
Melothria pendula

INCLUDING Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Melothria pendula var. aspera

INCLUDING Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Melothria pendula var. crassifolia

INCLUDING Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Melothria pendula var. pendula

SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 177-06-001:
Melothria pendula   FAMILY Cucurbitaceae

INCLUDING Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Melothria microcarpa

INCLUDING Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Melothria nashii

SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Melothria pendula

INCLUDING Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Melothria pendula var. aspera

 

Find by SCIENTIFIC NAME:

2125

Climbing herbaceous vine (with tendrils)
Annual
Polygamous or monoecious

Habitat: Bottomland forests, moist roadsides and disturbed areas, marshes, per Weakley's Flora

Native to the Carolinas & Georgia

Common (uncommon in GA Mountains, rare in Carolina Mountains)

map
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.

LEAVES:
Simple - palmately lobed
Alternate

FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
Yellow
5-lobed calyx
5-lobed campanulate corolla
Inferior ovary
Unisexual (rarely bisexual)

FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Green/Black
Berry

 

TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!



 


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