Life Span
Annual
Perennial
Type
Fruit
Cactus or Succulent
Origin
Middle Africa, Southern Africa
Southwestern United States, Mexico
Types
-
Dasylirion acrotrichum, Dasylirion berlandieri, Dasylirion cedrosanum
Number of Varieties
16
0
40000
👆🏻
Habitat
Low Elevation, Woodlands
Desert, Dry areas, Rocky areas
USDA Hardiness Zone
-999912-15
0
99
👆🏻
AHS Heat Zone
12-5
12-10
Sunset Zone
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
10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24
Habit
Vining/Climbing
Rosette/Stemless
Plant Size
Minimum Height
240.00 cm17.78 cm
0
3900
👆🏻
Minimum Width
10.00 cm10.16 cm
0
6350
👆🏻
Plant Color
Flower Color
Lemon yellow
Yellow
Flower Color Modifier
Bicolor
-
Fruit Color
Green, Orange, Light Green, Dark Green, Orange Red
Tan
Leaf Color in Spring
Green
Green, Blue Green
Leaf Color in Summer
Green
Green, Blue Green
Leaf Color in Fall
Green
Green, Blue Green
Leaf Color in Winter
Light Green
Green, Blue Green
Shape
Leaf Shape
Heart-shaped
Narrow
Thorns
✔
✘
✔
✘
Plant Season
Summer, Fall
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter
Growing Conditions
Sunlight
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Full Sun
Growth Rate
Very Fast
Slow
Type of Soil
Loam
Loam, Sand
The pH of Soil
Neutral, Alkaline
Neutral, Alkaline
Soil Drainage
Well drained
Well drained
Bloom Time
Indeterminate
Spring
Repeat Bloomer
✔
✘
✔
✘
Tolerances
Drought
Drought
Where to Plant?
Ground
Container, Ground
How to Plant?
reseeds, Seedlings
Leaf Cutting, Seedlings, Stem Cutting
Plant Maintenance
Medium
Medium
Watering Plants
Watering Requirements
Do not water excessively
Does not require lot of watering, Water occasionally
In Summer
Lots of watering
Lots of watering
In Spring
Moderate
Moderate
In Winter
Average Water
Average Water
Soil
Soil pH
Neutral, Alkaline
Neutral, Alkaline
Soil Type
Loam
Loam, Sand
Soil Drainage Capacity
Well drained
Well drained
Sun Exposure
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Full Sun
Pruning
Remove damaged leaves, Remove dead branches, Remove dead leaves
Remove damaged leaves, Remove dead branches, Remove dead leaves, Remove dead or diseased plant parts
Fertilizers
All-Purpose Liquid Fertilizer
All-Purpose Liquid Fertilizer, Fertilzer with low nitrogen content
Pests and Diseases
Nematodes, Powdery mildew
Red blotch
Plant Tolerance
Drought
Drought
Flowers
✔
✘
✔
✘
Flower Petal Number
Single
Single
Fruits
Showy Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Edible Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrance
Fragrant Flower
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Leaf
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Bark/Stem
✔
✘
✔
✘
Showy Foliage
✔
✘
✔
✘
Showy Bark
✔
✘
✔
✘
Foliage Texture
Coarse
Bold
Foliage Sheen
Matte
Matte
Evergreen
✔
✘
✔
✘
Invasive
✔
✘
✔
✘
Self-Sowing
✔
✘
✔
✘
Attracts
-
Bees, Butterflies
Allergy
Toxic
-
Uses
Aesthetic Uses
-
Ground Cover
Beauty Benefits
-
-
Edible Uses
✔
✘
✔
✘
Environmental Uses
Air purification
Air purification
Plant Benefits
Medicinal Uses
Vermifuge
-
Part of Plant Used
Fruits, Leaves, Seeds
-
Other Uses
-
useful as a ground cover
Used As Indoor Plant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Used As Outdoor Plant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Garden Design
Edible, Fruit / Fruit Tree, Herb / Vegetable, Vine
Container, Dried Flower, Everlasting, Feature Plant, Rock Garden, Wall, Wildflower
Botanical Name
CUCUMIS metuliferus
DASYLIRION berlandieri
Common Name
African Horned Cucumber, Blowfish Fruit, Jelly Melon, Kiwano Melon
Blue Giant, Blue Twister, Desert Spoon, Zaragosa
In Hindi
Kiwano Melon
Blue Giant Grass
In German
Hornmelone
Blue Giant Grass
In French
Cucumis metulifer
Blue Giant Herbe
In Spanish
Cucumis metuliferus
Blue Grass gigante
In Greek
Kiwano Melon
Μπλε Giant Grass
In Portuguese
pepino africano
Blue Grass gigante
In Polish
Ogórek kiwano
Błękitny Gigant Trawa
In Latin
Kiwano Melon
Giant herba blue
Kingdom
Plantae
Plantae
Phylum
Magnoliophyta
Tracheophyta
Class
Magnoliopsida
-
Order
Violales
Asparagales
Family
Cucurbitaceae
Agavaceae
Genus
Cucumis
Dasylirion
Clade
Angiosperms, Eudicots, Rosids
Angiosperms, Monocots
Tribe
-
-
Subfamily
-
Nolinoideae
Number of Species
122
1
27800
👆🏻