Lagenaria siceraria

Semilla de Lagenaria siceraria (calabaza o calabacín ornamental) — trepadora vigorosa para frutos jóvenes comestibles (cucuzzi, opo) y calabazas ornamentales de cáscara dura. Delicada; necesita calor y soporte.
Best selling Best selling

Lagenaria siceraria — bottle gourd

Lagenaria siceraria is the botanical name for the bottle gourd or calabash, a vigorous climbing member of the squash family (Cucurbitaceae) grown for both edible young fruits and hard-shelled ornamental gourds. It sits within our wider gourds & squash range and is one of humanity's oldest cultivated plants.

History & origin

The bottle gourd has an extraordinary history: native to Africa, it spread across the world in prehistoric times — reaching Asia and the Americas thousands of years ago — valued not as food but as a ready-made container, float and musical instrument once dried. It remains a staple vegetable in Asian and African cooking, where the young fruits (such as cucuzzi and opo) are eaten like courgettes, while mature shells are still made into bottles, bowls and birdhouses. The genus name Lagenaria comes from the Latin for a flask, and siceraria relates to its use as a drinking vessel.

Botanical characteristics

This is a fast, sprawling annual vine with large, soft, felted leaves, white flowers that open in the evening (unlike the yellow daytime flowers of true squashes), and fruits of astonishing variety — long snake-like cucuzzi, rounded calabashes, slim-necked bottle and birdhouse shapes, and swan-necked ornamentals. Young fruits are tender and pale-fleshed; left to ripen and dry, the shells turn hard, woody and waterproof. As a strong climber it is happiest scrambling up a sturdy support.

Growing Lagenaria siceraria from seed

Bottle gourds are tender and need warmth and a long season. Start seed under cover in spring, plant out after the last frost into rich, well-fed soil in full sun, and give the vigorous vines a strong trellis or arch — trained upward, the fruits hang straight and clean. Keep them fed and watered through summer. Pick young for eating, or leave fruits on the vine to ripen fully for drying. Our vegetable growing guide covers the basics, and the vegetable sowing calendar shows the windows.

Ready to grow edible gourds or your own dried calabashes? Browse the varieties below.

Related categories: Gourds & Squash · Cucumber · Container-Friendly Vegetables · Direct Sow Vegetables · All Vegetables

At SeedsChoice, every order ships from Meppel, NL with fast, tracked EU delivery.

As cabaças podem ser comidas?
Sim — colhidas ainda jovens e tenras, variedades como cucuzzi e opo são cozinhadas de forma semelhante a curgetes ou abóboras. Deixadas a amadurecer, os frutos tornam-se lenhosos e são usados apenas como cabaças secas. Como seco e curo as cabaças?
Deixe os frutos maduros na videira o máximo de tempo possível, depois cure-os num local seco e arejado durante várias semanas a meses, até a casca endurecer e as sementes chacoalharem no interior. Por que devo cultivar cabaças com suporte?
Treinar as vinhas vigorosas numa treliça ou arco resistente permite que os frutos fiquem suspensos livremente, crescendo mais direitos, limpos e com menor risco de apodrecer do que quando ficam sobre o solo. Quando devo semear cabaças?
Inicie as sementes em estufa na primavera e transplante apenas após as últimas geadas, pois estas plantas são sensíveis ao frio e precisam de uma estação longa e quente para amadurecer os frutos.