Cucurbitaceæ

Cucurbitaceæ, an important order of corollifloral dicotyledons, of which the 500 species are mostly herbaceous climbers, inhabiting the warmer regions of the globe; only one, the Common Bryony (q.v.), reaching the south of England. The young shoots and leaves of many species are used as potherals, and the persistent rhizomes or roots of others are sometimes esteemed on account of their store of starch. Acridity, however, is a common characteristic of the order; and Bryony, Elaterium, and especially Colocynth (q.v.), are of old medicinal repute. But the central importance of the order is due to the characteristic fruit, which is technically known as a pepo, but which may be regarded as a large and many-seeded berry, with its more or less succulent pulp protected by a hardened wall. The many specific and varietal forms are known as Cucumbers, Melons, Gourds, Pumpkins, Squashes, Vegetable-marrows, Bottle-gourds, &c., and are described under separate articles. The seeds of some species are medicinal, others edible, while the fibro-vascular skeleton of the fruit of an Egyptian species of Luffa (loofah) is a familiar adjunct of the bathroom.