104 FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, 1971

THE WAX , A YEAR-ROUND FLORIDA WITH UNUSUAL KEEPING QUALITY

Julia F. Morton, tially fill the central cavity, together with lightly attached partitions of pithy tissue. Morton Collectanea, University of Miami Origin and Distribution Coral Gables According to Alphonse de Candolle, the wax It is surprising to find that a vegetable product gourd was early observed growing wild in which has been raised on a small yet commercial and on the seashore in Java and in Queensland, basis in Florida for several decades for local sale Australia. He believed that its cultivation in China and shipment to northern markets has never be "dates from the remotest antiquity" (14). It is fore received mention in the Proceedings of the today commonly grown throughout the Old World Florida State Horticultural Society and is un Tropics (up to 4,000 ft. elevation) (16) and wher known to most Florida residents. ever there are Oriental communities in warm The , Benincasa hispida (Thunb.) parts of the western hemisphere, including north Cogn., syns. B. cerifera Savi; vacua ern South America,, Central America, the West F.v.M., is called tung kua (or zit-kwa when im Indies, Bahamas, South Florida and California. mature) in China; petJia, generally, in ; It is not well suited to a very humid tropical kondoly in the ; kondot or condor in climate such as in southern Malaya (9). Since it Guam; fak kio in Thailand; bleego in Java; and has a short season, it may be grown in the summer calabaza china or calabaza blanca in Spanish-speak in the temperate zones. First grown in the United ing countries, and has several alternate English States at the New York Agricultural Experiment names: white gourd; white ; tallow gourd; Station in 1884 (32), and reintroduced in 1892 (6), ash gourd; ash pumpkin; gourd ; winter the wax gourd has been the subject of repeated melon; Chinese ; or Chinese preserving introductions through the U.S. Department of melon. The genus (of which this is the sole species) .* From the explorers' notes, it is named after the Italian count, Giuseppe Benin is apparent that they were impressed with the casa, founder of the botanical garden at Pisa. popularity, utility and keeping quality of the various types they encountered (35).

Description Culture The plant resembles that of the pumpkin. It The wax gourd is easier to grow than any is an annual, creeping with thick, furrowed other cucurbit, whether allowed to spread on the stems bearing coarse hairs, tendrils and roughly triangular , deeply cleft at the base and more or less irregularly lobed; downy on both *Among early U.S. introductions: PI 2012, W. Swingle, from France, 1899; PI 2936, B. Lathrop and D. Fairchild, surfaces; 4 to 10 inches long and 4 to 8 inches from Panama, 1899; PI 4999, Suzuki & Iida, N.Y., from Japan, 1900; PI 5399, D. Prain, Supt. Roy. Bot. Gard.. wide. The are golden-yellow, 2% to SV2 Calcutta, 1900; PI 17967, W. Lyon, from Manila, 1906; PI inches wide, on hairy stalks: % to 1Y2 inches long 21801, A. Gage, Supt. Roy. Bot. Gard., Calcutta, 1908; PI 23938, F. Meyer, from Peking, 1908; PI 32104, C. Piper, from on the female and 2 to 6 inches long on the male. Madras, 1911; PI 33626, C. Piper, from Calcutta, 1912; PI 33149, Dir. Mus. Nat. Hist., Paris, 1912; PI 34458, W. The , exceedingly hairy when young, may Popenoe, from Saharanpur, 1912; PI 41492, E. Widler, from be oblong, oblate or globular and may reach 4 ft. Chungking, 1915; PI 45449, H. Gee, from Soochow, (now Wuhsien), 1917; PI 48553, J. Norton, from Foochow (now in length and 2 ft. in diameter, and attain a Minhow). 1919; PI 54426, F. McClure, from Canton, 1921; weight of 30 or 40 lbs. While the thin, tough skin PI 59390, Dir. Bot. Gard., U. of Cambridge, Eng., 1924; PI 61905, P. Dorsett, from Shanghai, 1924; PI 62400, P. is actually light- or dark-green, it is coated with Dorsett, from Peking, 1924; PI 63909, P.Dorsett, from Loutai. near Peking, 1925; PI 02241, R. Bourgeois, from St. a preservative layer of white, chalky wax and in Quentin, France, 1925; PI {J6065-7, F. McClure, from some varieties also bears, even when full-grown, Kwangsi & Kwantung Provs., China, 1925; PI 71269-70, F. McClure, from Nanking, 1926 ; PI 172908,F. McClure, from a dense pelt of pale-grey, minute hairs. The thick Luchowfu, China, 1926; PI 93809, F. Dickinson, from Cheng- flesh is snow-white, crisp and juicy and very mild tu, China,1931; PI 92800-04, P. Dorsett and W. Morse, from Peiping, 1931; PI 93475, S. Hsiao, from Wuchang, China, in flavor. Numerous oval, flat but thick-edged, 1931; PI 93003-6, P. Dorsett and W. Morse, from Hangchow, Paotingfu and Shanghai, 1931; PI 122796, Dir. of Agr., light-brown seeds, to Y2 inch in length, only par Kashmir, 1936; PI 122166, W. Koelz, Darjeeling, 1937. MORTON: THE WAX GOURD 105

