Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses

BUFFALO GOURD

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Cucurbita foetidissima Kunth

Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas

Perennial

Height: Prostrate

Family: Cucurbitaceae - Cucumber Family

Flowering Period: June, July, August

Also Called:

Wild gourd, fetid wild pumpkin.

Stems:

Trailing, radiating 5-25 feet from large taproot, stout, rough, forming large leafy mats.

Leaves:

Foul-smelling when crushed, alternate, simple, long-stalked, triangular-ovate, 4-12 inches long, 2-8 inches wide, slightly 3-5 lobed, thick, rough, grayish green; margins irregularly toothed; tips pointed.

Inflorescences:

Solitary flowers in leaf axils.

Flowers:

Large, showy; male and female flowers produced separately on same plant, staminate flowers on stalks 1-2 inches long, pistillate flowers sessile; calyces 5-parted; corollas bell-shaped, 5-lobed to about middle, 2-5 inches long, to 4 inches wide, yellow to orange; stamens 5, anthers united.

Fruits:

Gourds, spherical, 2-4 inches in diameter, green with lighter stripes, glabrous; seeds flattened, smooth, straw-colored.

Habitat:

Dry, disturbed areas, waste places, roadsides, and fence lines, commonly in sandy or gravelly soils.

Distribution:

Throughout Kansas.

Uses:

Native Americans attributed mystical and medicinal powers to the root. Special care was taken when unearthing the root, for it was believed that an injury to the root would lead to injury of oneself or one's family members. The gourds were sometimes made into ceremonial and children's rattles.

Comments:

The carrot-like taproot of buffalo gourd grows to enormous proportions. It can reach 4-6 feet long and weigh more than 100 pounds.

Buffalo gourd