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Exploring the Gourd Plants

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8 most common species：

Xerosicyos

Xerosicyos are climbing succulents endemic to Madagascar. They can be cultivated as houseplants which are quite popular for their strange appearance, characterized by perfectly round, thick, fleshy foliage. These leaves die back during prolonged periods of drought, but the plants themselves survive and are considered highly drought-tolerant.

Solena

Hodgsonia

Hodgsonia is a small genus of fruit-bearing vines in the family Cucurbitaceae.

All Species of Gourd

Xerosicyos

Solena

Hodgsonia

Hodgsonia is a small genus of fruit-bearing vines in the family Cucurbitaceae.

Melothria_ are a genus of perennial vines and climbers that produce fruits similar in appearance to cucumbers or small watermelons. The fruits contain low levels of toxins. The plants of this genus naturally grow in the Amazon region. These hardy herbaceous plants can become weedy when grown in gardens.

Benincasa

Benincasa is a vine grown for its very large fruit. The genus benincasa has the only member. It has yellow flowers and broad leaves. It is native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. The wax gourd is widely grown throughout Asia, including Java and Japan.

Water melons

The water melons (Citrullus) are a group of vining species often cultivated for their fruits. This includes watermelon, an important global food crop. These species grow well in hot, dry, desert conditions. Although the fruits are edible, some species require cooking or ripeness before they can be safely consumed.

Wild cucumber

Wild cucumber

Wild cucumber are native to western North America. The manroots are perennial plants, growing from a large tuberous root. Most have stout, scabrous or hairy stems, with coiling tendrils that enable them to climb up other plants. Their leaves tend to have multiple lobes. The fruits are large, and spherical, oval or cylindrical. And in many species they are covered in long spines. It includes six or seven species.

Squirting cucumber

Squirting cucumber (Ecballium) contains only one species and is native to the Mediterranean region. They are known for their exploding fruits that can propel their seeds away from the plant. Be wary though, all parts of these plants can be toxic if ingested.

Melon

The melon (Cucumis) are a genus consisting of climbing vines. They include cucumbers, gherkins (small cucumbers), and several types of melon fruits. Some of these plants are cultivated as food crops (such as honeydew and cantaloupe), while others (C. dipsaceus) grow wild. Most of the species have edible fruits, but C. myriocarpus is toxic to humans and animals.

Sechium

Sechium are a genus of gourds that can be characterized by its singular seed and yellow flowers. Its Latin name Sechium is suggested to come from the Greek term sikyos, meaning cucumber. Sechium are a New World plant that is native to the Americas.

Balsam apples

Balsam apples

The climbing annuals, sometimes perennials, of balsam apples are noted for creeping alongside streams and waterways in montane regions of southern North and South America. Blooming with white flowers in the late summer, the species of balsam apples produce prickly fruits. They are relatively hairy plants.

Momordica

Momordica are a genus of climbing plants native to Africa, Asia, and Australia. Some species such as the bitter gourd Mimordica charantia, are cultivated as food crops and are particularly popular in south and east Asian cuisines. Most momordica are pollinated by bees.

Lagenaria

Lagenaria are a gourd-bearing vine native to Africa. Many varieties are edible, but some are inedible and even toxic. The shells of the gourds can be used as containers, nets, pipes, and other decorations. However, it can become invasive outside of its native range as it is very fast-growing and can outcompete native vegetation for resources.

Kedrostis

The kedrostis genus includes annual vines that can grow up to 6 m long in a season before the plant goes into dormancy. These are hardy plants that can also be cultivated indoors as potted plants, as well. They form a distinctive large caudex (a swollen above-ground root at the base), but it is mostly their vines that are visible.

Zehneria

Zehneria species are either monoecious or dioecious, annual or perennial, climbing vines. Their leaves are simple, dentate and usually palmately lobed. Inflorescences grow on axillary racemes, with the flowers normally clustered, occasionally solitary. The fruit is fleshy, usually globose or ellipsoidal, and indehiscent. The seeds are obovate, compressed and smooth. It contains about 35 species ranging from Africa, through Southeast Asia to Australia and Oceania.

Diplocyclos

Diplocyclos is a genus of climbing or trailing vine in the family Cucurbitaceae. The genus comprises four or five species. D. palmatus is pantropical in distribution and the remainder of species are restricted to Africa. Diplocyclos is characterised by simple, palmately lobed leaves and dioecius flowers, with male and female flowers in axillary sessile clusters or racemes. Diplocyclos produce fleshy, globular fruit with distinct striped or spotted patterns.

