Large flowers in a mad cucumber. Features of the variety Crazy (wild) cucumber

In the family cucurbits there is very unusual plant. Even its name - crazy cucumber - already suggests that it is very original. The fact is that when the fruits ripen, the fruits crack, and the seeds begin to be thrown out, and the trajectory can be up to several meters. And this culture is very simple in terms of cultivation and care and is widely used in folk medicine.

The main characteristics of the plant

Externally, the culture looks like a tropical climbing vine. Her flowers are yellow. By smell, they can be confused with gardenias, when flowering ends, round and elongated fruits appear - this is the mad cucumber. The plant burns during growth, by analogy with nettles, but when the fruits appear, the characteristic burning sensation disappears. The culture begins to bloom in mid-summer, and ripens closer to September.

A distinctive feature is that the seed of the plant tends to scatter up to 20 meters around when ripe, so the plant multiplies.

The culture is annual. It first appeared in the northern part of America, but now its distribution area is as follows:

• Central and Asia Minor;
• Ukraine and southern part Russia;
• Azores;
• Mediterranean.

AT vivo can grow near the sea, as well as near roads. There are several varieties of the plant, but there is only one species - the common mad cucumber. Also popularly it is also called wild.

Concerning external features, then the length of the shoots of the vine can reach 6-10 meters. The root is thick and fleshy white color. The leaves are triangular or heart-shaped, as well as teeth along the edges. From above they are green, and below are gray-felt. The flowers have a pale yellow hue, some are same-sex, mostly monoecious, in the form of a corolla. They have 5 stamens, and 4 of them are fused, and the fifth stamen is located separately, the pistil consists of 3 carpels.

Other recipes:

• To treat the fungus, you need to prepare a bath based on 200 g of fresh culture and 3 liters of boiling water, insist. Additionally, you can put a spoonful of honey in it. The resulting solution is rubbed on the inside of the shoe or the affected areas of the skin.
• For gout, a solution of fresh cucumber juice mixed with vinegar is applied to the affected area.
• Hemorrhoidal cones are smeared with a mixture of boiled fruits and sesame oil.
• If you insist oil on dried cucumber, you can cure otitis media and other ear diseases and remove worms.
• If milk is added to such an infusion, then you can get rid of a runny nose and remove inflammation of the nasopharynx.
• The tincture has a diuretic property that helps with swelling or dropsy.
• The juice of the leaves and stem has antibacterial properties.

The skin should be removed, the pulp is used for salads, stewing, pickling or pickling, by analogy with ordinary cucumbers. In addition to fruits, tubers are edible, as well as young fresh stems and leaves. They can be added as ingredients for salads or cooked in vegetable soup.

Many grow wild cucumber more for ornamental purposes than for practical application. It is good because with the help of a plant you can green the desired surface, for example, balconies, walls or gazebos, giving them a unique look.

And if necessary, medicinal compositions are prepared from the plant for the treatment of various diseases.

Possible contraindications

It must be remembered that the wild cucumber itself is very poisonous. Therefore, all funds based on it must be taken with extreme caution. When misused they can cause side effects such as:

• drowsiness;
• diarrhea;
• vomiting;
• general weakness.

During treatment, it is imperative to monitor your condition. It is strictly forbidden to take the drug during pregnancy or breastfeeding.

Be sure to wear rubber gloves when juicing. If it comes into contact with the skin, it may cause sores, blisters, or burns. All plant-based products should be taken only under the strict supervision of a physician.

When you first hear this funny name of a plant - “Mad Cucumber”, a special cucumber immediately appears, behaving inappropriately.
In fact, this is the popular name for a plant that is really unusual - from appearance, and strangely enough for a plant, behavior. And correctly, this plant is called Echinocystis or Prickly Fruit or Echinocystis lobed, or Echinocystis lobata, Echinocystis echinata, it comes from North America.

The word Echinocystis consists of two parts, translated from Latin "echinos" - means a hedgehog, and "cystis" - a bubble. It turns out - a prickly bubble. If you turn on the fantasy, then you can imagine a prickly cucumber, but why the name crazy has stuck to it, I will explain.






