Wild Cucumber
1 min read
Update 2026-01-16:
Turns out this is Wild Cucumber (Marah macrocarpa). Several years after posting this photo on Instagram and later here, I heard about a native vine that turned out to be it. Updated this during the Lume migration. I took the pic because I loved the texture and found them otherworldly.
Cabrillo National Monument has thrown their Species Spotlight Marah macrocarpa’s way, where we discover also it’s also known as Cucumonga Manroot (!) because of how the:
vines emerge from a large, hard tuberous root that can extend several meters and weigh over 200 pounds. One manroot found by Rancho Santa Ana Bontanic Garden was reported to weigh 467 pounds after being removed from the soil!
Calscape from the California Native Plant Society has a Wild Cucumber entry where we learn it’s also known as bigroot.
🍇🥒🍂
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