Cucamelon ( photo / image / picture from Netty's Garden ) I'm trying to grow Cucamelon for the first time this year. Anyone here ever grown them? Looking for tips and opinions
Interesting looking melons, Netty... Do you know the flesh color(s)... I'll see what I can find on the i-net.. Hank
Netty those look like the sour mexican cucumbers I grew last year. they are about an inch long. I didn't grow them this year.
Netty, I found the following info on these fruits; Cucamelon, Mexican Sour Cucumber, Guadeloupe Cucumber, Creeping Cucumber, Mouse Melon Melothria scabra Family: Cucurbitaceae (koo-ker-bih-TAY-see-ee) Genus: Melothria (mel-OH-three-uh) Species: scabra (SKAY-bruh) Flesh color is white, fruits are 1" - 2" long, and about 3/4" - 1" diameter.. Some people use them in salads, one person described taste as 'very similar to cucumber with sleight lemon flavor'... Hank
I found them to be very cute...but bland and boring. their appeal is their cute factor. Now, they may make great pickles, but for fresh eating? meh. You also need to pick a lot of them to do anything with them.
I grew the Mexican sour gherkins last year and they look and taste exactly like you have described. I would try to put them on a trellis of some kind. Mine bushed out and I had a heck of a time picking them. I think growing them vertically would help a lot. Other than that they were easy to grow and produced abundantly. Just water and fertilize like you would regular cucumbers.
Thanks for the replies. I had already looked up information on the net, I was more so looking for opinions and growing tips from someone that had actually grown and eaten them. Carolyn - the fact that you tried them and didn't plant them for a second time says a lot. I kind of wondered if they were marketed on their 'cute factor'. Eclecticgarden - I had debated growing them vertically because of space issues, now that you have suggested it I know that is the way I will grow them. Thanks!
I suppose anything you want to make them if you are eating them yourself. I found the skin to be kind of tough, though.
My daughter gave me seeds, so I tried them this year. So far they're very small plants. I put them in the bottom half of a rain barrel. They can climb on a trellis. I think they can be thrown whole in a salad, or sliced once. Also eaten right off the vine as I do with Grape tomatoes and sometimes green beans, lettuce, kale, beet tops. I'm a garden muncher.
Refresher on Cucamelons. I found them to taste quite nice, sort of lemony, but they require a lot of space in order to get enough for eating. I didn't bother with them this year.
My kids enjoy them, so I grew them again this year. I have 4 plants climbing on a trellis. They have just started producing and I pick a small handful each time. I had trouble finding them this year so I must remember to save seeds if I want to grow them again next year!
Hiya Netty. I grew them once because I received some seeds as a gift. I found them easy to grow (in a greenhouse). I planted them in fresh and quite rich spoil. I watered them regularly and after they began blooming, I would feed them with Comfrey tea. They produced quite a few fruits which my bride enjoyed...but not enough to repeat. She prefers the so-called "Snack Cucumbers", so we grow those now. I hope that you like the little things and let me know how they do for you.