When the Echinocystis fruit ripens, a lot of mucus accumulates in its fruits, pressing on the skin, as a result of this pressure, an explosion occurs, in which the seeds themselves shoot outward, over a sufficiently large distance.

Crazy cucumbers ripen on our suburban area in August, their fruits really shoot themselves, and even children love to have fun in this way. Jumping on the cucumber with all his might, he shoots his "pumpkin" seed at a fairly decent distance. We are already accustomed to such surprises, but for people who are not prepared, this causes great surprise.
Therefore, such a funny name for this plant is not without meaning.

Crazy cucumber begins to bloom only in July, and ends in early September.

At our dacha, these unusual vines grow a lot, they reproduce themselves, as they are very prolific. All fences, hedges, places near ditches are covered with thickets of these amazing plants. Crazy cucumber seeds are very similar to pumpkin seeds, because the plant itself belongs to the gourd family.

Initially, this plant was considered an invasive weed, capable of crowding out other plants, clogging them with its powerful green mass.
Over time, the plant liked summer residents, as ornamental plant and became widely used everywhere.

Echinocystis feels great in wet places, near rivers, braids low trees and bushes. The honey aroma of Echinocystis attracts many insects, but it can be pollinated not only by insects, but also by the wind. From the structure of the plant, one can see that male flowers are at a higher distance than the female ones, and with a slight breath of the breeze, pollen from them flies down to the female flowers.

Some summer residents are still struggling with this vine, considering it a weed.

We do not fight Crazy Cucumber, although we could replace it with a variety of loaches, girlish grapes or some other noble plants. Other climbing plants we also have a lot on the site, but Echinocystis always has its place.

In my opinion, this plant is very cute - the leaves of the Crazy Cucumber are beautiful, jagged and even somewhat similar to maple leaves, the petioles of the leaves are fleshy, rough, covered with thin bristles, and the cucumbers themselves are round in shape, covered with soft and delicate spines. On one bush, you can see flowers at the same time, and only tiny berry-cucumbers that have been born, and already a little grown-up cucumber-nuts and adult pumpkin cucumbers. Adult cucumbers are egg-shaped. They all look so cute, and so uplifting, even when you just look at them.
small flowers mad cucumber have honey aroma which attracts bees. Beekeepers appreciate this plant very much, as it is an excellent honey collection.

Crazy Cucumber loves it very much sunny places, elevations, on our site he chose a place for himself near compost heap on the one hand and the fence and the other side, along which it winds up and sometimes reaches six meters in height.

Echinocystis is an annual herbaceous vine that belongs to the gourd family. She can create in no time a beautiful hedge, as it grows with cosmic speed. The plant clings to supports - fences and hedges with its tendrils. Its incredible ability to grow quickly contributes to the creation of picturesque hedges in a very short time.

How to plant Echinocystis

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I, to decorate my site, no longer use Echinocystis additionally, since over the years it has grown very much along the fence and propagates by self-sowing. But when my friends who want to plant Echinocystis in their area ask for seeds and I always share them with pleasure. And there are not many people who want to.
Seeds ripen from August to October. I collect them in autumn period. Seeds are very similar to pumpkin seeds. Shoots of Echinocystis are similar to shoots of pumpkin or zucchini. Shoots appear in late April - early May and begin to grow very quickly. Be sure to plant the plant at the support so that it can hold on to it. Having planted Echinocystis once, it will no longer be necessary to plant it for the future period, every year more and more new plants will appear from the ripened seeds, but it will be quite difficult to get rid of them. They have incredible survivability.

Although the plant is called cucumber, although rabid, its name is associated with an edible vegetable. Unfortunately, this is not so; you cannot eat the fruits of the Crazy Cucumber plant.
Some time ago, I was very surprised to learn that the wild cucumber is not just a cute, ornamental plant, but also that it is medicinal.

Crazy cucumber - as a medicine:

In folk medicine, wild cucumber is used as a medicine, its roots contain analgesics, so wild cucumber root tea helps with headaches.
Tea really helps, but for my taste, it is a bit bitter. I add a couple of tablespoons of honey to a cup of tea from the roots of this plant. Then the taste becomes soft, the bitterness is almost not felt, and the aroma becomes delicious.

