Cucurbitaceae

watermelon

Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai

Indigenous Names: Nexo?e-mevehe, Tza-a-gudl, Tai-me

Habitat: Domestic cultivar; Originally native to South America, it was introduced as a crop during the reservation period Plants Parts Harvested: Unripened plant; Found seasonally in damp, usually sandy soils, especially disturbed areas. Located from Minnesota south to Arizona Plants Parts Harvested: Flower; Found in Sand hills and sandy soils from Wyoming into Mexico Plants Parts Harvested: Leaves and entire plant

Seasonality: Not given

Status: Native

Traditional Food Use

Kiowa

Used to make a tea by hanging a bunch of flower heads in hot water. It is either consumed hot or cold.

Medicinal Documentation

Cheyenne

Decoction of seeds taken as a diuretic Additional commentary: Wesley White Man informed Hart that watermelons were introduced to the Cheyenne in the 1880’s, at which point, the Cheyenne discovered that from the seeds a diuretic tea could be made.210 Moerman refers to the watermelon as C. lanatus.211

Kiowa

Unripe plant considered poisonous. The plant was apparently used in the Sun Dance, but by the late 1930s its specific use was not remembered

Botanical Reference

Parts Documented: seeds

View on USDA Plants Database ↗