Life Span
Annual
Annual and Perennial
Type
Vegetable
Broadleaf Evergreen
Origin
Central America, Mexico
Africa, Southern Africa
Types
Slicing, Pickling and burpless
Drakensberg sugarbush, Clanwilliam sugarbush, The Wagon tree
Number of Varieties
31600
0
40000
👆🏻
Habitat
Floodplains, Wet forest
Subtropical climates, Tropical regions
USDA Hardiness Zone
7-810-11
0
99
👆🏻
AHS Heat Zone
12-1
12-8
Sunset Zone
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
H1, 22, 23, 24
Habit
Vining/Climbing
-
Plant Size
Minimum Height
15.20 cm91.44 cm
0
3900
👆🏻
Minimum Width
180.00 cm91.44 cm
0
6350
👆🏻
Plant Color
Flower Color
Yellow, Gold
-
Flower Color Modifier
Bicolor
Bicolor
Fruit Color
Green
-
Leaf Color in Spring
Light Green
-
Leaf Color in Summer
Green, Dark Green
-
Leaf Color in Fall
Green, Dark Green, Yellow green
-
Leaf Color in Winter
-
-
Shape
Leaf Shape
Heart-shaped
Egg-shaped
Thorns
✔
✘
✔
✘
Plant Season
Summer, Fall
Fall, Spring
Growing Conditions
Sunlight
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Full Sun
Growth Rate
Very Fast
-
Type of Soil
Loam
Clay
The pH of Soil
Neutral
Acidic
Soil Drainage
Well drained
-
Bloom Time
Early Summer, Summer, Late Summer, Early Fall, Indeterminate
All year
Repeat Bloomer
✔
✘
✔
✘
Tolerances
Drought
-
Where to Plant?
Container, Ground
Ground
How to Plant?
Seedlings, Stem Planting
Seedlings
Plant Maintenance
Medium
Low
Watering Plants
Watering Requirements
Keep ground moist, Requires a lot of watering, Requires regular watering, Requires watering in the growing season
Requires a lot of watering
In Summer
Lots of watering
Lots of watering
In Spring
Moderate
Moderate
In Winter
Average Water
Average Water
Soil
Soil pH
Neutral
Neutral
Soil Type
Loam
Loam, Sand
Soil Drainage Capacity
Well drained
Well drained
Sun Exposure
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Full Sun
Pruning
Prune after flowering, Remove shoots
Pinch Tips, Remove branches, Remove damaged leaves, Remove dead branches, Remove dead leaves
Fertilizers
Compost, organic fertlizers
All-Purpose Liquid Fertilizer
Pests and Diseases
Bacteria wilt, Fungal Diseases, fungus, Fusarium wilt, Leaf spot, Striped cucumber beetles
Red blotch
Plant Tolerance
Cold climate
-
Flowers
✔
✘
✔
✘
Flower Petal Number
Single
-
Fruits
Showy Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Edible Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrance
Fragrant Flower
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Leaf
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Bark/Stem
✔
✘
✔
✘
Showy Foliage
✔
✘
✔
✘
Showy Bark
✔
✘
✔
✘
Foliage Texture
Coarse
-
Foliage Sheen
Matte
-
Evergreen
✔
✘
✔
✘
Invasive
✔
✘
✔
✘
Self-Sowing
✔
✘
✔
✘
Attracts
Ants, Birds, Flying insects, Insects, Rats, Squirrels
Flying insects, Insects
Allergy
Throat itching, Vomiting
-
Uses
Aesthetic Uses
Showy Purposes
Showy Purposes
Beauty Benefits
-
-
Edible Uses
✔
✘
✔
✘
Environmental Uses
Food for animals, Food for birds
Air purification
Plant Benefits
Medicinal Uses
Antioxidants, Combats Stress, Fiber, Improve heart health, Indigestion, Inflammation, Rich in Iron
Cough, Diarrhea, Stomach Ulcers
Part of Plant Used
Fruits, Seeds
Flowers
Other Uses
Used As Food, Used as Ornamental plant, Used for its medicinal properties
Used for its medicinal properties
Used As Indoor Plant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Used As Outdoor Plant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Garden Design
Edible, Herb / Vegetable, Vine
Container, Cutflower, Feature Plant, Mixed Border, Rock Garden / Wall
Botanical Name
MELOTHRIA scabra
PROTEA
Common Name
Mexican Sour Gherkins, cucamelon
Protea, Waboom, Wagon Tree
In Hindi
Mousemelon
Protea plant
In German
Maus Melone
Protea Pflanze
In French
Mousemelon
usine de Protea
In Spanish
Mousemelon
planta de protea
In Greek
πεπόνι ποντίκι
φυτό Protea
In Portuguese
melão rato
planta Protea
In Polish
mysz melona
Protea roślin
In Latin
mouse melon
Protea herba
Kingdom
Plantae
Plantae
Phylum
Tracheophyta
Vascular plant
Class
Magnoliopsida
Magnoliopsida
Order
Cucurbitales
Proteales
Family
Cucurbitaceae
Proteaceae
Genus
Cucumis
Protea
Clade
Angiosperms, Eudicots, Rosids
Angiosperms, Eudicots
Tribe
Melothrieae
Proteae
Subfamily
Cucurbitoideae
Proteoideae
Number of Species
501600
1
27800
👆🏻