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Marah fabaceus

Common name:	Bigroot	Family:	Cucurbitaceae
Author:	(Naudin.)Greene.	Botanical references:	71, 200
Synonyms:	Echinocystis fabacea (Naudin.)
Known Hazards:	The root is said to be poisonous to fish[257]. We have no reports as to whether or not it is toxic to mammals[K].
Range:	South-western N. America - California.
Habitat:	Banks and slopes below 750 metres in coastal strand and mixed evergreen forests[71].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	California Manroot [P,B],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	fabaceus = bean like
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Violales. Cucumber family

Physical Characteristics

Perennial Climber growing to 6m. It is hardy to zone 8. It is in flower from July to September. The flowers are monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant) and are pollinated by Insects. The plant is self-fertile. We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade.

Edible Uses

Leaves.

Used as a vegetable[177]. We do not know if the fruit, root or the leaves are used[K].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

Hair.

The crushed seeds, mixed with oil, have been rubbed on the hair to prevent baldness[257].

Cultivation details

Requires a rich soil and abundant moisture[1].
This species is not hardy in the colder areas of the country, it tolerates temperatures down to between -5 and -10° c[200].
A climbing plant, supporting itself by means of tendrils[219].

Propagation

Seed - sow early spring in pots of rich soil in a greenhouse. Germination usually takes place within 1 - 2 weeks at 20° c. Put 2 or 3 seeds in each pot and thin to the best plant. Grow on fast and plant out after the last expected frosts.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
Images from the CalPhoto database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[71] Munz. A California Flora. University of California Press 1959
An excellent flora but no pictures. Not for the casual reader.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[219] Grey-Wilson. C. & Matthews. V. Gardening on Walls Collins 1983 ISBN 0-00-219220-0
A nice little book about plants for growing against walls and a small section on plants that can grow in walls.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963

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