Cucurbita ficifolia

Cucurbita ficifolia
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Cucurbitales
Family: Cucurbitaceae
Genus: Cucurbita
Species:
C. ficifolia
Binomial name
Cucurbita ficifolia
Bouché
Synonyms[1]
  • Cucurbita melanosperma A.Braun ex Gasp.
  • Cucurbita mexicana Dammann
  • Pepo ficifolia (Bouché) Britton
  • Pepo malabaricus Sageret

Cucurbita ficifolia is a species of squash, grown for its edible seeds, fruit, and greens.[2] It has common names including Asian pumpkin, black seed squash, chilacayote, cidra, fig-leaf gourd, Malabar gourd and Kahurura in Gikuyu. Compared to other domesticated species in its genus, investigators have noted that samples of C. ficifolia from throughout its range are relatively similar to one other in morphology and genetic composition. Variations do occur in fruit and seed color, some isozymes, and photoperiod sensitivity.[3]

This species is grown widely from Argentina and Chile to Mexico. It is also cultivated in regions of the world including India, Japan, Korea, China, the Philippines, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Angola.[3][4]

No named agricultural cultivars have been recognized. Research suggests that C. ficifolia represents an earlier evolutionary branch than the other major cultivated Cucurbita species, but biosystematic investigations have established that C. ficifolia is not as distinct from the other domesticated Cucurbita species as early botanists had concluded. It has been noted to form interspecific hybrids with Cucurbita maxima, Cucurbita moschata, and Cucurbita pepo.[3] Interspecific hybrids have generally been infertile beyond the first generation unless techniques such as embryo cultivation are used.[5]

  1. ^ "A Working List of All Plant Species". theplantlist.org. The Plant List. Retrieved 11 January 2014.
  2. ^ "Cucurbita ficifolia - Bouché". Plants for a Future. Retrieved September 19, 2013.
  3. ^ a b c Bates, David M.; Robinson, Richard W. (2019-05-15). Biology and Utilization of the Cucurbitaceae. Cornell University Press. ISBN 978-1-5017-4544-7.
  4. ^ Lim, T. K. (2012), Lim, T. K. (ed.), "Cucurbita ficifolia", Edible Medicinal And Non-Medicinal Plants: Volume 2, Fruits, Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, pp. 250–255, doi:10.1007/978-94-007-1764-0_39, ISBN 978-94-007-1764-0, retrieved 2022-12-18
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference saade was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

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