Cucamelons

I Hate Cucamelons: Maybe you call them cucamelons, mouse melons, Mexican miniature watermelons, Mexican sour cucumbers, Mexican sour gherkin or pepquinos. Or in Spanish, sanditas, meaning little watermelons. But there’s just one plant behind all those names: Melothria scabra, native from Mexico to Venezuela.

[Editor’s note: One of the things I love about Larry Hodgson’s posts is his fearlessness is addressing the sacred cows of gardening! I don’t object too much to the taste of cucamelons. My beef with them is that, self-fertile or not, they seem to be affecting my cucumber crop. I don’t know if the cucamelons are crossing with the regular cukes, or just setting a bad example, but I haven’t had a decent-sized cucumber this year. They’re all tiny little things that barely justify their existence in my small garden.]