Socotra Cucumber Tree

Dendrosicyos socotranus

“The only tree-form cucumber plant on Earth. Found on one island. Nowhere else.”

This is the only member of the cucumber family (Cucurbitaceae) that grows as a tree. The bottle-shaped trunk can reach 3 feet across, topped with a small crown of leaves and small yellow-green flowers. Endemic to Socotra Island — it exists nowhere else on Earth. Critically endangered in the wild. Zone 9b–11 in cultivation in the US. Growing one is an act of conservation and a conversation that never ends.