Life Span
Annual
Annual
Type
Flowering Plants
Vegetable
Origin
South America
Central America, Mexico
Types
Portulaca grandiflora
Slicing, Pickling and burpless
Number of Varieties
503
0
40000
👆🏻
Habitat
gardens, Roadsides, Waste areas
Floodplains, Wet forest
USDA Hardiness Zone
5-117-8
0
99
👆🏻
AHS Heat Zone
12 - 1
12-1
Sunset Zone
A1, A2, A3, H1, H2, 1a, 1b, 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24
A3, H1, H2, 1a, 1b, 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24
Habit
Prostrate/Trailing
Vining/Climbing
Plant Size
Minimum Height
10.20 cm15.20 cm
0
3900
👆🏻
Minimum Width
20.30 cm180.00 cm
0
6350
👆🏻
Plant Color
Flower Color
Red
Yellow, Gold
Flower Color Modifier
Bicolor
Bicolor
Fruit Color
-
Green
Leaf Color in Spring
Green
Light Green
Leaf Color in Summer
Green
Green, Dark Green
Leaf Color in Fall
Green
Green, Dark Green, Yellow green
Leaf Color in Winter
Light Green
-
Shape
Leaf Shape
Needle like
Heart-shaped
Thorns
✔
✘
✔
✘
Plant Season
Summer, Fall
Summer, Fall
Growing Conditions
Sunlight
Full Sun
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Growth Rate
Very Fast
Very Fast
Type of Soil
Loam, Sand
Loam
The pH of Soil
Neutral, Alkaline
Neutral
Soil Drainage
Well drained
Well drained
Bloom Time
Indeterminate
Early Summer, Summer, Late Summer, Early Fall, Indeterminate
Repeat Bloomer
✔
✘
✔
✘
Tolerances
Drought, Heat Tolerance
Drought
Where to Plant?
Container, Ground, Pot
Container, Ground
How to Plant?
Seedlings
Seedlings, Stem Planting
Plant Maintenance
Low
Medium
Watering Plants
Watering Requirements
Average Water Needs
Keep ground moist, Requires a lot of watering, Requires regular watering, Requires watering in the growing season
In Summer
Lots of watering
Lots of watering
In Spring
Moderate
Moderate
In Winter
Average Water
Average Water
Soil
Soil pH
Acidic, Neutral, Slightly Acidic
Neutral
Soil Type
Well drained
Loam
Soil Drainage Capacity
Well drained
Well drained
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Pruning
Remove damaged leaves, Remove dead branches, Remove dead leaves, Shearing
Prune after flowering, Remove shoots
Fertilizers
Requires high amount of nitrogen
Compost, organic fertlizers
Pests and Diseases
Aphids, Botrytis Blight, Brown Spots, Gray mold, Root rot, Stem rot
Bacteria wilt, Fungal Diseases, fungus, Fusarium wilt, Leaf spot, Striped cucumber beetles
Plant Tolerance
Drought, Heat Tolerance
Cold climate
Flowers
Showy
Showy
Flower Petal Number
Semi-Double
Single
Fruits
Showy Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Edible Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrance
Fragrant Flower
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Leaf
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Bark/Stem
✔
✘
✔
✘
Showy Foliage
✔
✘
✔
✘
Showy Bark
✔
✘
✔
✘
Foliage Texture
Fine
Coarse
Foliage Sheen
Matte
Matte
Evergreen
✔
✘
✔
✘
Invasive
✔
✘
✔
✘
Self-Sowing
✔
✘
✔
✘
Attracts
Butterflies
Ants, Birds, Flying insects, Insects, Rats, Squirrels
Allergy
-
Throat itching, Vomiting
Uses
Aesthetic Uses
Beautification, Bouquets, Cottage Garden, Ground Cover, Showy Purposes
Showy Purposes
Beauty Benefits
Skin Problems
-
Edible Uses
✔
✘
✔
✘
Environmental Uses
Air purification
Food for animals, Food for birds
Plant Benefits
Medicinal Uses
Depurative, Insect Bites, Liver problems, Snakebite, Swelling
Antioxidants, Combats Stress, Fiber, Improve heart health, Indigestion, Inflammation, Rich in Iron
Part of Plant Used
Flowers, Leaves, Stem, Whole plant
Fruits, Seeds
Other Uses
Showy Purposes, Used As Food, Used for its medicinal properties
Used As Food, Used as Ornamental plant, Used for its medicinal properties
Used As Indoor Plant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Used As Outdoor Plant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Garden Design
Cottage garden, Edible
Edible, Herb / Vegetable, Vine
Botanical Name
PORTULACA grandiflora
MELOTHRIA scabra
Common Name
Moss Rose, Portulaca, Sundial Scarlet Portulaca
Mexican Sour Gherkins, cucamelon
In Hindi
Portulaca
Mousemelon
In German
Portulak
Maus Melone
In French
portulaca
Mousemelon
In Spanish
Portulaca
Mousemelon
In Greek
Portulaca
πεπόνι ποντίκι
In Portuguese
Portulaca
melão rato
In Polish
Portulaca
mysz melona
In Latin
Portulaca
mouse melon
Kingdom
Plantae
Plantae
Phylum
Magnoliophyta
Tracheophyta
Class
Magnoliopsida
Magnoliopsida
Order
Caryophyllales
Cucurbitales
Family
Portulacaceae
Cucurbitaceae
Genus
Portulaca
Cucumis
Clade
Angiosperms, Core eudicots, Eudicots
Angiosperms, Eudicots, Rosids
Tribe
-
Melothrieae
Subfamily
-
Cucurbitoideae
Number of Species
150
1
27800
👆🏻