A strange vegetable plant has grown in a South Belfast resident's garden during lockdown.
A Finaghy woman was left flummoxed when an odd-looking plant began to grow in her back garden.
Leah J Djalo, 30, said: "I have no idea how it happened."
Leah first discovered the peculiar plant back in March, when she began growing tomato plants.
She said: "I've just suddenly noticed it in the planter box one day and it looked different to the rest of the plants. I couldn't figure out what kind of plant or vegetable it was."
As the weeks went on, the plant began to grow more and eventually out sprang a legume that Leah found hard to identify.
"At first I thought it was a watermelon, and I got really excited!" she explained.
Leah is mum to six children who, she says, "loved" the plant and were just as excited to discover what exotic fruit or vegetable would come from it.
However, a couple of weeks ago it was discovered what was sprouting from the soil - when Leah found the vegetable had fallen off and broken open in the garden one morning.
The mysterious plant had in fact been producing a very odd-looking pumpkin.
"I don't know how it got there" she said. "I'm thinking back and the only thing I can come up with is that one of the kids was eating pumpkin seeds and threw one of them in the garden and it produced the plant!"
Leah says she has been enjoying gardening during lockdown and has joined many others in growing a vegetable patch.
She added: "It's been great; we've been growing tomatoes in the garden as well. I think when lockdown happened everyone panicked and started growing their own vegetables.
"The pumpkin was the first proper vegetable I grew. It's just a shame it broke!"
