All through the month of August it thrived - green leaves racing up and over the countryside, followed by great swathes of bloom that filled the air with a fugitive sweetness. If you walked (or cycled) down a Wisconsin road this summer, you probably saw it yourself - white waves of wild cucumber blossom, climbing trees, swarming over fences, scaling the sides of barns, spilling up and down banks.
Wild cucumber isn't always this luxuriant - last summer I hardly saw any - but the climatic conditions of 2013 must have been perfect for it.
Like many of the showiest wildflowers, it looks quite delicate when seen up close...
but its delicacy is deceiving, as in one season it can grow 15 to 25 feet, covering entire trees or long stretches of hedgerow by means of its forked, curly tendrils. (In the above photo it's taking over a patch of ragweed - go wild cucumber!)
Like its domesticated cousin, wild cucumber bears fruit, but of a shorter and spinier variety:
Each pod is about 2" long, and should you be tempted to eat it - don't! According to my wildflower book: "Its large fruit smells and tastes like cucumber, but will cause upset stomach and diarrhea."
Perhaps I oughtn't to admire this rather predatory plant, but I do - for its beauty, its tenacity, and its quiet sweet scent. Ruthless though it may seem, wild cucumber's life is short, and the predator soon becomes the prey of time.
Flourishing in August, dying in September, the wild cucumber's fruit will ripen, dry, and burst. Each pod will produce four seeds to lie in wait for spring - for their chance to sprout and climb once more towards the sun.
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Do you admire any plants that are generally considered to be weeds?
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Wow I've never heard if this before. It looks beautiful. I love wild clematis. It look similar to your wild cucumber but it doesn't die back each year. It climbs up trees and then hangs down loose like a giant wild curtain. Isn't nature just wonderful.
ReplyDeleteRosie xx
Wild clematis sounds lovely - the words alone conjure up a beautiful image.
DeleteYes, nature is very wonderful! :)
I love those!! They embellish old rusty fences of sad abandoned properties.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite weeds-dandelions! I love their bright yellow sunny faces! When we walk through our neighbourhood we always know who uses herbicides on their lawn-they don't have dandelions, only poor, green, boring grass :)
I love dandelions too - they are so cheerful, especially in the spring when almost nothing else is blooming. :)
DeleteI kind of admire the determination of the kudzu plant. It covers everything in its path like a blanket and grows inches each day....I know it's a menace, but I admire it's will and Roman attitude!
ReplyDeleteI have heard of kudzu but never seen it - isn't it said to be edible? Though from what you say it would take an army to (b)eat it. :)
DeleteI didn't know this plant, so I really enjoyed your sharing it. Brownie (above) named mine ~ dandelions! When I was small, I was planning to carry them in my bridal bouquet. Didn't! Went for peach colored roses instead! but I still love their bright, yellow, smiling faces!
ReplyDeleteSo glad to know there are other dandelion-lovers out there! After all, one woman's weed is another woman's favourite flower. :)
DeleteI can't help but wonder what color the yarn would be if I dyed with spiny cucumbers... ;)
ReplyDeleteProbably yellow. (Sigh.)
Delete:D
PS: We had that an abundant crop of chicory in the wild like that this year. Too bad not a single one grew in my garden!
ReplyDeleteThat is a bummer indeed, though your garden was so beautiful it almost makes no difference. :)
Delete(So what did that plant turn out to be after all?)
That is a very interesting plant.
ReplyDeleteHere it is Beautyberry. I just love them in the fall.
I have heard of Beautyberry and seen some photographs - they are amazing!
Delete:)
There is beauty in all of those growing things. Even the weeds. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteHear hear! Thanks Beth. :)
DeleteSurely weeds also have their own beauty and peculiarity. In the end all the plants must have "wild" origin. Flowers too. And somehow I do like weeds simplicity.
ReplyDeleteThat's a very good point, Anna. And I too like the simplicity of wild things. :)
DeleteOh I like about anything that has flowers - weed or not. I have a brown thumb so involuntarily growing something with a flower on it is a wonder! Love the look of the wild cucumber. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI am with you there - almost anything that flowers has something pleasing about it (to my way of thinking). :)
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ReplyDelete°º✿ Olá!
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Passei para uma visita.
Belíssimas fotos!!!
Boa semana!
Beijinhos do Brasil.
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Muito obrigado! :)
DeleteWhat a fascinating post ... it's not a plant I know, but it's beautiful. We had an excellent year for dandelions here, they're the weed I love best I think, although there aren't many weeds I don't like, so many of them are actually really useful plants in one way or another.
ReplyDeleteAmen to that - even the wild cucumber has been used as a purgative. I like most weeds too - except ragweed, which makes me miserable every August! :)
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