Genus
Cucumis
The Cucumis genus in the Plotwright catalog — 2 species: Cantaloupe, Cucumber. Open any for hardiness, native range, wildlife value, and growing guidance.
Cucumis melo
Cantaloupe
A warm-season annual vine in the cucumber family grown for its sweet, aromatic netted melons — one of the six broadly accepted edible groups of the polymorphic Cucumis melo. Stiff-haired, rough-textured trailing stems climb 6-9 feet with the help of unbranched tendrils, carrying funnel-shaped yellow flowers that draw bees. Native to the Old World (Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, India, New Guinea, and Australia) and intolerant of frost, it is grown as an annual on the ground or on cages and trellises.
Cucumis sativus
Cucumber
A warm-season annual vine grown for crisp green fruits eaten raw or pickled — slicing (long, smooth-skinned) and pickling (short, bumpy-skinned) types differ in cultivar selection rather than species biology. Monoecious + bee-dependent for fruit set (except parthenocarpic seedless cultivars). NC State explicitly notes cucumber beetles as the major pest — they vector bacterial wilt (Erwinia tracheiphila), which is the canonical cucumber-killing disease.