Harvesting the roots of mad cucumber:

Basically, when harvesting a plant for medicinal purposes, the roots of a mad cucumber are dried in a ventilated room. The roots should be collected in the fall, peeled and washed from the ground, dried in the sun or in an electric dryer for vegetables and fruits.

When taking this medicine, be sure to consult your doctor.

grassy annual plant mad cucumber is a weed growing on the Black Sea coast, in Asia Minor, and other regions. It is poisonous and medicinal at the same time. It is used in folk and official medicine.

Description

The plant belongs to the gourd family. Loves sandy soils often found along the coast. As a garden crop is not grown, it is considered a malicious weed. The name of the weed gave the distribution of seeds.

Source: Depositphotos

Crazy cucumber until the fruit ripens, it burns like nettles

When the fruit ripens, a pressure of 6 atmospheres is created inside, the cucumber breaks away from the shoot, and the seeds shoot out to a distance of 6-12 m around. This is how the seed material spreads and the plant reproduces.

Botanical description:

• heat-loving annual;
• creeping stem 50-120 cm long with antennae;
• leaves are rigid, pubescent, gray-gray on the inside;
• flowers are yellow;
• flowering time - July - September;
• fruits oblong 4-7 cm long, covered with bristles;
• ripen in August - September.

After ripening, the cucumber turns brown, shoots oblong seeds in the mucous mass. The length of the seeds is 4 mm, similar to the seeds of an ordinary cucumber.

There is an annual cultivar called Momordica. It is used as a climbing ornamental plant to decorate the walls of a house, gazebo or other buildings.

Composition, medicinal properties

As a medicinal raw material, the herbaceous part is used - the stem and leaves. Gathered in the summer, during flowering. Raw materials are dried, crushed, used in medicinal purposes.

Bioactive substances found in stems and leaves:

• steroids;
• organic acids;
• carotenoids;
• alkaloids;
• vitamin C;
• glycosides.

Cucumber has a laxative and diuretic effect on the human body. It has antitumor, antibacterial, anthelmintic properties. Decoctions and infusions from dried raw materials are used to treat jaundice, gout, rheumatism.

Diluted juice from fresh leaves is instilled into the nose for inflammation of the paranasal sinuses, sinusitis. The plant is used for the prevention of oncology of the female genital organs, the treatment of uterine cancer. Effective for edema, kidney disease, neuralgia, hemorrhoids.

The juice contains a high concentration of substances toxic to humans. Therefore, when preparing medicines strictly follow the instructions, and when using - the dosage. Contraindicated in diseases of the stomach, pancreatitis, pregnancy, diarrhea.

Ekballium. The whole plant is completely covered with light, stiff hairs, which makes it appear gray.

The fruits of the exploding cyclantera look like a thick comma.

Echinocystis fruits are like small tennis balls dotted with thorns.

Rare in Russia pumpkin plant- cyclanther.

Everyone knows: cucumbers - they are cucumbers: green, pimply, crispy. But what are mad cucumbers and why did they get mad?

Initially, the mad cucumber was called the southern perennial ekballium, found in the semi-deserts of the Mediterranean and Western Asia. It has cucumber leaves, pale yellow flowers and egg-shaped fruits. Green colour up to 5 cm in size.

Ekballium is a peculiar plant. The most interesting thing happens with the mad cucumber when the fruit ripens. The pulp of a ripe fruit turns into a sticky liquid with black seeds floating in it. At the slightest shock, the stalk flies out of the fruit like a cork from a bottle. Following the “cork”, mucus escapes from the shell of the fetus under pressure. Together with the seeds, it enters the soil, and the shell itself, like a rocket, flies up to a distance of two meters from the bush. If there are several ripe fruits, the push of the first "rocket" causes the launch of the next one, and so on, and they scatter in all directions. The impact force of the fetal shell is such that, being "under fire", you can get quite real bruises and even a "lantern" under the eye.

Crazy cucumber - a poisonous plant, the eaten fruit can even cause fatal poisoning.

