This article refers to the dried fruit shell. Dried fruit is fruit that has been dried, either naturally or through use of a machine such as a Food dehydrator. For the alternative country musical group of a similar name, see The Gourds. The Gourds are an American Alternative country band formed in Austin Texas during the summer of 1994

A 'gourd is a plant of the family Cucurbitaceae, or a name given to the hollow, dried shell of a fruit in the Cucurbitaceae family of plants of the genus Lagenaria^[1][2]. The term fruit has different meanings dependent on context and the term is not synonymous in Food preparation and Biology. Cucurbitaceae is a Plant family commonly known as Melons, gourds or cucurbits and includes crops like Cucumbers Plants are living Organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Lagenaria is a Genus of Gourd bearing Vines from the family Cucurbitaceae, also known as the "Squash" family

Most commonly, gourds are the product of the species Lagenaria siceraria (the calabash or African bottle gourd), native to Africa, and at a very early date spread throughout the world by human migrations. The calabash or African bottle gourd (not to be confused with the Calabaza) is a Vine grown for its fruit which can either be harvested young and used This species may be the oldest plant domesticated by humans.

Gourds can be used as a number of things, including bowls or bottles. Gourds are also used as resonating chambers on certain musical instruments including the berimbau and many other stringed instruments and drums. A resonator is a device or system that exhibits Resonance or resonant behavior that is it naturally oscillates at some frequencies, called its resonance A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified for the purpose of making Music. The berimbau is a single-string Percussion instrument, a Musical bow, from Brazil. A string instrument (or stringed instrument) is a Musical instrument that produces Sound by means of Vibrating strings In the Hornbostel-Sachs The drum is a member of the percussion group technically classified as a Membranophone. Instruments of this type are fairly common to the Caribbean. The Caribbean (ˌkærəˡbiən kæ'rəbiən Cariben|Caraïben or Caraïben; Caraïbe or more commonly Antilles; Caribe is a Region consisting Gourds are also used as a tool for sipping yerba mate by means of a bombilla, in Chile, Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil, where it is called "cuia" (kOOya). Mate or maté (\ˈmä-ˌtā\ Spanish and Portuguese: mate, ˈmate is an infusion, containing Stimulants including Chile, officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish:) is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow Coastal strip wedged between the Uruguay.(official full name in República Oriental del Uruguay;, Oriental Republic of Uruguay) is a country located in the southeastern part of South America For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay ( Spanish: República del Paraguay; Guaraní: Tetã Paraguái) is one of the only |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld Birdhouse gourds are commonly used in southern USA for group housing for purple martins, which reputedly help control mosquitoes. The Purple Martin ( Progne subis) is the largest North American Swallow at 20 cm length Mosquitoes are insects in the family Culicidae. They have a pair of scaled wings a pair of Halteres, a slender body and long legs "Gourd" can also refer to the live fruit before it is dried, or to the entire plant that produces that fruit.

Contents 1 Cultivation 2 Other uses 3 See also 4 Footnotes 5 External links

Cultivation

Day-blooming gourds are pollinated the same as squash, and commercial plantings should have bee hives supplied. Pollination in angiosperms and Gymnosperms is the process that transfers pollen grains, which contain the male Gametes (sperm to where the female Squashes generally refer to four species of the genus Cucurbita native to the Mexico and Central America, also called marrows depending Pollination Management is the label for horticultural practices that accomplish or enhance Pollination of a crop to improve yield or quality by understanding of the particular Night blooming gourds are pollinated by moths, which are normally present in adequate supply unless they are drawn off by night lights in the area. A moth is an Insect closely related to the Butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Light pollution, also known as photopollution or luminous pollution, is excess or obtrusive Light created mainly by Humans Among other effects

Gourds were the earliest plant species domesticated by humans and were originally used by man as containers or vessels before clay or stone pottery, and is sometimes referred to as "nature's pottery". The original and evolutional shape of clay pottery is thought to have been modeled on the shape of certain gourd varieties.

