Because I’m a gardening geek, I thought I’d compare flowers in my garden based on plant family and note the similarities. Yesterday, I shared pictures of my garden flowers in the Nightshade family. (If you missed it, click here.) As similar as they were, there are even more similarities in the flowers of the Cucurbit family.
The Cucurbit family includes cucumbers, summer and winter squash, pumpkins, and melons (canteloupes, muskmelons, watermelons, etc.).
Look how similar these flowers are!
CUCUMBERS:
Cucumber flowers are yellow with five rounded petals.
Cucumber flower
SUMMER SQUASH:
Summer squash flowers are an orangy-yellow and also have five petals. However, their petals aren’t quite as rounded as the cucumber flower petals, and they’re much larger.
Zucchini flower
WINTER SQUASH:
Most winter squash flowers look almost identical to summer squash flowers (and similar to cucumber flowers) with five petals.
Butternut squash flower
Spaghetti squash flower
However, this winter squash flower has four petals.
White Acorn squash flower
And this winter squash flower has six petals.
Black Futsu squash flower
PUMPKIN:
This pumpkin flower is orangy-yellow, as the other cucurbit flowers, but the petals are almost fringed. (Those little black things are ants fertilizing the flower.)
Pumpkin flower
MELONS:
The flowers on melons and watermelons are more similar to cucumbers than squash in size and petal shape.
Cantaloupe flower
White watermelon flower
MORE FLOWERS IN THE GARDEN ARTICLES:
- Flowers in the Garden ~ Nightshades
- Flowers in the Garden ~ Legumes & Brassicas
- Flowers in the Garden ~ Apiaceae & More
I hope you’re finding these flower comparisons as interesting as I do!
Sanctuary Gardener 