Cucurbitaceae
Template:Short description Template:Automatic taxobox
The Cucurbitaceae (Template:IPAc-en),<ref>Template:Cite Merriam-Webster</ref> also called cucurbits or the gourd family, are a plant family consisting of about 965 species<ref name="Christenhusz-Byng2016">Template:Cite journal</ref> in 101 genera.<ref name = powo>Cucurbitaceae Juss. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 10 June 2024.</ref> Those of most agricultural, commercial or nutritional value to humans include:Template:Cn
- Cucurbita – squash, pumpkin, zucchini (courgette), some gourds.
- Lagenaria – calabash (bottle gourd) and other, ornamental gourds.
- Citrullus – watermelon (C. lanatus, C. colocynthis), plus several other species.
- Cucumis – cucumber (C. sativus); various melons and vines.
- Momordica – bitter melon.
- Luffa – commonly called 'luffa' or ‘luffa squash'; sometimes spelled loofah. Young fruits may be cooked; when fully ripened, they become fibrous and unpalatable, thus becoming the source of the loofah scrubbing sponge.
- Cyclanthera – Caigua.
- Gerrardanthus — the species G. macrorhizus has gained some popularity as an ornamental caudiciform plant.
- Xerosicyos — the silver dollar vine (Xerosicyos danguyi) is popular amongst horticulturists and plant collectors.
The plants in this family are grown around the tropics and in temperate areas of the world, where those with edible fruits were among the earliest cultivated plants in both the Old and New Worlds. The family Cucurbitaceae ranks among the highest of plant families for number and percentage of species used as human food.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The name Cucurbitaceae comes to international scientific vocabulary from Neo-Latin, from Cucurbita, the type genus, + -aceae,<ref name="MWU">Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> a standardized suffix for plant family names in modern taxonomy. The genus name comes from the Classical Latin word Template:Wikt-lang, meaning "gourd".
DescriptionEdit
Most of the plants in this family are annual vines, but some are woody lianas, thorny shrubs, or trees (Dendrosicyos). Many species have large, yellow or white flowers. The stems are hairy and pentangular. Tendrils are present at 90° to the leaf petioles at nodes. Leaves are exstipulate, alternate, simple palmately lobed or palmately compound. The flowers are unisexual, with male and female flowers on different plants (dioecious) or on the same plant (monoecious). The female flowers have inferior ovaries. The fruit is often a kind of modified berry called a pepo.Template:RTemplate:Rp
Fossil historyEdit
One of the oldest fossil cucurbits so far is †Cucurbitaciphyllum lobatum from the Paleocene epoch, found at Shirley Canal, Montana. It was described for the first time in 1924 by the paleobotanist Frank Hall Knowlton. The fossil leaf is palmate, trilobed with rounded lobal sinuses and an entire or serrate margin. It has a leaf pattern similar to the members of the genera Kedrostis, Melothria and Zehneria.<ref>Revisions to Roland Brown's North American Paleocene Flora by Steven R. Manchester at Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA. Published in Acta Musei Nationalis Pragae, Series B – Historia Naturalis, vol. 70, 2014, no. 3-4, pp. 153–210.</ref>
ClassificationEdit
Tribal classificationEdit
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The most recent classification of Cucurbitaceae delineates 15 tribes:<ref name="Schaefer">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
- Tribe Gomphogyneae Benth. & Hook.f.
- Alsomitra (Blume) Spach (1 sp.)
- Bayabusua (1 sp.)
- Gomphogyne Griff. (2 spp.)
- Gynostemma Blume (10 spp.)
- Hemsleya Cogn. ex F.B.Forbes & Hemsl. (30 spp.)
- Neoalsomitra Hutch. (12 spp.)
- Tribe Triceratieae A.Rich.
- Cyclantheropsis Harms (3 spp.)
- Fevillea L. (8 spp.)
- Pteropepon (Cogn.) Cogn. (5 spp.)
- Sicydium Schltdl. (9 spp.)
- Tribe Zanonieae Benth. & Hook.f.
- Gerrardanthus Harvey in Hook.f. (3–5 spp.)
- Siolmatra Baill. (1 sp.)
- Xerosicyos Humbert (5 spp.)
- Zanonia L. (1 sp.)
- Tribe Actinostemmateae H.Schaef. & S.S.Renner
- Actinostemma Griff. (3 spp.)
- Bolbostemma Template:Small (2 spp.)
- Tribe Indofevilleeae H.Schaef. & S.S.Renner
- Indofevillea Chatterjee (2 sp.)
- Tribe Thladiantheae H.Schaef. & S.S.Renner
- Baijiania A.M.Lu & J.Q.Li (30 spp.)
- Sinobaijiania Template:Small (5 spp.)
- Thladiantha Bunge 1833 (5 spp.)
- Tribe Siraitieae H. Schaef. & S.S. Renner
- Siraitia Merr. (3–4 spp.)
- Tribe Momordiceae H.Schaef. & S.S.Renner
- Momordica L. (60 spp.)
- Tribe Joliffieae Schrad.
- Ampelosicyos Thouars (5 spp.)
- Cogniauxia Baill. (2 spp.)
- Telfairia Hook. (3 spp.)
