Cucumis Deco Fruits Mix Seeds - Ornamental cucumber mix

Deco Fruits Mix brings together various ornamental species of cucumbers, gherkins and melons that are extremely easy to sow. These cousins of the traditional vegetable are very fast-growing creeping or climbing annuals that produce fruit that are as original as they are decorative, and that are relatively uniform in size. Small, spiky or hairy, oval or round cucumbers mix with tiny striped melons in a range of green to greyish hues. The melon bears small fruits that become orange once ripe. These unusual plants can be used in floral arrangements, table decorations, or mixed together in container displays. Easy to grow, they appreciate warm, sheltered situations.

Cucumbers and melons belong to the family Cucurbitaceae. Two species are usually grown in the garden for their refreshingly tasty fruits: Cucumis sativa, which includes cucumbers and gherkins, and its cousin Cucumis melo, the melon. This Deco Fruits Mix includes many other species that are used exclusively for ornamental purposes: Cucumis africanus, C. anguria, C. canoxii, C. carolinus, C. dipsaceus, the melon variety C. melo 'Queen Anne', C. myriocarpus and Zehneria scabra. They are annuals or perennials in their natural environments and are widespread in all the warm regions of the world, from Australia to Africa and South Asia. They are tendril climbers, or voluble climbers with a disorganized, prostrate growth habit, that produce stems reaching 1.20 m to 1.80 m in length, depending on the plant. Flowering takes place from June to September, in the form of white or yellow flowers. Each plant produces unisexual flowers of two types, male or female. They produce fruits that are 1 cm to 6 cm long, oval to round, more or less hairy or spiky, solid coloured or striped, and vary from a very soft green to grey. The small melons of the Pocket Queen Ann variety are yellow with orange stripes.

Sow these cucumbers, melons and gherkins in the spring, under heated cover, the same way as if they were vegetable plants. Then plant them in the open ground or in window boxes. Their unusual fruits can be used to create all sorts of original decorations. They bring a touch of exoticism and whimsy to a bowl of fruit, mixed with clusters of grapes, apples, pears, the leaves of Virginia creeper, mini pumpkins and many other things. Skewered onto the end of a thin metal wire, they can even be added to a bouquet of flowers, or simply combine them with Chinese lantern (Physalis franchetti) and small bittergourds in a bowl placed on the table. The fruit keeps for approximately 3 months before having to be thrown away.