CUCURBITA, a genus of the Cricurbitacem. which includes all pumpkins, gourds, squashes, and vegetable marrow, and of these there art innumerable varieties.
C. moscbata, Duchesne, is the musky gourd.
C. melopepo, Linn., the squash gourd, can he stored for months. It is supposed to be a variety of C. pepo." C. pepo, Linn., the pumpkin, is largely grown in particular localities. Its naturalization in desert tracts would be a boon.
C. aurantia. —? Yiu-kwa, Cum A deer golden-coloured gourd of Cheh-kiang. It is rathei more tender than the other species.
C. lobata. Tinda, PANJ. In the Panjab this is a small round gourd when young, at whicli time it makes a most delicious vegetable for the table the fruit is not bigger than a small turnip.— Powell ; Eng. Cyc. • Smith.
CUCURBITACEtE, a natural order of climb. ing or creeping plants, the gourd tribe, chiefly natives of hot countries, ranged by Meisner undei 35, and by Endlieher under 28 genera. Of these, there occur in Egypt, Abyssinia, and Arabia 8, in Astracan and Persia and the Levant 3, in China and Japan 5, and in the East Indies 166 species, of which 46 are natives of India,—ach mandra, benincasa, bryonia, bryonopsis, citrullus, coccinia, cucumis, cucurbita, erythropalum, her petospermum gynanopetalum, karivia, laginaria, luffa, meloth'ria, momordica, mukia, pilogyne, sicyos, trichosanthes, Zehneria. Some of the species afford cathartics of remarkable power, others have useful edible fruits. The fruit varies much in size form, and external characters, but is generally fleshy within, and its pulp is often so saturated with water that it cannot be dried. The roots of most of_the order contain starch, often as.sociated with an acrid poisonous matter,
which can be separated by washing the powdered root with water, ill which the acrid matter dis solves, while the starch is left. Tho seeds of most of the order are of a mild sweet taste, give good emulsions with water, and yield a fixed oil by expression. Few of the plants of this order aro indigenous in Europe. In tropical countries this order gives the inhabitants a large portion of their food, which it often affords of the finest quality in the most arid deserts, or on barren swamps and islands. In Persia, China, and Kashmir, they are cultivated on the lakes, on the floating col lections of weeds common in these localities; in India they aro very abundant, either in the wild or cultivated state. According to Dr. A. Hunter, the Cueurbi tame abound in fibres of great length. The following are the chief dietetical species :— Cueurhita maxima. The seeds yield oil by expression, and are considered cooling.
C. ovifera, L. Vegetable marrow.
Benincasa cerifera, Peetha.
Oucurnis melo, melon, Kurbooza. Seeds oily, and readily become rancid.
C. Madaraspatensis, Roxb. Fl. Ind. iii. p. 723.
O. patescens, wild, common near Saharunpur ; becomes aromatic on ripening.
C. momordica, Phoot.
C. sativus, cucumber, Kheera. Fruit contains sugar; seeds yield a mild oil.
C. utilissimus, Kukree.
Luffa pentandra, Ghia.
L. acutangula, Kalee-tori.
Momordica charantia, Kure Fruit slightly bitter.
Trichosanthes anguina, Chuchinga.
T. dioica, Palwal.
T. eucumerina, Junglee-chuchinga.