Vegetable sponge

Description

The fruit, about 30 cm (12 in) long, resembles a cucumber in shape and size. Because of its striking yellow flowers, Luffa cylindrica is sometimes grown as an ornamental plant. It needs plenty of heat and water to thrive. The young fruit is eaten as a vegetable and is commonly cultivated for this purpose in tropical Asia. Unlike the young fruits, the fully mature fruits are highly fibrous and inedible, and are used to make scouring bath sponges. Because of its use as a scouring sponge, it is also known by the common names dish gourd, rag gourd, sponge gourd, and vegetable sponge. It is also called smooth luffa to distinguish it from ridged luffa (Luffa acutangula), which is used for the same purpose.