Family characters of Cucurbitaceae

1. CUCURBITACAEAE

2. COMMON MEMBERS
citrullus lanatus cucumis sativus

3. luffa lagenaria siceraria

4. General characters
◦ Cucurbitaceae have largely worldwide distributions, but occur mostly in tropical regions.
◦ Cucurbitaceae are distinctive in being mostly monoecious or dioecious vines with simple,
palmately veined and/ or lobed leaves, usually with tendrils,
◦ the female flowers epiperigynous,
◦ parietal placentation and three carpels,
◦ fruit a berry, pepo, capsule, or samara.

5. ◦ Cucurbitaceae consist of monoecious or dioecious [rarely hermaphroditic] vines [rarely tree-like],
usually with one tendril per node.
◦ leaves are simple, palmately veined and often palmately lobed, spiral, and exstipulate.
◦ inflorescence is axillary, variable in type or with flowers solitary.
◦ flowers are usually unisexual, actinomorphic, the female flowers epiperigynous. The perianth is
biseriate and dichlamydeous, with hypanthium present.
◦ calyx is aposepalous with 5 [3 6] imbricate sepals.
◦ corolla is apopetalous with 5 [3 6] valvate petals.
◦ stamens are 3 5, alternipetalous, distinct or connate. Anthers are longitudinal in dehiscence, dithecal
or monothecal.
◦ gynoecium is syncarpous, with an inferior ovary, 3 [1 5] carpels, and 1 locule [locules rarely as many
as carpels]. The styles are 1 3; stigmas are 1 2.

6. ◦ Placentation is parietal, rarely axile;
◦ ovules are anatropous, bitegmic, generally ∞ [rarely 1 fe w].
◦ Extrafloral nectaries are often present. The fruit is a berry, pepo, capsule, or samara.
◦ seeds are exalbuminous.

7. Economic importance
◦ food crops such as Citrullus lanatus (watermelon), Cucumis melo (melons), Cucumis sativa
(cucumber), Cucurbita pepo and other spp.
◦ (squashes, pumpkins) and a number of other taxa; the dried fruits of several species are used as
gourds,
◦ Luffa (luffa) are used as a sponge;
◦ some taxa have medicinal or horticultural uses.