Compilation
Sphaerosicyos sphaericus

Strong climber or trailer to 9 m.; stems herbaceous, glabrous or pubescent. Leaf-blade very broadly ovate-reniform in outline, broadly cordate, dark green and scabrid above, paler and subglabrous or sparsely to densely very shortly greyish-puberulous beneath, obscurely to distinctly and coarsely sinuate-toothed, 60–192 mm. long, 40–215 mm. broad, palmately 5-lobed; lobes triangular, ovate or elliptic, broadest or distinctly narrowed at the base, and then often themselves somewhat 3(rarely–5)-lobulate, apiculate; petiole 13–126 mm. long, glabrous or puberulous, with 2 lateral apical hornlike yellow-green glands. Tendrils bifid. Dioecious. Male flowers rarely solitary or paired with pedicels up to 50 mm. long, usually 2–10 in 50–270 mm. long racemes; peduncle 20–200 mm. long, with a basal oblanceolate bract ± 5 mm. long; pedicels 2–35 mm. long and subtended by a small basal or shortly adnate oblanceolate bract ± 7 mm. long; receptacle-tube broadly obconic, expanded above into a horizontal rim, 7–12 mm. long; lobes triangular to subulate, 3–6 mm. long; petals white or creamy-white with green veins, clawed with expanded rounded limb, 24–53 mm. long, 15–35 mm. broad; anthers (fig. 6/3, p. 48) exserted, oblong or ovate, free; thecae triplicate and greatly contorted. Female flowers on 15–84 mm. long stalks, subtended by a small linear-lanceolate probract; peduncle ebracteate or with 1-several small bracts just below the ovary; ovary ellipsoid, green with short dense greyish indumentum, 15–22 mm. long, 7–15 mm. across; receptacle-tube short, 1–1.5 mm. long; lobes linear, 4–10 mm. long, entire or toothed at the margins, also with 1–2 thick glandular teeth laterally at the base; petals broadly obovate, rounded, apiculate, 22–60 mm. long, 12–38 mm. broad. Fruit on a stout 30–98 mm. long stalk, subspherical, 73–101 mm. long, 80–100 mm. across, terete or faintly 10-sulcate, deep green with pale green or yellowish transverse streaks, dots and patches, with a hard shell and whitish flesh. Seeds (fig. 6/7, p. 48) oblong-triangular in outline, compressed, pointed at one end, subtruncate and obscurely 2-horned on the shoulders at the other, 10 × 6 × 2.5 mm.; testa with 2 flat facial ridges running longitudinally and approaching one another rather gradually towards the tapered end and more abruptly at the truncate end.