Kiwano surprise

Today Willem and I went to the supermarket and in the fruit and veg section we were on the lookout for new, weird and wonderful foods to try out. So this is what we picked - there was no label or price, but we thought it worth a try:

African horned melon

The horned melon (Cucumis metuliferus), also called African horned cucumber or melon, jelly melon, hedged gourd, English tomato, melano, or kiwano and also known as "cherie", is an annual vine in the cucumber and melon family.

The fruit of this plant is edible, but it is used as often for decoration as for food. I remember seeing these as dried gourds in South Africa - people put fanciful displays of all kinds and shapes of gourds in their homes. I never thought they could be edible!

Inside the kiwano.

When ripe, it has a yellow-orange skin and a lime green jelly-like flesh with the taste similar to a cucumber and texture similar to a banana. The horned melon is native to Africa, and it is now grown in California, Chile, Australia and New Zealand as well.

Fancy that!

Sweat Peas

Last year before September Lisa bought a packet of Sweat Pea seeds from a friendly neighbour and her children who knocked on the door for some school fund-raising effort. I've been meaning to plant the seeds, but as with many good intentions this took a while to become reality.

Eventually the seeds were planted and we eagerly watched them growing, carefully staking them up and guiding their wee tendrils into the trellis so they can hold on tight. And they grew... and they grew... and they grew... and I wonder where this is going to end?

The stalks are over 2 meters tall already and there is no sign of slowing down. I hope they don't all come crashing down as the flowers develop and become heavier up top - the stalks have outgrown the trellis, then the canes I fastened to the trellis, and now they are taller than the cane supports, so there is nowhere for the top tendril to grip. They are doing their best to hang onto the glass of the window, but I fear that's not going to work too well.

We are enjoying the view from inside the lounge:

And of course, what a pleasure it is to have a vase full of sweat peas in the house!