In Russia, the echinocystis imported from America several decades ago began to be called a mad cucumber (translated from Latin - hedgehog bladder, or prickly bladder). This vine, which until recently was grown as great rarity, managed to run wild and in many places turned into an enemy of other plants. In the southern regions, dense thickets of Echinocystis can be seen in ravines and along river banks. It wraps around trees and shrubs, covers the ground with a thick carpet, preventing other plants from growing, except perhaps nettles. Echinocystis whips reach a length of 5-6m, so if you want to grow it on a balcony, be prepared for the fact that you will get only bare stems, and fragrant flowers will sway on the floor above.

Numerous small male flowers of Echinocystis are collected in dense fragrant panicles, and rare female flowers are almost invisible, they have thorns “from childhood” and hang one at a time. The fruits most of all look like small hedgehogs or tennis balls dotted with thorns. In ripe fruits, two holes open at the tip, and large dark seeds spill out from there. The fruits sway in the wind and scatter the seeds far around. Echinocystis seeds tolerate our winters well and after wintering they sprout much earlier and more amicably than those planted in spring.

Echinocystis - close relative not so much cucumber as loofah, plants from the gourd family. In both, the fetal skeleton is formed by thick woven fibers. You have probably seen such a loofah washcloth or even wash it with it. In Echinocystis, after the pulp has dried from the fetus, a tiny washcloth also remains.

The pumpkin plant cyclantera, which is rarely found in our country, can also be attributed to mad cucumbers. It grows mainly in South-East Asia and India. More often than others, there are two types of this plant, both with inconspicuous flowers, but with very beautiful densely dissected leaves.

The first type - the exploding cyclantera - gives prickly shiny fruitlets, similar to a thick comma or a cucumber that did not have enough watering: the pedicel has a thick, and at the other end - a tapering nose. The fruit explodes, but quite harmlessly. It cracks lengthwise and literally turns inside out, exposing white flesh and dark seeds that look like pieces of bark. It is hard to believe that anything can grow from them at all.

Another species - leg cyclantera - is officially considered a South Asian vegetable. Its fruits are completely smooth and shiny, hanging on fairly long legs (hence the name). They ripen late, almost at the end of September. At home, cyclantera is stewed, fried, boiled or eaten raw. It tastes the same as an ordinary cucumber, but the peel is harsh, and the fruits are small. You need to eat the cyclanther while it is young and the seeds are almost started. Mature fruit contains 6-8 large black uneven seeds. Ripe fruits become whitish, as if wadded and easily fall apart in the hands.

If you want to grow cyclanthera, sow the seeds directly into the soil in a bright spot and where it can curl freely.

Crazy cucumber is an annual or perennial Mediterranean crop that belongs to the gourd family. A feature of the plant is the ability of its fruits to shoot seeds over long distances. That's where the name "mad" comes from.

Another plant is called Indian cucumber. It has medicinal properties. The product is used in cooking, as well as in decorative purposes for decorating arbors, fences, arches.

Description

The only species of the genus Squirting cucumber- This is a common mad cucumber. One of its subspecies, and sometimes the common mad cucumber itself, is called Momordika, bitter gourd, balsam pear. Translated from Latin, the name indicates that the vegetable is "biting". This is due to the fact that during growth wild plant stings like nettles. But as soon as the fetus itself appears, the pricklyness disappears.

The root system has the form of a rod. The stems are thick, spread to the ground, actively branching. The leaves are arranged alternately, have an ovoid-heart-shaped shape and jagged edges. They can also be slightly lobed. The top color of the plate is green, and the underside is felt-grayish. It is wrinkled, rough to the touch.

The fruits usually ripen from late summer to mid-autumn. They are bluish green in color. They look like an elongated pumpkin. Dimensions: 4-8 cm. outer side covered with prickly bristles. Inside the fruit is very juicy. Outwardly, it looks a bit like a thickened cucumber, hence the name of the plant. When the fruit is fully ripe, an explosion occurs even from a breath of wind or a light touch. Pumpkin comes off the stalk, and the seeds fly out. The pressure inside a ripe cucumber is 5 atmospheres. Because of this, the seeds fly off at a speed of 10 meters per second at a distance of up to 12 meters. They have a dark brownish tint and a smooth surface. The seeds are usually no more than 0.4 cm long.