Gynostemma

Gynostemma is a genus of perennial climbing vines in the cucumber, gourd, and melon family, comprising at least 19 species, all native to the tropical East or Far East. All species of gynostemma have tendrils (usually branching); most are dioecious. The leaves are usually in palmately arrayed leaflets (3–9, ovate-lanceolate in shape), arranged alternately on the stem. Inflorescences are either racemose or paniculate. Fruits can be capsular or pea-like, containing two or three seeds.

Gerrardanthus is a genus of flowering plants native to tropical Africa and South Africa. Gerrardanthus is a perennial climber, with height up to 5 m, rising from a swollen, tuberous base with a thickness of up to 1.5 m. Stems are herbaceous but becoming woody and grey-barked as they age.

Loofahs

Loofahs

Loofahs are a genus of climbing vines that are best known as the source of the 'loofah' bathroom sponge, which is actually a dried-out gourd. These plants are often grown near household windows to create natural sun screens. The species Luffa aegyptiaca produces an edible gourd that is a common feature of Indian and Asian cuisines.

Wild Cucumber

The wild Cucumber genus contains only one species, Echinocystis lobata. It is an annual climbing vine that produces a small, inedible prickly fruit. The genus name, Echinocystis, refers to the fruit's shape and comes from the Greek words for "hedgehog" and "bladder."

Bryonia

Bryonies are perennial, tendril-climbing, diclinous or dioecious herbs with palmately lobed leaves and flowers in axillary clusters. The fruit is a smooth, globular berry. Twelve species are presently accepted by the USDA. They are native to western Eurasia and adjacent regions, such as North Africa, the Canary Islands and South Asia.

Squashes

Squashes

Squashes are vining plants, many of which are commonly cultivated as a food crop for their fruit and seeds. This group includes squashes, gourds, and pumpkins. The fruits are good sources of vitamins and nutrients such as niacin and folic acid, and their flowers attract important pollinators such as bees.

Scarlet gourds

Scarlet gourds

Scarlet gourds are climbing vines that grow white or yellow flowers and green oval or lobed leaves. Their most noticeable feature is the eye-catching fruits that turn bright red when mature. In many species, the tubers and/or berries are used as a source of nutritious foods, while the flowers are a popular source of pollen for bees.

Cyclanthera

Cyclanthera is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cucurbitaceae. Some species show extreme cases of stamen fusion forming a ring around the gynoecium, with a single locule.

Trichosanthes

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Dracaena

Dracaena are popular house plants that are easy to grow. They can tolerate low-light conditions and require little watering. Their leaves range from variegated to dark green. Their characteristic traits include woody stems that grow slowly but offer a striking appearance for small spaces such as apartments or offices.

Fig trees

Fig trees have been cultivated in many regions for their fruits, particularly the common fig, F. carica. Most of the species have edible fruits, although the common fig is the only one of commercial value. Fig trees are also important food sources for wildlife in the tropics, including monkeys, bats, and insects.

Brambles

Brambles are members of the rose family, and there are hundreds of different types to be found throughout the European countryside. They have been culturally significant for centuries; Christian folklore stories hold that when the devil was thrown from heaven, he landed on a bramble bush. Their vigorous growth habit can tangle into native plants and take over.

Maples

The popular tree family known as maples change the color of their leaves in the fall. Many cultural traditions encourage people to watch the colors change, such as momijigari in Japan. Maples popular options for bonsai art. Alternately, their sap is used to create maple syrup.

Prunus

Prunus is a genus of flowering fruit trees that includes almonds, cherries, plums, peaches, nectarines, and apricots. These are often known as "stone fruits" because their pits are large seeds or "stones." When prunus trees are damaged, they exhibit "gummosis," a condition in which the tree's gum (similar to sap) is secreted to the bark to help heal external wounds.

Nightshades

Nightshades is a large and diverse genus of plants, with more than 1500 different types worldwide. This genus incorporates both important staple food crops like tomato, potato, and eggplant, but also dangerous poisonous plants from the nightshade family. The name was coined by Pliny the Elder almost two thousand years ago.

Roses

Most species of roses are shrubs or climbing plants that have showy flowers and sharp thorns. They are commonly cultivated for cut flowers or as ornamental plants in gardens due to their attractive appearance, pleasant fragrance, and cultural significance in many countries. The rose hips (fruits) can also be used in jams and teas.

Oaks

Oaks are among the world's longest-lived trees, sometimes growing for over 1,000 years! The oldest known oak tree is in the southern United States and is over 1,500 years old. Oaks produce an exceedingly popular type of wood which is used to make different products, from furniture and flooring to wine barrels and even cosmetic creams.

Gourd

Cucurbitaceae

Also known as: Cucumber

Exploring the Gourd Plants

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8 most common species：

Xerosicyos

Solena

Hodgsonia

Hodgsonia is a small genus of fruit-bearing vines in the family Cucurbitaceae.

Show More Species

All Species of Gourd

More Popular Genus

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