Bitterroot Restoration

Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Cucurbitales
Family: Cucurbitaceae

Common name: Chalkumra(Beng.); winter melon, fuzzy melon, white gourd, Ash Gourd(Eng.).
Edible Parts: Flowers, fruit, leaves, seed
Light: Full Sun
Native Range: Benincasa hispida is now widely grown in East Asia and South Asia as well.

Benincasa hispida (winter melon) also called white gourd,ash gourd, or "fuzzy melon", is a vine grown for its very large fruit, eaten as a vegetable when mature. It is the only member of the genus Benincasa. This fruit is fuzzy when young. The immature melon has thick white flesh that is sweet when eaten. By maturity, the fruit loses its hairs and develops a waxy coating, giving rise to the name wax gourd, and providing a long shelf life. The melon may grow as large as 80cm in length. Although the fruit is referred to as a "melon" the fully grown crop is not sweet. The Benincasa hispida requires very warm weather to grow but can be kept through the winter much like winter squash. It can typically be stored for 12 months.