''Cucurbita pepo'' is a cultivated plant of the genus ''

Cucurbita is a genus of herbaceous fruits in the gourd family, Cucurbitaceae (also known as ''cucurbits'' or ''cucurbi''), native to the Andes and Mesoamerica. Five edible species are grown and consumed for their flesh and seeds. They are variously know ...

''. It yields varieties of

winter squash Winter squash is an annual fruit representing several squash species within the genus '' Cucurbita''. Late-growing, less symmetrical, odd-shaped, rough or warty varieties, small to medium in size, but with long-keeping qualities and hard rinds, ...

and

pumpkin A pumpkin is a cultivar, cultivated winter squash in the genus ''Cucurbita''. The term is most commonly applied to round, orange-colored squash varieties, but does not possess a scientific definition. It may be used in reference to many dif ...

, but the most widespread varieties belong to the

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

''Cucurbita pepo'' subsp. ''pepo'', called summer squash. It has been domesticated in the Americas for thousands of years. Some authors maintain that ''C. pepo'' is derived from '' C. texana'', while others suggest that ''C. texana'' is merely

feral A feral (; ) animal or plant is one that lives in the wild but is descended from domesticated individuals. As with an introduced species, the introduction of feral animals or plants to non-native regions may disrupt ecosystems and has, in som ...

''C. pepo''. They have a wide variety of uses, especially as a food source. ''C. pepo'' seems more closely related to '' C. fraterna'', though disagreements exist about the exact nature of that connection, too. It is a host species for the melonworm moth, the squash vine borer, and the pickleworm. They are also the preferred pollen source for squash bees, which are the primary pollinators.

Description

Due to their varied genetic background, members of ''C. pepo'' vary widely in appearance, primarily in regards to their fruits. The plants are typically high and wide, with yellow flowers. Within ''C. pepo'', the

scallops Scallop () is a common name that encompasses various species of marine bivalve molluscs in the taxonomic family Pectinidae, the scallops. However, the common name "scallop" is also sometimes applied to species in other closely related famili ...

, and possibly crooknecks are ancient and were

domesticated Domestication is a multi-generational mutualistic relationship in which an animal species, such as humans or leafcutter ants, takes over control and care of another species, such as sheep or fungi, to obtain from them a steady supply of reso ...

separately. The domesticated species have larger fruits and larger yet fewer seeds. Parthenocarpy is known to occur in certain cultivars of ''C. pepo''. The

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

have three to five lobes and are wide. All the

varieties Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

, and

cultivar A cultivar is a kind of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and which retains those traits when Plant propagation, propagated. Methods used to propagate cultivars include division, root a ...

s are

conspecific Biological specificity is the tendency of a characteristic such as a behavior or a biochemical variation to occur in a particular species. Biochemist Linus Pauling stated that "Biological specificity is the set of characteristics of living organism ...

and interfertile.

Taxonomy

Origin and history

''C. pepo'' is one of the oldest, if not the oldest domesticated species. The oldest known locations are in southern Mexico in

Oaxaca Oaxaca, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca, is one of the 32 states that compose the political divisions of Mexico, Federative Entities of the Mexico, United Mexican States. It is divided into municipalities of Oaxaca, 570 munici ...

8,000–10,000 years ago and Ocampo, Tamaulipas, Mexico about 7,000 years ago. Before the arrival of Europeans, ''C. pepo'', along with ''C. moschata'', had been carried over all parts of North America where they could be grown.Victor E. Boswell and Else Bostelmann. "Our Vegetable Travelers." ''The National Geographic Magazine''. 96.2: August 1949. The ancient territory of ''C. pepo'' extended north into

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

and up the Greater Mississippi River Valley into

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

and east to Florida, and possibly even to Maine. It is one of several plants cultivated in

prehistoric Prehistory, also called pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the first known use of stone tools by hominins million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use o ...

North America as part of the

Eastern Agricultural Complex The Eastern Agricultural Complex in the woodlands of eastern North America was one of about 10 independent centers of plant domestication in the pre-historic world. Incipient agriculture dates back to about 5300 BCE. By about 1800 BCE the Native ...

. It is known to have appeared in

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

at least 4,000 years ago. Some varieties grow in arid regions and some in moist regions. Many of these peoples, particularly in the west, still grow a diversity of hardy squashes and pumpkins not to be found in commercial markets. Still, neither ''C. pepo'' nor ''C. moschata'' had been carried into South America as had beans, which originated in the same general region. Debates about the origin of ''C. pepo'' have been going on since at least 1857. Recent biosystematic investigations indicate two distinct domestication events in two different areas: one in Mexico and one in the eastern United States, with ''C. pepo subsp. fraterna'' and ''C. pepo subsp. texana'', respectively, as the predominant ancestral species from a phylogenetic perspective.

