New research into the biomechanics of explosive seed dispersal in squirting cucumbers (Ecballium elaterium) reveals how these plants have adapted a suite of unique traits that help propel their ...

A team led by the University of Oxford has solved a mystery that has intrigued scientists for centuries: how does the squirting cucumber squirt? The findings, achieved through a combination of ...

Three summers ago, Kiel University biomechanist Stainslav Gorb, returned to Germany after a vacation in Turkey with a present for Ph.D. student Helen Gorges. "He came back and was like, 'Helen, I ...

The squirting cucumber shoots its seeds so fast that scientists had to use techniques like high-speed videography to record it. Reading time 3 minutes One of the great mysteries of the botanical world ...

The squirting cucumber (Ecballium elaterium, from the Greek 'ekballein,' meaning to throw out) is named for the ballistic method the species uses to disperse its seeds. When ripe, the ovoid-shaped ...

“Crazy plant,” cooed Helen Gorges, a biomechanist at Kiel University, after witnessing the ballistic seed dispersal of the squirting cucumber. In plant biomechanics, there are few vistas that can ...

A team led by the University of Oxford has solved a mystery that has intrigued scientists for centuries: how does the squirting cucumber squirt? The findings, achieved through a combination of ...

A small, hairy, toxic version of the cucumbers found in the produce aisle does have an advantage over its more palatable cousins — a feat of... Stand back! This explosive cucumber is bursting with ...