ground or trained to climb a support. In the latter case, a very strong trellis is required and, there fore, in the Far East the vine is often planted close to a dwelling or shed so that the heavy fruits come to rest on the roof (16), or it is placed so that it may ascend a convenient tree (22). Firm- inger relates that while other products, in such exposed situations might be stolen, a religious respect for this protects it from theft (15). The plant thrives in almost any type of well- drained garden —sandy, loam or clay. Ideal pH range is 5.5 to 6.4. The crop does best in full sun at temperatures between 75 and 80°P. Excessive humidity and prolonged overcast have unfavorable effects on plant health and productivity (30). Fertilizer: Where cured manure is available, it is worked into the soil before planting (20-25 tons/ha.) and also applied as a side-dressing when the have grown a little. Ammonium sulphate (150 kg. per ha.) may be added in two treatments, one at the beginning of plant growth, the other at Figure 1.—The wax gourd (Benincasa hispida Cogn.) in flowering time (60-80 days from seeding). If Mrs. Chow's garden on Coral Way near 170th Avenue, No there is a phosphate or potassium deficiency in vember, 196U. Young such as that in the foreground may be cooked as greens. the field, these elements must be supplied in the JKhoto by Julia Morton. fertilizer (30). Planting: The seeds remain viable for 10 years for the melon . He maintains 25 hives of honey (36) and germinate in 1 or 2 weeks. In truck bees to insure pollination and full seed develop gardens, they are sown on the tops of the ridges ment in this crop and his other cucurbits. in deeply furrowed fields. Mechanical planters place the seeds singly about 2 inches apart. When Season the seedlings reach about 6 inches in height, they are thinned out, the strongest plants being left In tropical and subtropical regions, the wax approximately 5 ft. apart. Weeding and tilling gourd may be planted at any time of year. George during the early stages are conducive to good Fong says that he can produce 3 crops annually growth and heavy bearing. but he usually plants in late July and harvests Irrigation: The wax gourd is relatively drought- at the end of November; plants again in late De tolerant. In India, the furrows are flooded at cember and harvests at the end of March. In weekly intervals during the dry season but not in northern India, where there is danger of frost, the rainy period unless there has been no precipi there is no winter production and only 2 crops a tation for 10 or 12 days. year, the first planted in February or March and the second in June or July (30). Pests and Diseases: Indian growers are troubled mainly by fruit fly attacks on young fruits; red pumpkin beetles and aphids on the tender seed Yield lings; and jassids which suck mature leaves. Lin- The harvest in India ranges from 100 to 300 dane is used to control the beetles and Malathion quintals per hectare (30). (1 quintal = 220.46 for the other pests. Powdery mildew is treated lbs.). From one 2-acre plot Mr. Fong harvested with sulphur dust (except in hot weather) or and sent to New York this summer two trailer- Karathane (30). truck loads of wax . He also supplied his In Florida, wax gourd culture presents few retail outlet in Miami, as well as keeping an over problems. George Fong, who grows this and other flow of perhaps 100 fruits spread out along his Oriental near Lake Worth, on sandy driveway for direct sale. Last year he shipped a marl, says that he uses a high phosphate fertilizer total of 18,000 lbs. of wax gourds to New York applied 3 times per crop; floods the furrows only dealers. The wholesale price ranged from 10 to 15 twice; and has to apply every 2 weeks cents a pound. However, I have paid $1.85 for a 106 FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, 1971 small fruit (8 inches in diameter) purchased in Miami.

Keeping Quality

Chung and Ripperton declare: "The outstanding feature of the melon is its wonderful keeping quality when fully matured. It will remain sound for 6 to 12 months if it is not injured." (13). The fruit is best kept on shelves or hung in net sacks, undercover, in a dry, cool atmosphere. Cutting or bruising may cause rot to set in quickly, though sometimes the wound will be self-healing. The wax gourd has been successfully maintained for 4 to 6 months in artificial cold storage, at 50-55°F. and 70-75% relative humidity (30).

