Cucurbita argyrosperma

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: Core eudicots
Cladus: Rosids
Cladus: Eurosids I
Ordo: Cucurbitales

Familia: Cucurbitaceae
Tribus: Cucurbiteae
Genus: Cucurbita
Species: Cucurbita argyrosperma
Subspecies: C. a. subsp. argyrosperma – C. a. subsp. sororia
Name

Cucurbita argyrosperma C.Huber, 1867.
References
Primary references

Huber, C. 1867. Catalogue de graines pour 1867 (Huber) 8.

Links

Hassler, M. 2019. Cucurbita argyrosperma. World Plants: Synonymic Checklists of the Vascular Plants of the World In: Roskovh, Y., Abucay, L., Orrell, T., Nicolson, D., Bailly, N., Kirk, P., Bourgoin, T., DeWalt, R.E., Decock, W., De Wever, A., Nieukerken, E. van, Zarucchi, J. & Penev, L., eds. 2019. Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life. Published online. Accessed: 2019 Dec 27. Reference page.
International Plant Names Index. 2019. Cucurbita argyrosperma. Published online. Accessed: Dec 27 2019.
Govaerts, R. et al. 2019. Cucurbita argyrosperma in Kew Science Plants of the World online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published online. Accessed: 2019 Dec 27. Reference page.
Tropicos.org 2019. Cucurbita argyrosperma. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published online. Accessed: 27 Dec 2019.
USDA, ARS, Germplasm Resources Information Network. Cucurbita argyrosperma in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. Accessed: 10 February 2009.

Vernacular names
English: fingerleaf gourd, cushaw, cushaw pumpkin, green striped cushaw, Japanese pie pumpkin, silverseed gourd, white cushaw
español: ayote

Cucurbita argyrosperma, also the Japanese pie pumpkin[3] or cushaw pumpkin,[3] and silver-seed gourd,[3] is a species of winter squash originally from the south of Mexico.[4][5] This annual herbaceous plant is cultivated in the Americas for its nutritional value: its flowers, shoots, and fruits are all harvested, but it is cultivated most of all for its seeds,[6] which are used for sauces. It was formerly known as Cucurbita mixta.[6][7]

It is a Cucurbita species, with pumpkin varieties that are commonly cultivated in the United States as part of the Eastern Agricultural Complex[8] and Mexico south to Nicaragua. Of all the cultivated Cucurbita species it is the least found outside the Americas. It originated in Mesoamerica, most likely in the state of Jalisco, from its wild ancestor Cucurbita sororia.[9] It is also closely related to Cucurbita kellyana and Cucurbita palmeri.[6][10] The reference genome of this species was published in 2019.[11]

Description

The flowers are orange or yellow and bloom in July or August. The plant grows about 1 foot high and spreads 10–15 feet. It likes well drained soil and has both male and female flowers. Fruits can weigh up to 20 pounds.[5] It is often grown in close proximity to Cucurbita moschata.[12]
Uses
Food

The flowers, stems, shoots, and unripe fruits of the plant are consumed as vegetables.[13] In the south of Mexico, the wild, more bitter varieties are used in this same way, once washed and cleaned to eliminate cucurbitin. The ripe fruit is grilled to make pies or used to feed animals. The seeds yield an edible oil.[13]

It is also grown in the Sonoran Desert region of the Southwestern United States and Northwestern Mexico by native peoples, especially the Tohono O'odham, where it is especially prized when immature as a summer squash.
Medicinal properties

Cucurbita argyrosperma also has medicinal properties. A liquid emulsion of its seed can act as a vermifuge, and the subsequent use of a laxative can effect an expulsion of parasitic worms.[13][unreliable source?]

The Yucatán peasantry has traditionally used the flesh of Cucurbita argyrosperma to tend burns, sores, and eczema, while the seeds have been used with the aim of promoting lactation in nursing women, and provide pain relief.[10]
References

Castellanos Morales, G.; Sánchez de la Vega, G.; Aragón Cuevas, F.; Contreras, A.; Lira Saade, R. (2019). "Cucurbita argyrosperma". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2019: e.T20742586A20755871. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-2.RLTS.T20742586A20755871.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
"The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species".
"Cucurbita argyrosperma". Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Agricultural Research Service (ARS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved January 3, 2015.
Sanjur, Oris I.; Piperno, Dolores R.; Andres, Thomas C.; Wessel-Beaver, Linda (2002). "Phylogenetic Relationships among Domesticated and Wild Species of Cucurbita (Cucurbitaceae) Inferred from a Mitochondrial Gene: Implications for Crop Plant Evolution and Areas of Origin". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. Washington, DC: National Academy of Sciences. 99 (1): 535–540. Bibcode:2002PNAS...99..535S. doi:10.1073/pnas.012577299. JSTOR 3057572. PMC 117595. PMID 11782554.
"Cucurbita argyrosperma". Missouri Botanical Garden. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
Nee, Michael (1990). "The Domestication of Cucurbita (Cucurbitaceae)". Economic Botany. New York: New York Botanical Gardens Press. 44 (3, Supplement: New Perspectives on the Origin and Evolution of New World Domesticated Plants): 56–68. doi:10.1007/BF02860475. JSTOR 4255271. S2CID 40493539.
Merrick, Laura C. "Characterization of Cucurbita argyrosperma, a Potential New Crop for Seed and Fruit Production". HortScience. American Society for Horticultural Science. 25 (9): 1141.
Fritz, Gayle J. (1994). "Precolumbian Cucurbita argyrosperma ssp. argyrosperma (Cucurbitaceae) in the Eastern Woodlands of North America". Economic Botany. New York Botanical Garden Press. 48 (3): 280–292. doi:10.1007/bf02862329. JSTOR 4255642. S2CID 20262842.
Barrera-Redondo, Josué; Sánchez-de la Vega, Guillermo; Aguirre-Liguori, Jonás A.; Castellanos-Morales, Gabriela; Gutiérrez-Guerrero, Yocelyn T.; Aguirre-Dugua, Xitlali; Aguirre-Planter, Erika; Tenaillon, Maud I.; Lira-Saade, Rafael; Eguiarte, Luis E. (December 2021). "The domestication of Cucurbita argyrosperma as revealed by the genome of its wild relative". Horticulture Research. 8 (1): 109. doi:10.1038/s41438-021-00544-9. PMC 8087764. PMID 33931618.
Saade, R. Lira; Hernández, S. Montes. "Cucurbits". Purdue Horticulture. Retrieved September 2, 2013.
Barrera-Redondo, Josué; Ibarra-Laclette, Enrique; Vázquez-Lobo, Alejandra; Gutiérrez-Guerrero, Yocelyn T.; Sánchez de la Vega, Guillermo; Piñero, Daniel; Montes-Hernández, Salvador; Lira-Saade, Rafael; Eguiarte, Luis E. (April 2019). "The Genome of Cucurbita argyrosperma (Silver-Seed Gourd) Reveals Faster Rates of Protein-Coding Gene and Long Noncoding RNA Turnover and Neofunctionalization within Cucurbita". Molecular Plant. 12 (4): 506–520. doi:10.1016/j.molp.2018.12.023.
Wessel-Beaver, Linda. "Cucurbita argyrosperma Sets Fruit in Fields Where Cucurbita moschata is the only Pollen Source" (PDF). University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
"Cucurbita argyrosperma – C.Huber". Plants for a Future. Retrieved September 14, 2013.