Luffa Cylindrica

Scientific Name: Luffa cylindrica

Symbol: LUCY

Genus: Luffa

Edible: unknown

Luffa cylindrica

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Scientific Name: Luffa cylindrica

Common Name(s): Luffa sponge, squash, Wild gourd

Edible: yes

Medicinal: no

Parts Used: root, fruit, leaf

Logos
13 Aug, 2008

Description: The luffa sponge is widely distributed and fairly typical of a wild squash. There are several dozen kinds of wild squashes in tropical regions. Like most squashes, the luffa is a vine with leaves 7.5 to 20 centimeters across having 3 lobes. Some squashes have leaves twice this size. Luffa fruits are oblong or cylindrical, smooth, and many-seeded. Luffa flowers are bright yellow. The luffa fruit, when mature, is brown and resembles the cucumber.

Current Rating: 0.0000

Logos 13 Aug, 2008	Habitat and Distribution: A member of the squash family, which also includes the watermelon, cantaloupe, and cucumber, the luffa sponge is widely cultivated throughout the Tropical Zone. It may be found in a semiwild state in old clearings and abandoned gardens in rain forests and semievergreen seasonal forests.
Current Rating: 0.0000

Logos 13 Aug, 2008	Edible Parts: You can boil the young green (half-ripe) fruit and eat them as a vegetable. Adding coconut milk will improve the flavor. After ripening, the luffa sponge develops an inedible spongelike texture in the interior of the fruit. You can also eat the tender shoots, flowers, and young leaves after cooking them. Roast the mature seeds a little and eat them like peanuts.
Current Rating: 0.0000

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gourd | Luffa cylindrica | squash

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Luffa cylindrica

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