Subdivision

The morphological differences within the species ''C. pepo'' are so vast that its various subspecies and cultivars have been misidentified as totally separate species. These vast differences are rooted in its widespread geographic distribution. Several taxa have been proposed, but as of 2012 none has been universally accepted. In 2002, the taxa conventions proposed by Decker-Walters were: *''C. pepo'' subsp. ''pepo'' - cultivated pumpkins, marrows, the orange

gourd Gourds include the fruits of some flowering plant species in the family Cucurbitaceae, particularly '' Cucurbita'' and '' Lagenaria''. The term refers to a number of species and subspecies, many with hard shells, and some without. Many gourds ha ...

s ("Orange Ball" and "Orange Warted") *''C. pepo'' subsp. ''ovifera'' var. ''ovifera'' – cultivated crooknecks, scallops, acorns, most ornamental gourds *''C. pepo'' subsp. ''ovifera'' var. ''ozarkana'' – wild populations in the Greater Mississippi Valley and Ozark Plateau *''C. pepo'' subsp. ''ovifera'' var. ''texana'' – wild populations in Texas *''C. pepo'' subsp. ''fraterna'' – wild populations in northeastern Mexico A 2003 study recognized three subspecies: *''Cucurbita pepo'' subsp. ''fraterna'' *''Cucurbita pepo'' subsp. ''pepo'' *''Cucurbita pepo'' subsp. ''texana'' In 1986, botanist Paris proposed a taxonomy of ''C. pepo'' consisting of eight edible groups based on their basic shape. All but a few ''C. pepo'' cultivars can be included in these groups. These eight edible cultivated varieties of ''C. pepo'' vary widely in shape and color, and one inedible cultivated variety: Random amplified polymorphic DNA has proven useful in sorting out the relationships of the ''C. pepo'' species, varieties, and cultivars, showing that few, if any, modern cultivars have their origins with ''C. texana''. They are associated with ''C. fraterna'' or a still-unknown ancestral specimen in southern Mexico. It has been proposed that the domesticated forms of ''C. pepo'' are a

compilospecies A compilospecies is a genetically aggressive species which acquires the heredities of a closely related Sympatry, sympatric species by means of hybridisation (biology), hybridisation and comprehensive introgression. The target species may be incorpo ...

of ''C. pepo subsp. fraterna'' and ''C. pepo subsp. texana''. A 1989 study on the origins and development of ''C. pepo'' suggested that the original wild specimen was a small round fruit and that the modern pumpkin is its direct descendant. This investigation proposed that the crookneck, ornamental gourd, and scallop are early variants, and that the

acorn The acorn is the nut (fruit), nut of the oaks and their close relatives (genera ''Quercus'', ''Notholithocarpus'' and ''Lithocarpus'', in the family Fagaceae). It usually contains a seedling surrounded by two cotyledons (seedling leaves), en ...

is a cross between the scallop and pumpkin. Based on genetic

allele An allele is a variant of the sequence of nucleotides at a particular location, or Locus (genetics), locus, on a DNA molecule. Alleles can differ at a single position through Single-nucleotide polymorphism, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP), ...

analysis, two distinct groups occur within domesticated ''C. pepo'': pumpkin,

calabaza Calabaza is the generic name in the Spanish language for any type of winter squash. Within an English-language context it specifically refers to the West Indian pumpkin, a winter squash typically grown in the West Indies, tropical America, and t ...

, criolla, and marrow squash are in one; and ornamental gourds, crookneck, acorn, scallop, and a few others in the second one. ''C. pepo subsp. fraterna'' is genetically closer to the first group and ''C. pepo subsp. texana'' is genetically closer to the second group.

Subspecies ''fraterna''

This subspecies was formerly considered a separate species called ''C. fraterna'' by some authorities, but modern biosystematics has placed it as a subspecies of ''C. pepo''. The

isozyme In biochemistry, isozymes (also known as isoenzymes or more generally as multiple forms of enzymes) are enzymes that differ in amino acid sequence but catalyze the same chemical reaction. Isozymes usually have different kinetic parameters (e.g. di ...

s are similar between ''Cucurbita pepo subsp. pepo'', and all studied ''C. fraterna'' alleles are also found in ''C. pepo subsp. pepo''. It is native to

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas, is a state in Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into 43 municipalities. It is located in nor ...

and

Nuevo León Nuevo León, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Nuevo León, is a Administrative divisions of Mexico, state in northeastern Mexico. The state borders the Mexican states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, Zacatecas, and San Luis Potosí, San Luis ...

