Cucurbita is a genus of herbaceous fruits in the gourd family, Cucurbitaceae, native to the Andes and Mesoamerica. Five edible species are grown and consumed for their flesh and seeds. They are variously known as squash, pumpkin, or gourd, depending on species, variety, and local parlance. Other kinds of gourd, also called bottle-gourds, are native to Africa and belong to the genus Lagenaria, which is in the same family and subfamily as Cucurbita, but in a different tribe. These other gourds are used as utensils or vessels, and their young fruits are eaten much like those of the Cucurbita species.
The zucchini, courgette or baby marrow is a summer squash, a vining herbaceous plant whose fruit are harvested when their immature seeds and epicarp (rind) are still soft and edible. It is closely related, but not identical, to the marrow; its fruit may be called marrow when mature.
Benincasa hispida, the wax gourd, also called ash gourd, white gourd, winter gourd, winter melon, tallow gourd, ash pumpkin, Chinese preserving melon, is a vine grown for its very large fruit, eaten as a vegetable when mature. It is the only member of the genus Benincasa.
Calabash, also known as bottle gourd, white-flowered gourd, long melon, birdhouse gourd, New Guinea bean, New Guinea butter bean, Tasmania bean, and opo squash, is a vine grown for its fruit. It can be either harvested young to be consumed as a vegetable, or harvested mature to be dried and used as a utensil, container, or a musical instrument. When it is fresh, the fruit has a light green smooth skin and white flesh.
Kabocha is a type of winter squash, a Japanese variety of the species Cucurbita maxima. It is also called kabocha squash or Japanese pumpkin in North America. In Japan, "kabocha" may refer to either this squash, to the Western pumpkin, or indeed to other squashes. In Australia, "Japanese pumpkin" is a synonym of Kent pumpkin, a variety of winter squash.
Cucurbita ficifolia is a species of squash, grown for its edible seeds, fruit, and greens. 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.
Egusi (Yoruba) is the name for the protein-rich seeds of certain cucurbitaceous plants, which, after being dried and ground, are used as a major ingredient in West African cuisine.
Ricinodendron is a plant genus in the family Euphorbiaceae first described as a genus in 1864. It includes only one known species, Ricinodendron heudelotii, native to tropical Africa from Senegal + Liberia east to Sudan and Tanzania and south to Mozambique and Angola. It produces an economically important oilseed. The tree is known as munguella (Angola), njangsa (Cameroon), bofeko, wama (Ghana), okhuen (Nigeria), kishongo (Uganda), akpi, djansang, essang, ezezang and njasang. Two varieties of the tree species are recognized R. heudelotii var. heudelotii in Ghana and R. heudelotii var. africanum in Nigeria and westwards.
Moringa oleifera is a fast-growing, drought-resistant tree of the family Moringaceae, native to the Indian subcontinent and used extensively in South and Southeast Asia. Common names include moringa, drumstick tree, horseradish tree, or malunggay.
Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems, leaves, roots, and seeds. An alternative definition of the term is applied somewhat arbitrarily, often by culinary and cultural tradition. It may exclude foods derived from some plants that are fruits, flowers, nuts, and cereal grains, but include savoury fruits such as tomatoes and courgettes, flowers such as broccoli, and seeds such as pulses.
Jute mallow or Jew's mallow or Nalita jute is a species of shrub in the family Malvaceae. Together with C. capsularis it is the primary source of jute fiber. The leaves and young fruits are used as a vegetable, the dried leaves are used for tea and as a soup thickener, and the seeds are edible.
Winter squash is an annual fruit representing several squash species within the genus Cucurbita. Late-growing, less symmetrical, odd-shaped, rough or warty varieties, small to medium in size, but with long-keeping qualities and hard rinds, are usually called winter squash. They differ from summer squash in that they are harvested and eaten in the mature stage when their seeds within have matured fully and their skin has hardened into a tough rind. At this stage, most varieties of this vegetable can be stored for use during the winter. Winter squash is generally cooked before being eaten, and the skin or rind is not usually eaten as it is with summer squash.
Dennettia tripetala is a species of flowering plant in the Annonaceae family. It is a shrub or tree native to western and west-central tropical Africa, including Guinea, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Nigeria, and Cameroon. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Gnetum africanum is a vine gymnosperm species found natively throughout tropical Africa. Though bearing leaves, the genus Gnetum are gymnosperms, related to pine and other conifers.
Melothria sphaerocarpa is a species of melon native from southern Mexico and the Dominican Republic through Central America to tropical South America. It has been introduced to western tropical Africa, where has been known under the synonym Cucumeropsis mannii, and is grown for food and as a source of oil, more often for the seed oil than for the fruit.
Telfairia is a small genus of flowering plants in the squash family which are native to Africa. They include Telfairia occidentalis, the fluted pumpkin, which is an important vegetable in Nigeria and other African nations. It is also known as the oyster nut, a common name it shares with its relative Telfairia pedata. These are woody and herbaceous dioecious vines which bear squashlike fruits that contain large, nutritious oily seeds. The third species is Telfairia batesii which is very rare and not cultivated.
A pumpkin is a cultivated winter squash in the genus Cucurbita. The term is most commonly applied to round, orange-colored squash varieties, though it does not possess a scientific definition and may be used in reference to many different squashes of varied appearance.
Telfairia pedata, commonly known as oysternut, queen's nut, Zanzibar oilvine, kweme or kulekula, is a dioecious African liana which can grow up to 30 metres long, having purple-pink fringed flowers, and very large, many-seeded, drooping, ellipsoid berries which can weigh up to 15 kg. It is valuable for having edible fruit, seeds and oil.
Palm nut soup or banga is a soup made from palm fruit common in the Cameroonian, Ghanaian, Nigerian, Democratic Republic of Congo and Ivorian communities. The soup is made from a palm cream or palm nut base with stewed marinated meats, smoked dried fish, and aromatics. It is often eaten with starch, fufu, omotuo, banku, fonio, or rice. The use of the palm fruit in cooking is significant in Ivorian, Cameronian, Nigerian, Ghanaian, Liberian and other West and Central African cuisine.
Connecticut field pumpkins are a type of pumpkin first attested in the 16th century. They are one of the oldest varieties of pumpkin in existence and are known as an heirloom plant. One of the most popular Halloween pumpkins, Connecticut field pumpkins are commonly used for autumn decorations and jack-o'-lanterns; a strain of Connecticut field pumpkins have been described as "the original commercial jack-o'-lantern pumpkin". Due to the variety's appearance and growth process, it is considered to be well-suited for ornamental use. It also has culinary uses, particularly in canning, and was used for medicinal purposes by Native Americans in the United States prior to European contact.
