Colocynth

Citrullus colocynthis is a poisonous desert vine native to the Mediterranean Basin and West Asia, especially the Levant, Turkey and Nubia. It is called colocynth, coloquintida, bitter apple, bitter cucumber, vine of Sodom and wild gourd. It resembles a watermelon vine, with palmate leaves and solitary yellow flowers, but bears small, hard, extremely bitter fruits, with a spongy white pulp holding grey seeds. Its roots are large, fleshy and perennial, which helps it survive in dry conditions. The plant contains cytotoxic cucurbitacins and the page says it is unsafe to use as an herbal medicine. The seeds are rich in fat and protein, and are eaten whole or pressed for oil. Seeds have been found at early archaeological sites in North Africa and the Near East. It has been used in traditional medicine for centuries: the powder externally with aloes, unguents or bandages, and lozenges as a laxative. The Turkish colocynth of Palestine was dried and exported to England in the nineteenth century.