, Mexico. This subspecies has not been domesticated. It is considered to be the progenitor and nearest relative of the domesticated subspecies ''C. pepo subsp. pepo'' which is found in the same areas as ''C. pepo subsp. fraterna''. It was first formally described by

Liberty Hyde Bailey Liberty Hyde Bailey (March 15, 1858 – December 25, 1954) was an American Horticulture, horticulturist and reformer of rural life. He was cofounder of the American Society for Horticultural Science.Makers of American Botany, Harry Baker Humphrey ...

in 1943, in ''Gentes Herbarum''. Unlike most wild ''Cucurbita'', some specimens of ''C. fraterna'' have been found without bitter fruit. Its usual habitat is dry upland scrub areas. It blooms in September and fruits ripen in December. Cucurbita texana 7

Subspecies ''texana''

This subspecies was formerly considered a separate species ''C. texana'' by some authorities before being reclassified as a subspecies of ''C. pepo''. A common name is Texas gourd. This subspecies is mesophytic and native to

, primarily the southeastern region where it can be found in or near sandy riverbeds. It is found only in the wild. It is possibly a progenitor and close relative of the domesticated subspecies ''Cucurbita pepo subsp. ovifera'', though they are native to different areas. The ''fraterna'' subspecies is also closely related. It was first collected 1835 by J. L. Berlandier in southern Texas. It was formally described as ''Tristemon texanus'' by George Heinrich Adolf Scheele in 1848 and transferred to the genus ''Cucurbita'' by

Asa Gray Asa Gray (November 18, 1810 – January 30, 1888) is considered the most important American botany, botanist of the 19th century. His ''Darwiniana'' (1876) was considered an important explanation of how religion and science were not necessaril ...

in 1850.

Distribution and habitat

The species is found from sea level to slightly above .

Uses

Fresh squash is cut into spiral strips, folded into hanks and hung up to dry for winter use. The blossoms are cooked in grease and used as a delicacy in combination with other foods. Fresh squash, either whole or in pieces, is roasted in ashes and used for food. In the Zuni culture, the gourds are made into cups, ladles, and dippers and put to various uses.Stevenson, Matilda Coxe, 1915, Ethnobotany of the Zuni Indians. SI-BAE Annual Report #30 The gourds are also worn in

phallic A phallus (: phalli or phalluses) is a penis (especially when erect), an object that resembles a penis, or a mimetic image of an erect penis. In art history, a figure with an erect penis is described as ''ithyphallic''. Any object that symbo ...

dances by the Zuni symbolizing fructification or made into ceremonial rattles, made into receptacles for storing precious articles, and a

poultice A poultice or cataplasm, also called a fomentation, is a soft moist mass, often heated and medicated, that is applied to the skin to reduce inflammation, soothe pain, promote healing, or otherwise treat wounds or ailments. Soft materials like cer ...

of seeds and blossoms is used for treating cactus scratches.

Gallery

File:Winter Squash Cucurbita pepo 2000px.jpg, 'Delicata' squash File:PetitPanSquash.jpg, Pattypan squash File:Pumpkins.jpg, Connecticut Field variety File:Spaghetti Squash 700.jpg, Spaghetti squash File:Cucurbita pepo styrian Hull-less group - oil pumpkin compose.jpg, ''C. pepo'' var. ''styriaca'' File:Cucurbita_pepo_Zucchini_flower_and_plant.jpg, Female flower of zucchini File:Cucurbita_pepo-2.JPG , Two male flowers File:Baby_zucchini.jpg, Female zucchini flower near the time of fertilization File:Wild_Cucurbita_pepo_ozarkana.jpg, Wild ''C. pepo'' subsp. ''ovifera'' var. ''ozarkana'' File:Cucurbita pepo accidental hybrid Acchini.jpg, Accidental hybrid of two varieties of ''C. pepo'' File:Fiori di zucca per preparazioni culinarie.jpg, Flowers of zucchini

References

External links

Kew plant profile: ''Cucurbita pepo'' (pumpkin)
{{Authority control pepo Plants used in traditional Native American medicine Crops originating from Pre-Columbian North America Crops originating from Mexico Squashes and pumpkins Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus