Marah (plant)
| Manroots, Cucumber Gourd | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Marah oreganus (coastal manroot) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Cucurbitales |
| Family: | Cucurbitaceae |
| Subfamily: | Cucurbitoideae |
| Tribe: | Sicyeae |
| Subtribe: | Cyclantherinae |
| Genus: |
Marah Kellogg |
| Species | |
|
Marah fabaceus |
|
| Synonyms | |
Marah fabaceus
Marah gilensis
Marah guadalupensis
Marah horridus
Marah macrocarpus
Marah oreganus
Marah watsonii
Marah (the manroots, wild cucumbers, or cucumber gourds) are flowering plants in the gourd family (Cucurbitaceae), native to western North America. They are also commonly called Old man in the ground. The genus (which Kellogg noted was characterized by extreme bitterness) was named for Marah in Exodus 15:22-25, which was said to be named for the bitter water there.
Except for the isolated range of Marah gilensis (Gila manroot) in west-central Arizona and island populations (M. macrocarpus var. major), all manroot species inhabit overlapping ranges distributed from Southern Canada to Northern Mexico. Although Marah oreganus (coastal manroot) extends inland into Idaho, all other manroot species except M. gilensis are confined to areas within 300 km of the Pacific Ocean coast.
The manroots are perennial plants, growing from a large tuberous root. Most have stout, scabrous or hairy stems, with coiling tendrils that enable them to climb up other plants; they can also grow rapidly across level ground. Their leaves tend to have multiple lobes, up to 7 in some species. The fruits are striking and easily recognised. They are large, and spherical, oval or cylindrical. At a minimum they are 3 cm (1.2 in) in diameter, but can be up to 20 cm (8 in) long, and in many species they are covered in long spines. Both leaf and fruit shape vary widely between individual plants and leaves can be particularly variable even on the same vine.
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Wikipedia