Annuals Dictionary: Echinocystis
Cucumber family
Cucurbitaceae
Ee-ky-no-sis’tis. Herbaceous vines, comprising about 25 species from North or South America, only one of garden interest.
Description
Leaves palmately divided with 3-7 lobes. Male flowers in panicles, corolla with 6 lobes. Female flowers solitary or paired in small axils.
How to Grow
Start seeds indoors 4-6 weeks before last frost and transfer to the garden when danger of frost is past. Prefers warm weather.
Echinocystis lobata
Wild Cucumber ; Prickly Cucumber . Stems slender, angled, to 20 ft. (6 m) long. Flowers small, whitish, ? in. (6 mm) long. New Brunswick to Saskatchewan, south to Fla. and Tex. This vine grows rapidly and is often planted to conceal unsightly areas in the yard. Half-hardy annual.