Food Value

Srivastava and Sachan refer to the mature fruit as "Rich in vitamins B and C" (30). The Figure 3.—A smooth type of wax gourd with white wax Wealth of India shows vitamin B1 content as 20 coating but with persistent hairs only in a small area International Units per 100 g. of flesh (2). surrounding the stem. Fhoto by Julia Morton. The following analyses of the immature and mature wax gourd are given by the University of MATURE: Moisture, 96.20%; protein, .40%; Hawaii. , .03%; carbohydrates: nitrogen-free extract, IMMATURE: Moisture, 95.80%; Protein, 2.24%, crude fiber, .68%; ash, .45%; calcium, 47%; fat, .02%; carbohydrates: nitrogen-free ex .015%; phosphorus, .21%; iron, .0024%; alka tract, 2.69%, crude fiber, .56%; ash, .45% calcium, linity, 5.30*. .011%; phosphorus, .025%; iron, .0006% alkalin * (expressed as cc. of normal acid sol. required ity, 5.30*. to neutralize excess of base per 100 g. of fresh veg.) (13). It is interesting to compare the U.S. Depart ment of Agriculture's analyses of raw wax gourd and chayote (per 100 g. of edible portion) :

Figure 2.—Twa farms of wax gourd—oblong and nearly Figure 4.—Hairy young ^uitfsrof the J11"111 ^Jy S^S round Both of these mature fruits have an overall "fuzz" of type of wax gourd, m the held of George Fong, Lake Worth, minute hairs in addition to their wax coating. October 3, 1971. JFhoto by Julia Morton. fhoto by Julia Morton. MORTON: THE WAX GOURD 107