- Tribe Bryonieae Dumort.
- Austrobryonia H.Schaef. (4 spp.)
- Bryonia L. (10 spp.)
- Ecballium A.Rich. (1 sp.)
- Tribe Schizopeponeae C.Jeffrey
- Herpetospermum Wall. ex Hook.f. (3 spp.)
- Schizopepon Maxim. (6–8 spp.)
- Tribe Sicyoeae Schrad.
- Brandegea Cogn. (1 sp.)
- Cyclanthera Schrad. (40 spp.)
- Echinocystis Torr. & A.Gray (1 sp.)
- Echinopepon Naudin (19 spp.)
- Hanburia Seem. (7 spp.)
- Hodgsonia Hook.f. & Thomson (2 spp.)
- Linnaeosicyos H.Schaef. & Kocyan (1 sp.)
- Luffa Mill. (5–7 spp.)
- Marah Kellogg (7 spp.)
- Microsechium Template:Small (4 spp.)
- Nothoalsomitra Hutch. (1 sp.)
- Parasicyos Template:Small (2 sp.)
- Sechiopsis Template:Small (5 spp.)
- Sicyocaulis Template:Small (1 sp.)
- Sicyos L. (64 spp., including Frantzia Pittier and Sechium P.Browne)
- Sicyosperma Template:Small (1 sp.)
- Trichosanthes L. (≤100 spp.)
- Tribe Coniandreae Endl.
- Apodanthera Arn. (16 spp.)
- Bambekea Cogn. (1 sp.)
- Ceratosanthes Adans. (4 spp.)
- Corallocarpus Welw. ex Benth. & Hook.f. (17 spp.)
- Cucurbitella Walp. (1 sp.)
- Dendrosicyos Balf.f. (1 sp.)
- Doyerea Grosourdy (1 sp.)
- Eureiandra Hook.f. (8 spp.)
- Gurania (Schltdl.) Cogn. (37 spp.)
- Halosicyos Mart.Crov (1 sp.)
- Helmontia Cogn. (2–4 spp.)
- Ibervillea Greene (8 spp.)
- Kedrostis Medik. (28 spp.)
- Psiguria Neck. ex Arn. (6–12 spp.)
- Seyrigia Keraudren (6 spp.)
- Trochomeriopsis Cogn. (1 sp.)
- Wilbrandia Silva Manso (5 spp.)
- Tribe Benincaseae Ser.
- Acanthosicyos Welw. ex Hook.f. (1 sp.)
- Benincasa Savi (2 spp., including Praecitrullus Pangalo)
- Blastania Template:Small (3 spp., including Ctenolepis Hook.f.)
- Borneosicyos (1–2 spp.)
- Cephalopentandra Chiov. (1 sp.)
- Citrullus Schrad. (4 spp.)
- Coccinia Wight & Arn. (30 spp.)
- Cucumis L. (65 spp.)
- Dactyliandra Hook.f. (2 spp.)
- Diplocyclos (Endl.) T.Post & Kuntze (4 spp.)
- Indomelothria (2 spp.)
- Khmeriosicyos (1 sp.)
- Lagenaria Ser. (6 spp.)
- Lemurosicyos Keraudren (1 sp.)
- Melothria L. (12 spp., including M. scabra)
- Muellerargia Cogn. (2 sp.)
- Oreosyce Template:Small (1 sp.)
- Papuasicyos (8 spp.)
- Peponium Engl. (20 spp.)
- Raphidiocystis Hook.f. (5 spp.)
- Ruthalicia C.Jeffrey (2 spp.)
- Scopellaria W.J.de Wilde & Duyfjes (2 spp.)
- Solena Lour. (3 spp.)
- Trochomeria Hook.f. (8 spp.)
- Zehneria Endl. (ca. 60 spp.)
- Tribe Cucurbiteae Ser.
- Abobra Naudin (1 sp.)
- Calycophysum H.Karst. & Triana (5 spp.)
- Cayaponia Silva Manso (74 spp.)
- Cionosicys Griseb. (4–5 spp.)
- Cucurbita L. (15 spp.)
- Penelopeia Urb. (2 spp.)
- Peponopsis Naudin (1 sp.)
- Polyclathra Bertol. (6 spp.)
- Schizocarpum Schrad. (11 spp.)
- Selysia Cogn. (4 spp.)
- Sicana Naudin (4 spp.)
- Tecunumania Standl. & Steyerm. (1 sp.)
SystematicsEdit
Modern molecular phylogenetics suggest the following relationships:<ref name="Schaefer"/><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite thesis</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
| Detailed Cladogram showing Cucurbitaceae phylogeny |
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Pests and diseasesEdit
Sweet potato whitefly is the vector of a number of cucurbit viruses that cause yellowing symptoms throughout the southern United States.<ref name="Wintermantel-2020">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
ReferencesEdit
Further readingEdit
External linksEdit
- Template:Commonscat-inline
- Cucurbitaceae in T.C. Andres (1995 onwards).
- Cucurbitaceae in L. Watson and M.J. Dallwitz (1992 onwards). The families of flowering plants: descriptions, illustrations, identification, information retrieval.
Template:Angiosperm families Template:Taxonbar Template:Authority control