Wild Cucumber, Claspleaf twistedstalk, Tubercle twistedstalk
Streptopus amplexifolius

Family: Convallariaceae

What it is like

Streptopus amplexifolius is a PERENNIAL growing to 1 m (3ft 3in) by 0.3 m (1ft). See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 5. It is in flower from May to July, and the seeds ripen from September to October. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs). Suitable for: light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in full shade (deep woodland) or semi-shade (light woodland). It prefers moist soil.

Height (m): 1

Where it is found

Wet sub-alpine woods. Moist woods and thickets. Rich moist coniferous and deciduous woods at elevations of 0 - 2800 metres in America.

Europe to E. Asia and N. America - Alaska to North Carolina, Ohio, Michigan and New Mexico.

Conservation Status:

Countries/locations it is found in

How it is used

Food

Rating: 4

Fruit - raw or cooked in soups and stews. Juicy with a cucumber flavour, they are reported to be slightly cathartic when growing in certain areas only. The fruit is laxative if eaten in large quantities according to another report. The oval berry is up to 15mm long. Tender young shoots - raw in salads or cooked like asparagus. A cucumber-like flavour. Root - raw. It is sometimes used in salads for its cucumber flavour.

Root: includes bulbs, corms, tubers, rhizomes etc.

Medicine

Rating: 2

The fruit is cathartic. An infusion of the stems and fruit has been used to treat 'sickness in general'. The plant is tonic. An infusion of the whole plant has been used to treat stomach complaints and loss of appetite. A compound infusion of the plant has been used in the treatment of spitting up of blood, kidney problems and gonorrhoea. The root has been chewed in order to induce labour in cases of protracted delay. A compound infusion of the root has been used as an analgesic in the treatment of internal pain.

Analgesic: Relieves pain.

Appetizer: Improves the appetite

Cathartic: A strong laxative but less violent than a purgative.

Haemostatic: Controls internal bleeding.

Kidney: Used in the treatment of kidney diseases

Oxytoxic: Hastens parturition and stimulates uterine contractions. See also birthing aids.

Stomachic: Aids and improves the action of the stomach.

VD: Used in the treatment of venereal disease

Other

Rating: 1

The plant has been tied to the clothes, body or hair and used as a scent.

Incense: Aromatic plants that can be burnt to impart a pleasant smell, repel insects and disinfect closed areas.

Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.

How it is grown

Requires a cool leafy soil in shade or partial shade. Thrives in a moist light soil containing organic matter. Hardy to at least -20°c. A polymorphic species, there are many sub-species. For polyculture design as well as the above-ground architecture (form - tree, shrub etc. and size shown above) information on the habit and root pattern is also useful and given here if available. The plant growth habit is a clumper with limited spread. The root pattern is fibrous dividing into a large number of fine roots. The root pattern is rhizomatous with underground stems sending roots and shoots along their length.

Propagating it: Seed - best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe in the summer. Sow stored seed in a cold frame as soon as it is received. The seed, especially if it has been stored, can be very slow to germinate, sometimes taking 18 months or more. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots once they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a shady part of the greenhouse or cold frame. It will normally take 2 or more growing seasons before the roots are large enough to plant out - this is best done when the plant is dormant in the autumn. Division as the plant comes into growth in early spring. Larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions. We have found that it is best to pot up smaller divisions and grow them on in light shade in a greenhouse or cold frame for their first year, planting them out in the following spring.

Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Dappled Shade; Shady Edge; not Deep Shade;

Habit: Perennial

Hardiness: 4-8

Growth:

Soil: Light (sandy), medium

Shade: Full shade, semi-shade

Moisture: Moist

Things to keep in mind

Its other names

Local names

twistedstalk, clasping twistedstalk, claspleaf twistedstalk, white twisted-stalk, watermelon berry

Synonyms

S. distortus.