WAX GOURD: Water, 96.1%; food energy (calories), 13; protein, .4 g.; fat, .2 g.; carbo hydrates: total, 3.0 g., fiber, .5 g.; ash, .3 g.; cal cium, 19 mg.; phosphorus, 19 mg.; iron, .4 mg.; sodium, 6 mg.; potassium, 111 mg.; vitamin A, 0 I.U.; thiamine, .04 mg.; riboflavin, .11 mg.; niacin, .4 mg.; ascorbic acid, 13 mg. CHAYOTE: Water, 91.8%; food energy (cal ories), 28; protein, .6 g.; fat, .1 g; carbohydrates: total, 7.1 g., fiber, .7 g.; ash, .4 g.; calcium, 13 mg.; phosphorus, 26 mg.; iron, .5 mg.; sodium, 5 mg.; potassium, 102 mg.; vitamin A, 20 I.U.; thiamine, .03 mg.; riboflavin, .03 mg.; niacin, .4 mg.; ascorbic acid, 19 mg. (38). Composition of wax gourd reported by the Food and Nutrition Center, Manila (1964), is virtually the same except that ascorbic acid is Figure 5.—Mature wax gourds, up to 2 ft. in diameter, shown as 22 mg. (19). spread out tor roadside customers. Mr. Fong makes no pro vision for long storage. He says these will be all sold The two cucurbits differ mainly in the total within two months. absence of vitamin A in the wax gourd and the .Photo by Julia Morton. higher calorie count of the chayote. Sethi and Aggarwal report that the seed ker bamboo shoots, chopped duck or pork, with a little nels yield 44.3% of a clear, pale-yellow oil: specific cornstarch, pepper and ginger, and steamed for gravity @ 30°/30°, 0.9196; refractive index @ an hour (13). 25°C, 1.4739; viscosity @ 30°C. (c.s.), 46.67; Mature gourds of fairly large size are favored acid val., 3.4; sap. val., 189.1; sap. equiv., 296.6; by the Chinese as "soup pots". The stem-end is iodine val. (Wij's), 125.0; acetyl val., 14.9; thio- carefully cut to serve as a lid, the center cleaned cyanogen val., 87.2; hexabromide val., nil; Hehner out and the gourd is filled with a mixture of diced val., 94.65; soluble fatty acids, 0.2%; saturated chicken, also pork and ham which have been pre- acids (modified Bertram method), 16.95%; un- soaked in boiling water; bamboo shoots; and re- saponifiable matter, 1.47%. Fatty acids are: lino- hydrated black mushrooms and dried shrimp with lenic, 1.02; linoleic, 62.36; oleic, 20.03; palmitic, the water they have been soaked in; plus chicken 10.56; stearic, 5.76; arachidic, 0.27% (29). broth, salt to taste, and water to fill within one inch of the top. The filled gourd is then steamed 3 to 6 hours till the flesh is soft, and is brought to Food Uses the table (18). As the soup is served, some of the flesh is scooped from the inside of the gourd and The fruit is in great demand in Chinese, Jap added to each soup portion. The artistic cook may anese and Indonesian communities and has also carve elaborate or dragon designs in the been adopted by other national groups, such as the rind of the gourd, remove the top entirely and Cuban people who utilized it in their homeland scallop or flute the rim.* (26) and are now among the wax gourd consumers in the United States. To make soup of the wax gourd itself, the Chinese scrape the skin from young fruits and Young wax gourds (zit-kwa) are preferred for cut the flesh into domino-size pieces. Meanwhile, cooking as vegetables, and are simply peeled, cut cubed pork, with cornstarch, pepper and soy sauce, into pieces, boiled alone or with meat and served has been fried in peanut oil seasoned with garlic seasoned with salt and pepper, and butter, if de and salt. Water is added and, after 15 minutes of sired. In this fashion, the cooked fruit most closely boiling, the wax gourd pieces are put in and cook resembles cooked chayote (Sechium edule). ing continues until they are tender (13). In India, the young fruits are widely used in Eaw, the wax gourd can be sliced thin or (2). Chinese cooks prepare thick slabs of chopped and used in salads as a substitute for cu the raw fruit, slit them, insert thin slices of ham cumber. The French in Indochina preferred it as and then boil in salted water till tender. Small fruits may be peeled, their seeds scooped out, the hollow stuffed with lotus seeds, mushrooms, cubed *Sce color illustrations, pp. 66-7, in "The Cooking of China", by Emily Hahn. Time-Life Books, N.Y. 1968. 108 FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, 1971 more digestible than the and used it promote the preserving of wax gourd in that frequently (23). Individuals on bland diets and country (10). those who prefer to consume uncooked foods, have Because of its smooth texture and very mild found that the raw flesh can be liquefied in a flavor, the cooked wax gourd can be utilized to blendor and drunk as a vegetable juice, either alone modify or "stretch" any strong-flavored vegetable or combined with others of stronger flavor. or fruit such as the turnip, cranberry or rhubarb. Dr. L. H. Bailey wrote: "I have been unable Weight-watchers may find this low-calorie fruit- to relish the fruit when uncooked, but made into vegetable pleasing as a stomach-filler to help them preserves or sweet pickles it is one of the best of resist more fattening foods. Gourmets may de all subjects for the purpose, and it is worth velop recipes for preparing sour, spiced or peppery- general cultivation for such culinary use" (6). hot pickles from this versatile material. A sweetmeat, or "dulce", can be simply made The young shoots of the vine and the flower by cutting the flesh of ripe fruits into finger-size buds are used as vegetables in Indonesian dishes pieces, soaking them in water for 48 hours, then (22) and some Chinese gardeners in Florida cook boiling in sugar sirup until all the liquid is gone. the tender vine tips as greens. The seedlings dis Or they may be boiled in limewater, rinsed, dried, carded when thinning out the young plants are and then boiled repeatedly in sugar sirup until also cooked and eaten by some people. dry (22). This sweetmeat has been prepared com mercially in Cuba and is being made and sold Medicinal Uses among Cuban residents in Miami at the present In China, the flesh of the wax gourd is con time. sidered diuretic and demulcent; also thirst-quench A more elaborate method is employed in larger- ing and cooling for fever patients (31). A sirup scale manufacture in India. First, the peeled slices made from the fresh fruit is prescribed for respira of flesh are soaked for % hour in 1 part of lime- tory afflictions in the Philippines (8). In India, water to 3 parts of water, then they are pricked the fruit is declared to be "laxative, diuretic, tonic, with steel needles or forks and cut into small aphrodisiac, antiperiodic, specific for haemoptysis chunks which are left in limewater overnight. The and other hemorrhages from internal organs" (12). next day, they are boiled till tender in a 2-3% The fruit juice is administered (with or without alum solution and then rinsed in cold, running licorice) in cases of insanity, epilepsy and other water. To retain a pure white color, a small nervous diseases and valued as an antidote for amount of sodium sulphite is added while cooking. mercurial and alcoholic poisoning. The sweet pre Then the chunks are layered with half their serve is eaten with benefit by dyspeptics and vic weight of sugar and kept for 24 hours. To the tims of hemorrhoids (24). The raw flesh is said sirup which forms, more sugar is added, plus 1 oz. to relieve prickly heat if rubbed on directly or of citric or tartaric acid for each 100 lbs of sugar. added to one's bath water. It is a remedy also for The fruit chunks are boiled in this sirup for 10 facial eruptions (31). An ash made of the fruit is minutes and then left to stand in it for 24 hours. applied to painful wounds (9). Thereafter, the strength of the sirup is increased The seeds and seed oil are vermifugal and by 5° every other day until it reaches 70° Brix. taken to expel tapeworms. The seeds are fried and After holding for 4 to 6 weeks, the product may the kernels eaten by the Chinese for their reputed be used as a sweet preserve or may be candied by therapeutic value rather than as food. They are bringing to a boil, draining the sirup off, rolling regarded as demulcent and tonic, and habitual the pieces in powdered sugar and drying at room consumption is said to prevent hunger and prolong temperature (20). life. The seed kernels are applied to skin eruptions Experimentally, the preparation of the pre and the ash of burned seeds has been a prized serve has been greatly shortened by the use of remedy for gonorrhea (31). An infusion of the equipment providing a hot continuous concentra is also taken for the latter malady. tion process, after the sliced flesh has been pricked, The leaves have a purgative action and bruises soaked in 1% solution of calcium chloride for 1 are treated with the juice, or a poultice of hour, rinsed and cooked in boiling water till tender the foliage (9). and then left overnight layered with half its weight of white sugar (25). The finished product Other Uses resembles the confection, "Turkish delight". The Ministry of Agriculture in Iraq is endeavoring to The wax, which is reportedly thicker in Iraq MORTON: THE WAX GOURD 109

