Melothria scabra
Vine with fruit
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Cucurbitales
Family: Cucurbitaceae
Genus: Melothria
Species:
M. scabra
Binomial name
Melothria scabra
Synonyms[1]
  • Melothria costensis C.Jeffrey
  • Melothria donnell-smithii var. hirtella Cogn.
  • Melothria donnell-smithii var. rotundifolia Cogn.

Melothria scabra, commonly known as the cucamelon, Mexican miniature watermelon, Mexican sour cucumber, Mexican sour gherkin, mouse melon, or pepquinos,[2][3][4] is a species of flowering plant in the cucurbit family grown for its edible fruit.[5] Its native range spans Mexico to Venezuela.[1] Cucumis melo Agrestis and Cucumis callosus is cultivated as Chibber Fruit (Wild cucumber) or Kachri in South Asia and can also grow as weed. Fruits are about the size of grapes and taste like cucumbers with a tinge of sourness.[6] It may have been eaten by indigenous peoples before the European colonization of the Americas began.[6]

Description

Melothria scabra female flower

Melothria scabra is a vine similar in morphology to Melothria pendula.[7] It has a climbing habit, and typically grows 2.5–3 m (8.2–9.8 ft) tall.[5] It is fast growing:[5] germination under favourable conditions takes approximately 10 days, with plants reaching maturity in approximately 60–75 days.[6][8] It is a perennial species, but as it is not frost hardy it is often grown as an annual.[5] Its leaves have three or five lobes, and are 3–7 cm (1.2–2.8 in) in length and width.[9] The leaf margin is undulate or dentate, the apex is caudate, and the leaf base is cordate.[9] The leaf surface is scabrous; the upper surface is covered with small hairs called trichomes.[9] Similar to some types of cucumber,[10] these plants are monoecious, producing both male (staminate) and female (pistillate) flowers on the same plant.[9][11] Flowers are small and yellow, and are approximately 4 mm (0.2 in) in diameter.[5] Unusually for the cucurbits, the female flowers appear before the male flowers.[6] These plants can pollinate themselves, but the individual flowers are not self-fertile. Each plant can produce hundreds of fruits,[8] which develop at the base of the female flowers (the ovaries are inferior).[12] Fruits are olive-shaped,[5] grow to 2.5–4 cm (1.0–1.6 in) in length, and 1.5–2.5 cm (0.6–1.0 in) in width, and are green with dark green stripes.[7] In contrast to the fruits of most other wild species in the cucurbit family, the fruit of Melothria scabra has a sweet rather than bitter flesh.[13] Plants are drought resistant and pest-resistant relative to other cucumbers.[14]

Etymology

Binomial name

The genus name Melothria is from Ancient Greek μηλοθρων: mēlothrōn 'kind of white grape' in reference to small grapevine fruits born by the genus. The specific epithet scabra is Latin for 'rough, scabby'.

Common names

The English language common name 'cucamelon' arose in the 1980s; it is a portmanteau of 'cucumber' and 'melon'.[15] The Spanish language common name 'sandita' translates as 'little watermelon';[14] its etymology is sandía 'watermelon' + ita, a suffix used to indicate something is small.[16][17]

Distribution and habitat

Melothria scabra is native to Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico,[lower-roman 1] Nicaragua, Panama, and Venezuela,[1] where it grows in forests and thickets.[7]

Diseases

Melothria scabra is susceptible to infection by Pseudoperonospora cubensis,[18][19][20] a plant pathogen that causes cucurbit downy mildew.[21] It is also susceptible to infection by another plant pathogen, Podosphaera xanthii, which causes powdery mildew.[22] Plants are reported to be susceptible to infection by Cucumber mosaic virus.[23]

Cultivation

Melothria scabra is cultivated as a minor crop for its fruits,[13] which are eaten raw or pickled.[24]

Notes

  1. ↑ In Mexico, Melothria scabra is native to the following WGSRPD level-3 floristic units: Mexico Central, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Northwest, Mexico Southeast, and Mexico Southwest.[1]

