gourds

Cucurbita (Latin for 'gourd') is a genus, native to the Andes and Mesoamerica, of herbaceous fruits in the gourd family, Cucurbitaceae (also known as cucurbits or cucurbi). 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; their young fruits are eaten much like those of the Cucurbita species.

There is debate about the taxonomy of the genus, and the number of accepted species varies from 13 to 30. The five domesticated species are Cucurbita argyrosperma, C. ficifolia, C. maxima, C. moschata, and C. pepo, all of which can be treated as winter squash because the full-grown fruits can be stored for months. However, C. pepo includes some cultivars that are better used only as summer squash.