Crescentia alata
Crescentia alata | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Lamiales |
Family: | Bignoniaceae |
Genus: | Crescentia |
Species: | C. alata
|
Binomial name | |
Crescentia alata Kunth | |
Crescentia alata, variously called Mexican calabash, jícaro, morro, morrito, or winged calabash,[1] is a plant species in the family Bignoniaceae and in the genus Crescentia, native to southern Mexico and Central America south to Costa Rica.
Description
It is a small
It has been observed that domestic horses may smash the fruit with their hooves and eat the pulp and seeds (suggesting that they may serve as seed distribution vectors).
Historical usage
The fruit plays a role in the
The seeds are edible and high in protein with a licorice-like sweet taste, used in Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua to make a kind of horchata called semilla de jícaro.[3]
References
- ^ Crescentia Alata Archived 2009-05-06 at the Wayback Machine, Stephen H Brown, Factsheet, Lee County Extension Gardening Publications, University of Florida
- PMID 17790450. Retrieved 5 July 2012.
- ISBN 3-540-40593-3, Google Books