Despite the fact that the mad cucumber is considered poisonous, it is used in medicine. For medicinal purposes, it is necessary to harvest unripe fruits. They are used fresh, squeezing juice. They can also be dried at a temperature of 450 C. The fruits must be kept separate from other products due to the poisonousness of the mad cucumber. Sometimes shoots, leaves and roots are used for medicinal purposes. They need to be dried outside under a canopy or in a room that is well ventilated. Then store in closed containers for no more than a year.

Beneficial features and contraindications

Until now, the complete composition of the fruits, roots and ground parts of the plant has not been studied. It is known that it contains curbitacins, steroids, alkaloids, elatherins, B vitamins, ascorbic acid, allantoin, proteins, carotenoids, fatty acid, organic acids. This is the reason for the health benefits of this culture.

Due to the beneficial properties of the ground part, the mad cucumber has a number of actions on the human body:

• destroys helminths and removes them from the body;
• fights various types of bacteria;
• has a diuretic effect;
• prevents or suppresses the development of tumors, including cancer;
• has a pronounced laxative effect.

Crazy cucumber helps the human body and its individual systems to cope with diseases such as:

• inflammatory processes in the liver;
• hepatitis;
• swelling, dropsy;
• neuralgia;
• sciatica;
• rheumatism;
• gout;
• inflammatory processes in the urinary organs;
• colic in the intestines;
• intermittent fever.

The plant is used by women in the treatment of malignant tumors in the uterus. Another mad cucumber helps to establish the menstrual cycle, if there are failures in it.

Outwardly, remedies based on such a plant are recommended for use in the development of fungal infections, abscesses, and trophic-type ulcers on the skin. The use of mad cucumber helps with sinusitis, inflammatory processes in the mucous layers, nasal sinuses. Means based on it are effective for hemorrhoids.

But it is necessary to use a mad cucumber very carefully, since the plant is considered poisonous. You must first consult with your doctor so as not to harm your own body. Contraindications include:

• pancreatitis;
• heart disease;
• stomach diseases;
• occasional loose stools.

You can not use the culture during pregnancy and lactation.

The chemicals that make up the seeds and fruits of mad cucumber can cause an acute form of intoxication of the body, up to and including death. It is known that the use of only 0.5 g of fresh fruit juice leads to the death of a person if consumed internally. In case of an overdose of means based on mad cucumber, the patient begins to suffer from nausea, bouts of vomiting, stabbing pains in the abdomen, and rapid heart rate.

Application in cooking and traditional medicine

In folk medicine from various parts decoctions, infusions, powders are prepared from such a culture, juice is squeezed out.

Popular recipes:

1. 1. Decoction for the treatment of skin diseases. Requires 1 tbsp. l. pour dried herbs into an enameled container and pour 1 liter of boiling water. Then process the product in a water bath for 25 minutes and wait until the mixture cools down. Then strain it and add more water to the liquid until the initial volume is obtained. With this tool it is necessary to wipe the affected areas of the skin. You can also soak a bandage in it and wrap it around the wound. If the patient does not heal a trophic ulcer, then it is necessary to make a cake from 1 tsp. flour and 1 tbsp. l. the resulting decoction. Then attach it to the ulcer and fix it with a bandage.
2. 2. Cure for sinusitis. In this case, you need to use cucumber juice. Only fresh liquid is suitable. You will need to mix 2 drops of juice and 8 drops of cooled boiled water. Such a remedy must be instilled into each nostril for 3-4 drops. The next procedure can be carried out only after 3 days. During the preparation of fresh juice, hands must be protected with gloves so as not to cause skin irritation.
3. 3. Remedy for worms. You need 1 tsp. dried herbs pour 200 ml of boiling water. The container with the liquid must be wrapped and infused for 50 minutes. Then strain. It is necessary to drink the drink 3 times a day half an hour before meals, 5 ml. This helps not only to get rid of worms, but also removes puffiness, which is caused by any factors. It also acts as a mild laxative.
4. 4. Cure for sciatica, neuralgia and rheumatism. One part of the fruit (both fresh and dried) must be poured with 20 parts of vodka. The remedy should be infused for 2 weeks. Then it is filtered and applied externally for rubbing.

Crazy cucumber ordinary is not eaten because of its dangerous poisonous properties.