than in India (10), is easily recovered from the skin and has been made into candles (32). Accord ing to Gimlette, it has been used as a vehicle for poison in Malayan homicide (9).

Acknowledgement

The kind cooperation of Cyril Feng, Acquisi tions Librarian, Univ. of Miami School of Medicine, in guiding me to Chinese vegetable farms and otherwise, is hereby gratefully acknowledged.

REFERENCES

1. Agnihotri, B. N. Petha — Its Cultivation and Eco nomic Uses. I. Indian Food Packer 2 (2):9-10; Feb. 1948. II. Indian Food Packer 2 (12) : 17-18, Dec. 1948. 2. Anon., Wealth of India: Raw Materials. Vol. 1. Coun. of Sci. & Indus. Res., New Delhi. 1948. 3. Backer, C. A. and R. C. Bakhuizen van den Brink, Jr. Flora of Java. Vol. 1. N. V. P. Noordhoff, Groningen, Netherlands. 1963. 4. Bailey, F. M. The Queensland Flora, Pt. II. Queens land Gov't., Brisbane, Aust. 1900. 5. Bailey, L. H. Principles of Vegetable Gardening. 18th ed. The Macmillan Co., N.Y. 1931. 6. Bailey, L. H. Some Recent Chinese Vegetables. Bui. 67. Cornell Univ., Agr. Exp. Sta., Ithaca, N.Y. 1894. 7. Bailey, L. H. Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. Vol. 1. The Macmillan Co., N.Y. 1947. 8. Brown, W. E. Useful Plants of the Philippines. Vol. 3 (Tech. Bui. 10), Phil. Dept. of Agr. & Commerce, Manila. 1946. 9. Burkill, I. H. Dictionary of the Economic Products of the Malay Peninsula. Vol. 1. Crown Agents for the Colonies, London. 1935. 10. Chakravarty, H. L. Monograph on the of Iraq. Ministry of Agr., Baghdad. 1966. 11. Chittenden, F. J. (Editor). The Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. Vol. 1. 2nd ed. Oxford Univ. Press, London. 1956. 12. Chopra, R. N., et al. Chopra's Indigenous Drugs of India, 2nd ed. U. N. Dhur & Sons Private, Ltd., Calcutta. 1958. 13. Chung, H. L. and J. C. Ripperton. Utilization and Composition of Oriental Vegetables in Hawaii. Bui. 60. Hawaii Agr. Exp. Sta., Honolulu. 1929. 14. deCandolle, A. Origin of Cultivated Plants. Kegan Paul, Trench & Co., London. 1884. 15. Firminger, T. A. Firminger's Manual of Gardening for India. 8th ed. Thacker, Spink &