‘Greek from Peloponese’
Ref: CUCU_MI_MELO_FLEX_001
Common Name: Armenian Cucumber / Concombre Armenien / Ξυλάγγουρο (Ατζούρι)
Scientific Name: Cucumis melo flexuosus
Plant’s cycle: Annual
Light Requirement: full sun
Soil type: Requires a rich, well-drained moisture retentive soil. pH 6.2 – 7.2
Sowing in nursery: April
Direct Planting: May
Germination: 7 to 8 days after sowing (15 – 28 ºC)
Harvest: 90 to 120 days after sowing
Spacing: 100cm/100cm/2cm deep
Flowers are monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant)
Pollination: by insects
Plant is self-fertile
Seed preservation: 5 years
Edible Parts: Fruit, Seed
Medicine: Antitussive; Diuretic; Emetic; Vermifuge
The fruits can be used as a cooling light cleanser or moisturiser for the skin. They are also used as a first aid treatment for burns and abrasions. The flowers are expectorant and emetic. The fruit is stomachic. The seed is antitussive, digestive, febrifuge and vermifuge. When used as a vermifuge, the whole seed complete with the seed coat is ground into a fine flour, then made into an emulsion with water and eaten. It is then necessary to take a purge in order to expel the tapeworms or other parasites from the body. The root is diuretic and emetic.
Known Hazards: The sprouting seed produces a toxic substance in its embryo.