Recent DNA analyses of bottle gourds found at several sites throughout the Americas has resolved a long-standing mystery, as well as adding evidence establishing the early date of domestication of the bottle gourd plant. As the bottle gourd is native to Africa and not the Americas, archeologists previous to the analyses could only speculate that it had probably floated across the Atlantic. But upon examining the DNA, they found that the American samples most closely matched the varieties of the African bottle gourd found in Asia, not Africa. It was thus concluded that the bottle gourd had been deliberately brought by early Asian migrants to the Americas, at a time pre-dating the domestication of plants for food anywhere on Earth. ^[3]

Other uses

In addition to utilitarian uses, gourds have been assigned various other functions throughout history in various cultures. Very early specimens of squash shells discovered (for example, in Peru) indicate the use of squashes as means of recording events of the time. Peru (Perú Piruw Piruw officially the Republic of Peru ( reˈpuβlika del peˈɾu is a country in western South America. In North America, the carving of pumpkins and some other squashes into Jack-o-Lanterns is a popular cultural activity during Halloween. Pumpkin is a Gourd -like squash of the genus Cucurbita and the family Cucurbitaceae (which also includes gourds A jack-o'-lantern (sometimes also spelled Jack O'Lantern)is typically a carved Pumpkin. Halloween, or Hallowe’en, is a Holiday celebrated on the night of October 31.

Generally, gourds are used more for utilitarian uses than for food. Only a few varieties are actually harvested for consumption, mostly in Asia. The shell of the gourd, when dried, has a wooden appearance. Gourd "wood" is essentially cellulose that has no grain, varying in thickness from paper-thin to well over an inch. Cellulose is an Organic compound with the formula, a Polysaccharide consisting of a linear chain of several hundred to over ten thousand β(1→4 Drying gourds, which takes months in some cases, causes the internal contents (seeds and fruit matter) to dry out completely, although seeds are often still capable of germination. For the uninitiated, cutting open a dried gourd (which can be done with a craft knife or miniature jig-saw) can present hazards; the resulting dust is extremely fine and can cause respiratory problems, requiring adequate protection. A bitter taste or smell is typically evident when opening a gourd that has not completely dried out inside.

It has also been found that gourd skins were used to replace missing parts of skulls back in the Neolithic times as part of primitive surgery. The Neolithic (from Greek νεολιθικός — neolithikos from νέος neos, "new" + λίθος lithos This is seen as evidence of prostheses, that is, artificial bones made of very fine gold sheet and gourd skins, which were inserted in the skull under the skin or to cover the hole left by the operation. In Medicine, a prosthesis (plural prostheses) is an Artificial extension that replaces a missing Body part.

The harder outer surface lends the gourd to a wide variety of creative appeals, including carving, pyrography, sculpture, basketry, masks, musical instruments, and much more. Pyrography is the art of decorating wood or other materials with burn marks resulting from the controlled application of a heated object such as a poker. A steadily growing following has emerged in the United States and other Western countries for Gourd art and craft-related purposes. Gourd lampJPG|thumb|200px|Gourd art by Nurettin Taskaya]] Gourd art involves creating works of Art by Painting on dried Gourd shells based on the principles There are many different types of decorative gourds. They include spoon gourds, spoon bicolor, orange warted, and striped pear. The spoon gourd ripens from the top to the bottom. A baby spoon gourd is green and as it grows it changes color. A yellow color overlaps the green and creates a two colored gourd. For decorative purposes the harvester can cut the gourd from the plant early when it is still two colors.

White gourd juice is also a common beverage retailed in China and Chinese outlets outside China. It has a unique, smokey taste.

See also

• Follow the Drinkin' Gourd
• Bitter gourd
• Bottle gourd
• Ivy gourd
• Gourd art
• Guiro
• Koteka
• Maraca
• Pointed gourd
• Ridge gourd
• Sitar
• Snake gourd
• Mate

Footnotes

External links

• An Asian origin for a 10,000-year-old domesticated plant in the Americas.
• Phytolith evidence for early Holocene Cucurbita domestication in southwest Ecuador.
• The Initial Domestication of Cucurbita pepo in the Americas 10,000 Years Ago.
• The Cucurbitaceae.
• The Gourd Reserve.

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