Echinocystis
| Echinocystis lobata | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Cucurbitales |
| Family: | Cucurbitaceae |
| Subfamily: | Cucurbitoideae |
| Tribe: | Sicyeae |
| Subtribe: | Cyclantherinae |
| Genus: | Echinocystis Torr. & A.Gray |
| Species: | E. lobata |
| Binomial name | |
| Echinocystis lobata (Michx.) Torr. & A. Gray | |
| Synonyms | |
Echinocystis is a monotypic genus in the gourd/melon/cucumber family Cucurbitaceae, with the sole species Echinocystis lobata, commonly called wild cucumber, prickly cucumber, or balsam apple.
Distribution
Echinocystis lobata is an annual vine native across North America. It is found in forty U.S. states (excluding Nevada, Hawaii, and Alaska; and most of the far Southeastern states); and nine Canadian provinces.
Vernacular nomenclature
"Wild cucumber" is a very common vernacular name for two different plants:
- the annual plant, native to northern states and Canada — "Echinocystis lobata"
- the perennial plant, native to southern California and Baja California (Mexico) — "Marah" species.
Some authors include the genus Marah (manroots) within the genus Echinocystis.
References
External links
- USDA Species Information
- Profile: Wild Cucumber (Echinocystis lobata) Photos, Drawings, Text. (Wild Plants of Winnipeg from Nature Manitoba)
- Ontario Wildflowers
Media related to Echinocystis at Wikimedia Commons
Data related to Echinocystis at Wikispecies
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Saturday, April 16, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.