Bottle gourd, (Lagenaria siceraria), also called white-flowered gourd or calabash gourd, running or climbing vine of the gourd family (Cucurbitaceae), native to tropical Africa but cultivated in warm climates around the world for its ornamental and useful hard-shelled fruits. Recent studies have revealed its origin and native home in Asia. It is a climbing perennial plant widely cultivated as a vegetable crop in tropical countries, such as India, Japan and Thailand. The bottle gourd belongs to the genus Lagenaria that is derived from lagena, meaning, “bottle”. In the older literature it is often referred to as Lagenaria vulgaris (common) or Lagenaria leucantha (white flowered gourd) but it is now generally agreed that the correct name is Lagenaria siceraria (Mol.) Standl. Botle gourd or Calabash fruits have a variety of shapes: they can be huge and rounded, small and bottle-shaped, or slim and serpentine, and they can grow to be over a metre long. Rounder varieties are typically called calabash gourds. The plant has thick vines with large white flowers that open only at night. The fruit comes in a large variety of shapes, selected for by their human users. The bottle gourd is primarily grown for its fruit, which when dried forms a woody hollow vessel that is suitable for containing water and food, for fishing floats, for musical instruments and for clothing, among other things. In fact, the fruit itself floats, and bottle gourds with still-viable seeds have been discovered after floating in seawater for more than seven months. Tender fruits, young shoots and tendrils are also cooked, and oil is extracted from the seed. Its uses range from food and medicine, and as containers, artifacts, and musical instruments. Other uses of mature, dried hard shells of bottle gourd including musical instruments, cups, barrels, milk pails, ladles, fishing floats, penis sheaths, carvings, etc. Fruits are also used as herbal medicines in Asia. It has been in use as a vegetable in India since 2,000 BCE. It is part and parcel of the culture of the hill tribes Karbi and Jhasi in Assam (India), as it plays a key role of social ceremonies and rites of passage, as also in the offering of rice beer to gods and deities, and to serve guests. The offer and acceptance of a bottle gourd as a gift is sufficient to declare a couple's engagement among the Karbis. It is a symbol of longevity and good luck in China. The number of decorated bottle gourd containers denotes the social status of a Hausa tribes person in Nigeria, and form an essential or indispensable part of a bride's dowry. Bottle gourd is one of the excellent fruits gifted by nature to human beings having composition of all the essential constituents that are required for good health and quality human life. Bottle gourd has been used traditionally to help with many health conditions like fever, cough, pain, and asthma. It has been used since ancient times for its benefits. It is also considered a good source of vitamin B, C, and other nutrients. Fresh bottle gourd juice is used for its cooling, diuretic, antibilious, and pectoral properties. In this review article origin, distribution, taxonomy, botanical description, genetic diversity, breeding, uses, nutritional value and health benefits of bottle gourd ( Lagenaria siceraria) are discussed.
