Bottle Gourd ( Lagenaria siceraria )

Fruit Warehouse | Bottle Gourd ( Lagenaria siceraria ) | The calabash was one of the first cultivated plants in the world, not grown primarily for food, but for use as a water container. The bottle GOURD may have been Carried from Africa to Asia, Europe and the Americas in the course of human migration. Lagenaria siceraria (Synonym Lagenaria vulgaris Ser.), Bottle GOURD, opo squash or melon is a long vine grown for its fruit, the which can either be harvested young and used as a vegetable, or harvested mature, dried, and used as a bottle, utensil, or pipe. For this reason, the calabash is Widely known as the bottle GOURD.  Rounder varieties are called calabash gourds.  It shares its common name with That of the calabash tree (Crescentia cujete).

Calabash had been cultivated in Asia, Europe and the Americas for Thousands of years before Columbus's discovery of America. Once in Florida and Mexico, bottle GOURD Could seeds still be viable after long periods of migration.The Rind of the calabash domesticated, unlike its wild counterpart of That, is thick and waterproof.

Previously Calabash was thought to have spread across the Oceans without human intervention, if the seeds were still Able to germinate even after long periods at sea. The new research notes domestication had led to changes in morphology (shape) of Asian and African specimens, Potentially allowing the identification of the calabash from different areas. Now, both genetic and morphological considerations show calabash found in American archaeological finds are closer to Asian than to African calabash variants ones.

This apparent source plant domestication Produces thinner-walled fruit that, when dried, would not Endure the rigors of use on long Journeys as a water container. Today's calabash may Owe its tough, waterproof wall to selection pressures over its long history of domestication.