A climber. It is a pumpkin family herb. It has tendrils 8-15 cm long. It has a tuberous taproot. This can be 10-18 cm long by 5-10 cm wide. The leaves are alternate and 10-16 cm long by 8-18 cm wide. There can be 3-5 lobes. The base is deeply heart shaped. Male flowers can occur singly or in groups of 5-7. Female flowers occur singly. The fruit are oval and 5-8 cm long by 3-4 cm wide. They are dark green but turn bright orange when ripe. They have short soft spines. The pulp is red and sweet. The seeds are black and shiny.
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