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Lagenaria siceraria

Common name:	Bottle Gourd	Family:	Cucurbitaceae
Author:	(Molina.)Standl.	Botanical references:	200
Synonyms:	Lagenaria vulgaris (Ser.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	The original habitat is obscure, it is probably Asia or Africa.
Habitat:	Not known in the wild.
Edibility Rating (1-5):	2	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	Cucurbita lagenaria[B,G,P] Cucurbita leucantha[G] Cucurbita longa[G] Cucurbita siceraria[G,P] L. lagenaria[G] L. leucantha[B,G,P]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Asmakabagi [E], Banganya [E], Bottle Gourd [B,P], Calabazo [E], Calebasse Franc [E], Callebasse Courante [E], Callebassier [E], Camasa [E], Congourde [E], Gourd [E], Gourde Des Pelerins [E], Gourds [H], Guiro [E], Hu [E], Hu Lu [E], Hu Tzu [E], Kara Qabagh [E], P'Ao [E], P'Iao [E], Qare Sibbahi [E], Qari [E],
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Violales. Cucumber family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	China; Dominican Republic; Europe; Haiti; Hawaii; India; India(Santal); Iraq; Turkey; Venezuela

Physical Characteristics

Annual Climber growing to 9m at a fast rate. It is hardy to zone 10 and is frost tender. It is in flower from August to September. The scented flowers are monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant) and are pollinated by Insects. We rate it 2/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Fruit; Leaves; Oil; Seed.

Immature fruit - cooked and used as a vegetable[2, 27, 200]. They can be boiled, steamed, fried, used in curries or made into fritters[183]. Of variable quality, but some of the selected cultivars from India and China are of very good quality, equivalent to good summer squashes[183]. The pulp around the seed is purgative and should not be eaten[46]. The fruit can be dried for later use[86].
Leaves and young shoots - cooked and used as a potherb[178, 183].
Seed - cooked. Rich in oil, it is added to soups etc[183]. A vegetable curd, similar to tofu, can be made from the seed[183].
An edible oil is obtained from the seed. It is used for cooking[177, 183]. Yields of up to 45% have been obtained[240].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Antibiotic; Antidote; Diuretic; Emetic; Febrifuge; Lithontripic; Odontalgic; Poultice; Purgative; Stomachic; Vermifuge.

The pulp around the seed is emetic and purgative[46, 178, 272].
A poultice of the crushed leaves has been applied to the head to treat headaches[257].
The flowers are an antidote to poison[218].
The stem bark and the rind of the fruit are diuretic[218].
The fruit is antilithic, diuretic, emetic and refrigerant[178, 218]. The juice of the fruit is used in the treatment of stomach acidity, indigestion and ulcers[272].
The seed is vermifuge[218]. A poultice of the boiled seeds has been used in the treatment of boils[257]. Taken with Achyranthes spp the seed is used to treat aching teeth and gums, boils etc[218].
Extracts of the plant have shown antibiotic activity[218]. In many parts of China 3 grams per day of this species (the report does not say what part of the plant) has been used as a single treatment for diabetes mellitus[218].

Other Uses

Bottles; Containers; Musical.

The shell of well-ripened fruits is very hard and can be used for many purposes such as bottles, bowls, musical instruments etc. There are many different shapes of fruits from the various different varieties[1, 27, 46, 61, 86, 97].

Cultivation details

Prefers a well-drained moist good rich circumneutral soil[1, 27, 86, 200]. Requires plenty of moisture in the growing season[1]. Prefers a warm sunny position sheltered from the wind[86].
The bottle gourd is widely cultivated in the tropics and sub-tropics for its edible fruit and for the hard wooden shell of the fruit that can be used as containers, musical instruments etc[206], there are many named varieties with different shaped and sized fruits[86, 183, 206]. The variety 'Cougourda' is said to be the best for eating[132]. Forms with wooden shells tend not to have an edible flesh[206].
The plants are frost-tender annuals, they grow very rapidly and their stems can reach a length of 9 metres in the summer[86]. A warm summer is required for good production of the fruit[86]. British summers are often too cool for this species and obtaining a crop from outdoor-grown plants in this country is somewhat problematical. The best chance is by starting the plants off early in a warm greenhouse, growing them on fast and then planting them out as soon as possible but making sure that they are not checked by cold weather. Hand pollination of the fruits can increase fruit set[206].
A climbing plant, attaching itself to supports by means of tendrils that grow out of the leaf axils[206]. It can be used as a fast-growing summer screen.
The leaves have a strong musky scent that some people find repulsive[206]. The plant is remarkably disease and pest-free, this might be connected to the smell of the leaves[206].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse in a rich soil, putting 2 - 3 seeds in a pot and thinning to the strongest plant. Grow on fast and plant out as soon as possible after the last expected frosts, giving some protection until the plants are established and growing well. The seed germinates best at 25°c[86]. Soaking the seeds for 12 hours in warm water prior to sowing can hasten germination[86]. Discard any seeds that have not germinated after 10 days, the plants they produce will not be vigorous enough to succeed outdoors in Britain[86].

Scent

Leaves:: No details on scent.

Cultivars

'': No entries have been made for this species as yet.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[V] Images from the Vascular Plant Image Gallery of the Texas A&M Bioinformatics Working Group.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[PHARM] Phytochemical Data (common names, uses, countries) from Dr Duke's Phytochemical Database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Lagenaria vulgaris (a possible synonym).

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[27] Vilmorin. A. The Vegetable Garden. Ten Speed Press ISBN 0-89815-041-8
A reprint of a nineteenth century classic, giving details of vegetable varieties. Not really that informative though.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[86] Organ. J. Gourds. Faber 1963
Deals with squashes and their relatives. Interesting and readable, it gives cultivation techniques and some details of plant uses.

[97] Towle. M. A. The Ethno-Botany of Pre-Columbian Peru.
A very interesting book covering quite a lot of information on plant uses in S. America although many of the plants are not suitable for temperate areas..

[132] Bianchini. F., Corbetta. F. and Pistoia. M. Fruits of the Earth.
Lovely pictures, a very readable book.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[178] Stuart. Rev. G. A. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei. Southern Materials Centre
A translation of an ancient Chinese herbal. Fascinating.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[206] Larkcom J. Oriental Vegetables John Murray 1991 ISBN 0-7195-4781-4
Well written and very informative.

[218] Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985 ISBN 0-917256-20-4
Details of over 1,200 medicinal plants of China and brief details of their uses. Often includes an analysis, or at least a list of constituents. Heavy going if you are not into the subject.

[240] Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986
Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.

[245] Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8
An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

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Bibliography

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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