Cucumis prophetarum L.

Climber or trailer to 2 m.; stems hispid or scabrid with spreading or ± adpressed sometimes cinereous hairs; basal stems tough, light-barked, somewhat thickened, arising from a perennial rootstock.. Leaf-blade broadly ovate to suborbicular in outline, ± cordate or subtruncate at the base, sinuate-toothed, 10–94 mm. long, 10–82 mm. broad, unlobed or more usually palmately, often deeply, 3–5-lobed; shape of lobes various; petiole 6–87 mm. long, hairy like the stem.. Male flowers 1–6 on 3–25 mm. long pedicels; receptacle-tube green, 2.5–5 mm. long; lobes subulate, 1–2.5 mm. long; petals yellow, 5–7 mm. long, 2–3.5 mm. broad, united below.. Female flowers on 6–30 mm. long stalks; ovary ellipsoid, 4.5–15 mm. long, 2.5–5 mm. across, ± distinctly softly papillate, each papilla ending in a forward-pointing hyaline bristle; receptacle-tube 2.5–4 mm. long; lobes subulate, 1–3 mm. long; petals 5–8 mm. long, 2.5–3.5 mm. broad, united below.. Fruit on an 8–40 mm. long stalk, subglobose to ellipsoid, 16–63 mm. long, 15–33 mm. across, quite closely beset with 0.5–12 mm. long soft rather slender terete bristle-tipped aculei, otherwise usually glabrous, pale green with very obscure to markedly distinct darker longitudinal stripes, practically uniform yellow when ripe.. Seeds elliptic in outline, smooth, compressed, ± 5 × 2 × 1 mm.

It is a tropical plant. It grows between 3-2,400 m altitude. It can grow in stony, sand or clay soils. It can grow in alkaline soils. It is often over limestone material. It grows in areas with an annual rainfall of 400 mm. It can grow in arid places.

The unripe fruit are pickled. The ripe fruit are bitter but are boiled and eaten. They are also cut into small pieces, dried and then cooked as a vegetable. The leaves are edible.

Can be grown by seedlings.