| Cucurbita foetidissima | |
|---|---|
| |
| Buffalo gourd plant, male flower and fruits. | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Cucurbitales |
| Family: | Cucurbitaceae |
| Genus: | Cucurbita |
| Species: | C. foetidissima
|
| Binomial name | |
| Cucurbita foetidissima | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
| |
Cucurbita foetidissima is a tuberous xerophytic plant found in the central and southwestern United States and northern Mexico.[3] It has numerous common names, but is most commonly called the buffalo gourd in English. The type specimen was collected from Mexico by Alexander von Humboldt and Aimé Bonpland sometime before 1817.[4] In Latin, foetidissima means most unpleasant smell.
The buffalo gourd has evolved in the semiarid regions and is well-adapted to desert environments. It contains high amounts of protein and carbohydrates and yields abundant oil.[5] The carbohydrates that are formed in the tap root have led to the idea of growing the plant for biofuel.[6][7]
The fruit is consumed by both humans and animals. When mature, a stage marked by increasing desiccation of vine, leaves, fruit-stem, and fruit, the fruit begins its final gourd stage.
Geographic location and genetics make it highly likely that Cucurbita scabridifolia originated as a naturally occurring hybrid of C. foetidissima and Cucurbita pedatifolia.[8]
- ^ NatureServe (2023). "Cucurbita foetidissima". Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
- ^ "Cucurbita foetidissima Kunth". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
- ^ Bemis, W. P.; Whitaker, Thomas W. (April 1969). "The Xerophytic Cucurbita of Northwestern Mexico and Southwestern United States". Madroño. 20 (2). California Botanical Society: 33–41. JSTOR 41423342.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
tropwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Bemis, J.; Curtis, L.; Weber, C.; Berry, J. (1978). "The Feral Buffalo Gourd, Cucurbita foetidissima". Economic Botany. 32 (1): 87–95. Bibcode:1978EcBot..32...87B. doi:10.1007/bf02906733. S2CID 43414271.
- ^ Smeal, D. (1997). "Carbohydrate biofuels. III. Consumptive-use and root yield of buffalo gourd (Cucurbita foetidissima HBK)". Fuel and Energy Abstracts. 38 (5): 325. doi:10.1016/S0140-6701(97)81177-0.
- ^ Blume, David (2007). Alcohol Can Be a Gas! Fueling an Ethanol Revolution for the 21st Century. The International Institute For Ecological Agriculture.
- ^ Andres, Thomas C. (1987). "Relationship of Cucurbita scabridifolia to C. foetidissima and C. pedatifolia: A Case of Natural Interspecific Hybridization". Cucurbit Genetics Cooperative Report. 10. Raleigh, NC: North Carolina State University: 74–75.