Native Bryony

Stem glabrous, becoming thickened and white dotted on the ridges when older. Leaves broadly ovate, 3.5-14 x 4-14.5 cm, lobes linear-lanceolate to elliptic, glabrous; petiole 1.5-9.0 cm long. Flowers small, white or yellowish, male in sessile clusters of 2-8, along with 5 female flowers in the same axil. Calyx tube 3-4 mm long in male, 1.5-2.5 mm long in female, lobes smaller than tube. Corolla of male larger than female. Ovary ellipsoid, c. 5 mm long, c. 2.5 mm broad, with longitudinal white stripes. Fruit solitary, or in clusters of 2-5, ovoid-subglobose, 1.5-2.5 cm. Seeds 5-6 x 2.5-3 mm.

Africa, Subtropical Himalaya, India, Ceylon, east to S. China, S. Japan, Malaysia, Australia.

Distribution: Tropical and North Africa, Tropical Asia, Malaysia, Philippines and Tropical Australia.

200-1500 m

Fl. Per.: August-October.

palmatus: palmate, like a hand

Scandent herb, up to 6 m. Leaves: lamina 4-14 × 4-15 cm, deeply plamately 5-lobed, broadly ovate in outline, cordate, minutely rough above or bristly on the veins beneath, otherwise glabrous; petiole prickly. Male flowers 2-8, usually sharing an axil with 1-4 female flowers. Corolla white to greenish-yellow; lobes 6-9 mm long. Female flowers: ovary 4-5 mm long. Fruits subglobose, 1.5-2.5 cm long, solitary or in clusters of 2-5, bright red with silvery white longitudinal stripes.

Old World tropics from S. Tomé and Fernando Po east to Australasia

Diplocyclos palmatus is a vine in the family Cucurbitaceae. It is commonly known as native bryony or striped cucumber. In Marathi, it is called shivlingi due to its seed which resembles a lingam.