Squirting cucumber is usually planted from direct-sown seeds in the spring. It is a fast-growing but fragile vine covered with wrinkled, bristly leaves that will produce flowers and fruit in its first year. The plants contain elaterium, a drug that has medicinal properties when properly refined but which is quite toxic to humans and pets in unrefined form. The “cucumber” fruit of this plant is decidedly non-edible. If you would like to grow this plant in your garden, keep in mind that it can spread rather quickly. Its creeping vines can sprawl out as wide as three feet, and its explosive seed pods may cause new squirting cucumber plants to pop up as far as 20 feet away from the parent plant. Though it is a vining plant, squirting cucumber does not have tendrils and is grown as groundcover rather than climbing upward.
Light
Squirting cucumber demands full sun to grow well. Shady conditions will cause leggy, sparse plants and fewer flowers and fruits.
Soil
Squirting cucumber grows best in rich soil, but it has excellent tolerance for poor, even rocky soils. It is often found growing wild in areas with very poor, disturbed soils, such as construction sites. These plants are not picky when it comes to soil pH, doing equally well in mildly acidic, neutral, or mildly alkaline soils.
Water
This plant has average to low water needs. It will thrive on the typical “one inch per week” rule. It does not mind short periods of drought, such as is common in its native Mediterranean habitat. In areas that get some rainfall every week or two, additional watering is not necessary.
Temperature and Humidity
This unique plant is native to the Mediterranean and it thrives as a perennial in USDA hardiness zones 9 to 11. Squirting cucumber prefers dryish air, and humid winters may kill the plant. High humidity may cause fungal diseases.
Fertilizer
No feeding is necessary for this plant unless the soil is extremely barren.
Propagating Squirting Cucumber
Because of the inherent dangers of being squirted by the fruits, it is most common to propagate these plants by simply transplanting the volunteer plants that pop up in the spring after the fruits burst and scatter their seeds in the soil the previous year:
How to Grow Squirting Cucumber From Seed
If starting plants from seeds, simply sow them in the garden in the spring after all danger of frost has passed. The seeds will easily germinate and sprout, growing quickly into flowering plants in their first year.
Potting and Repotting Squirting Cucumber
Though it is not common, container culture is possible for squirting cucumber. Any pot material will do, provided it is well-draining. The growing medium needs to be fast-draining and able to dry out quickly—a blend of potting mix and sand or perlite will work nicely. Rather than worrying about repotting, it’s more common to discard the plants at the end of the growing season and start over with new ones the following spring.
Overwintering
In colder regions where squirting cucumber grows as an annual, simply pull the plants from the ground and discard them at the end of the season (while taking precautions not to contact juices of squirting fruits). In areas where it grows as a perennial, reduce watering for the winter months, as damp cold can kill these plants.
Common Pests and Plant Diseases
Squirting cucumber can be visited by a variety of common garden pests, such as aphids. They are rarely fatal but can be treated with horticultural oil. These plants can also be stricken with viruses or fungal diseases such as powdery mildew. Virus-stricken plants should be removed and destroyed. Powdery mildew, while disfiguring, is not very serious. It can be treated with spray fungicide if you wish.
How to Get Squirting Cucumber to Bloom
This plant’s yellow bell-shaped flowers normally appear from June to August. Failure to bloom is usually because the plant is not getting enough sun or is suffering from an extended drought.
Common Problems With Squirting Cucumber
These plants are generally trouble-free, but they are not very showy and gardeners sometimes grow tired of the novelty (and potential hazard) of the squirting fruit. And the volunteer seedlings that spring up as much as 20 feet away can create an annoying maintenance task. Therefore, it’s not unusual for gardeners to give up on this plant after a couple of years, opting instead for a more ornamental and non-threatening groundcover plant.
