Cucamelon aka mousemelons
melothria scabra

days to maturity: 70 days
plant spacing: 1 per square foot, trellised
sunlight requirements: 6-14 hours
look out for: powdery mildew & worms
harvest notes: harvest tiny dangling fruits when they are bright green
annual

Small cucumber-like fruit are shaped like baby watermelons. They are good added to salads or can be pickled. They have a cucumber- like taste with a touch of lemon. The ornamental vines have tiny leaves and flowers and are perfect for the cottage garden. Very unique and fun for kids. Huge yields, especially in south florida as they seem to love the humid weather. These grow wild throughout miami on fences and in shrubbery, keep an eye out for them in your wild landscaping. Also called Mexican Sour Gherkin, this variety is very popular in the culinary scene as chefs love to use them whole or halved lengthwise to plate unique dishes. We like to plant these cuties at the base of old tomato cages (which are way too small and weak for use with tomatoes) and let them crawl up the different levels and get all wild and creep around with their tiny fruit dangling everywhere.