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Plant ID query - Is it a gourd or a cucumber gone wrong?

Jade3Jade3 Posts: 50
edited September 2022 in Fruit & veg
 Who can identify this plant, it just sprung up in some compost so I don't know exactly what it is.  The leaves and flowers are smaller than cucumber plant and the fruit has lots of fine prickles on it. Any suggestions gratefully received....
(When it first germinated I thought it may be a courgette seedling (none previously germinated), so planted outside) 

1st image on 28th August 2022. 


2nd image 2 weeks later appears to be developing some vertical markings...



What do folks think?

I am not sure its going to make it to maturity but I will cut open before frosts start.

Thanks for your thoughts.
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  • Jade3Jade3 Posts: 50
    edited September 2022
    picture of leaves and flowers, same as cucumber plant only much much smaller....

    The above fruit (picture in original post) was the only one that has been produced by the plant, while there were plenty of flowers only one got pollinated, which makes me wonder if only one particular insect can pollinate this plant?

    Also is appears to be a climbing vine as I pegged the plant to a frame in 3 places.
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 86,980
    Looks to me like a cucumber or possibly a cucamelon? 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • Jade3Jade3 Posts: 50
    edited September 2022
    Dovefromabove said:
    Looks to me like a cucumber or possibly a cucamelon? 
    Its too big to be cucamelon (it measures about 6" x 4"), and the cucumbers I grow don't have prickles.  Many thanks for your reply though.
  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,391
    If it has simply appeared, it could be anything.  Many plants in this family will cross with others in the same family..
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • Jade3Jade3 Posts: 50
    Thanks Bob, I will post more pictures as it develops, hopefully a bit more before we get temperatures in single figures.
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 86,980
    It could well be the result of cross pollination between any of the aforementioned cucurbits … such crosses often exhibit characteristics from plants in the gene pool … such as bristly fruit, or growing larger. 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,391
    For what it's worth, the flowers look fairly small, so I would suspect something in the cucumber family;  Courgettes and squash have mostly large flowers.
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 86,980
    edited September 2022
    I agree @BobTheGardener 😊  … looks like a cucumber of some sort. 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • Jade3Jade3 Posts: 50
    edited September 2022
    BobTheGardener said:
    For what it's worth, the flowers look fairly small, so I would suspect something in the cucumber family;  Courgettes and squash have mostly large flowers.
    The flowers are very small (smaller than 10p size) much smaller than the cucumber plant I have grown this year.  My cucumber plant flowers have been much bigger.

    I will keep folk posted.
  • Jade3Jade3 Posts: 50
    edited September 2022
    Dovefromabove said:
    I agree @BobTheGardener 😊  … looks like a cucumber of some sort. 
    I've not been able to find any similar image resemblance on line.  But as I mentioned above I will cut open before frosts start to see what it looks like inside and will keep you posted :)

    It could be a giant version of the wild cucumber I guess  B)

    tiny flowers - giant fruit 
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