calabash

The calabash (Lagenaria siceraria, not to be confused with a Calabasa) is a vine-based plant that produces a fruit that resembles either a bottle, utencil, or pipe. For this reason, one of the calabash subspecies is known as the bottle gourd. The fruit has a light green smooth skin and a white flesh. The calabash was one of the first cultivated plants in the Americas, grown not for food but as a container. The calabash is frequently used in southern Chinese cuisine as either a stir-fry or in a soup. The Chinese name for calabash is hl (Chinese:葫蘆) or hzi (葫子). Calabash is also a city in North Carolina. Calabash - used for flotation, and to store fish in Nigeria; especially during huge Fish Festival. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/picture_gallery/05/africa_fishing_festival/html/1.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/picture_gallery/05/africa_fishing_festival/html/7.stm

Calabash

See also