References

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Wikispecies has information related to Melothria scabra.
  1. 1 2 3 4 "Melothria scabra Naudin". Plants of the World Online. Kew Science. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  2. ↑ "'Micro melons' 20 times smaller than regular size". The Daily Telegraph. 13 May 2009. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  3. ↑ William Woys Weaver (2005). "Mouse Melons". Mother Earth News. Archived from the original on 2013-07-29. Retrieved 2013-07-24.
  4. ↑ "Melothria scabra (MEESC)". EPPO Global Database. 2017-03-14. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Melothria scabra | cucamelon". rhs.org.uk. Royal Horticultural Society. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Mahr, Susan. "Mouse Melon or Mexican Sour Cucumber, Melothria scabra". Wisconsin Horticulture. University of Wisconsin-Madison. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  7. 1 2 3 Woodson, Robert E.; Schery, Robert W.; Wunderlin, Richard P. (1978). "Flora of Panama. Part IX. Family 182. Cucurbitaceae". Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden. 65 (1): 285–366. doi:10.2307/2395357. ISSN 0026-6493. JSTOR 2395357.
  8. 1 2 Rice, Emily; Curtis, Kynda R. (2021). "Drought-Tolerant Options for Southwest Agriculture: Edible Produce". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  9. 1 2 3 4 "Melothria scabra Naudin". worldfloraonline.org. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  10. ↑ Pawełkowicz, Magdalena Ewa; Skarzyńska, Agnieszka; Pląder, Wojciech; Przybecki, Zbigniew (2019-03-13). "Genetic and molecular bases of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) sex determination". Molecular Breeding. 39 (3): 50. doi:10.1007/s11032-019-0959-6. ISSN 1572-9788.
  11. ↑ "Melothria L." Plants of the World Online. Kew Science. Retrieved 2021-06-21.
  12. ↑ "Melothria scabra". Kwantlen Polytechnic University School of Horticulture Plant Database. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  13. 1 2 Chomicki, Guillaume; Schaefer, Hanno; Renner, Susanne S. (2020). "Origin and domestication of Cucurbitaceae crops: insights from phylogenies, genomics and archaeology". New Phytologist. 226 (5): 1240–1255. doi:10.1111/nph.16015. ISSN 1469-8137. PMID 31230355.
  14. 1 2 Spurrier, Jeff (2013-05-14). "Mouse melon, a.k.a. Mexican gherkin: Tiny fruit is big on cute". LA Times.
  15. ↑ "Definition of cucamelon". Lexico.com. Oxford University Press. 2020. Archived from the original on March 4, 2021. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  16. ↑ "English Translation of "sandía"". Collins Spanish-English Dictionary. HarperCollins Publishers. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  17. ↑ "Translation of "-ito" into English". Lexico.com. Oxford University Press. 2020. Archived from the original on August 14, 2020. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  18. ↑ Wilson, Guy West (1908). "Studies in North American Peronosporales-IV. Host Index". Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club. 35 (11): 543–554. doi:10.2307/2479110. ISSN 0040-9618. JSTOR 2479110.
  19. ↑ Ellett, C. Wayne (1970). "Annotated List of the Personosporales of Ohio (I. Albuginaceae and Peronosporaceae)". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  20. ↑ Ellett, C. Wayne (1989). "Ohio plant disease index". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  21. ↑ Savory, Elizabeth A.; Granke, Leah L.; Quesada-Ocampo, Lina M.; Varbanova, Marina; Hausbeck, Mary K.; Day, Brad (2011). "The cucurbit downy mildew pathogen Pseudoperonospora cubensis". Molecular Plant Pathology. 12 (3): 217–226. doi:10.1111/j.1364-3703.2010.00670.x. ISSN 1364-3703. PMC 6640371. PMID 21355994.
  22. ↑ Rennberger, G.; Kousik, C. S.; Keinath, A. P. (2017-09-06). "First Report of Powdery Mildew on Cucumis zambianus, Cucurbita digitata, and Melothria scabra Caused by Podosphaera xanthii in the United States". Plant Disease. 102 (1): 246. doi:10.1094/PDIS-06-17-0916-PDN. ISSN 0191-2917.
  23. ↑ Price, W. C. (1940). "Comparative Host Ranges of Six Plant Viruses". American Journal of Botany. 27 (7): 530–541. doi:10.2307/2437088. ISSN 0002-9122. JSTOR 2437088.
  24. ↑ Watson, Sereno (1886). "Contributions to American Botany". Proceedings of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. 22: 396–481. doi:10.2307/25129875. ISSN 0199-9818. JSTOR 25129875.
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