Ecballium elaterium (L.) A.Rich. Squirting Cucumber

Ecballium elaterium (L.) A.Rich. - Squirting Cucumber

Scientific Description:

Perennial herb. Stems prostrate, stout, hispid, pale green, to 25 cm. Leaves rather thick, stiff, deep green and scabrid above, pale green and densely hispid tomentose beneath, ovate-triangular, cordate, sinuate and undulate at the margins, rather concave above, shortly 5-lobed with the basal lobes, ± erect, 4−14.5 × 3.5−17 cm. Peduncles erect, hispid, 2−10 cm. Male flowers in 3.5−3.7 cm racemes; petals 8−16 × 4−7 mm. Female flowers often co-axillary with male; peduncles 1−8 cm; petals 6−12 × 3−6 mm. Fruit pendulous, 3−5 × 1.5−2.5 cm. Pulp exceedingly bitter. Seeds about 4 mm.

 

Flowering time: April−October.

Habitat: Waste places, roadsides, river banks, s.l.−600m.

 

Reference:
Jeffrey C (1972). Ecballium elaterium (L.) A. Rich., In: Davis PH (ed.), Flora of Turkey and the East Aegean Islands, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 4: 203.

Public Description:

Ecballium elaterium, commonly known as “squirting cucumber” or “exploding cucumber”, is native to Europe, northern Africa, and temperate areas of Asia. It is a perennial plant with yellow flowers and hairy fruits like cucumber. Although it has been used as a medicinal herb for over 2000 years, it has been used only limitedly in modern herbalism for some diseases such as heart problems and sinusitis treatment, because has a very violent effect upon the body. Overdoses have been reported to cause gastro-enteritis and even death. It contains poisonous “cucurbitacins”, and all parts of the plant can be fatal if ingested. In some places, it is grown as an ornamental plant and it is naturalized in such places. In the ancient world it was considered to be an abortifacient.

 

References:

Anonymous 1 (2017). http://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Ecballium+elaterium,Accessed date: 09.08.2017.

Anonymous 2 (2017). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecballium,Accessed date: 09.08.2017.

Anonymous 3 (2018). https://www.britannica.com/plant/Cucurbitaceae, Accessed date: 30.01.2018.

Aslan S (2012). Ecballium A.Rich., In: Güner, A., Aslan, S., Ekim, T., Vural, M. & Babaç, M.T. (eds.), Türkiye Bitkileri Listesi (Damarlı Bitkiler). Nezahat Gökyiğit Botanik Bahçesi ve Flora Araştırmaları Derneği Yayını. İstanbul, pp. 389.