توضیحات
Crescentia alata, variously called Mexican calabash, jícaro, morro, morrito, or winged calabash, is a plant species in the family Bignoniaceae and in the genus Crescentia, native to southern Mexico and Central America south to Costa Rica
It is a small tree growing to 8 m tall. It has hard, cannonball-like fruit 7–10 cm diameter, that are difficult to break into. It is believed that these fruit characteristics evolved as a defense mechanism against seed predation by long-dead megafauna of the region. However, now it seems to be a counter-productive strategy (an evolutionary anachronism), as the seeds inside the fruits cannot germinate unless the shells are broken open, and with the exception of horses and humans, no animals currently living in its native range can break open the fruits. 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).
It is also cultivated for its gourd-like fruits, which may be hollowed and dried and used as containers for food and drink. In Central America, dried and painted gourd – like fruits are used by local people for making artisanal handicrafts such as piggy banks and ornaments. 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
کالاباش مکزیکی درختی از خانواده پیچ اناریان است.
بر خلاف درخت کالاباش معمولی Crescentia cujete که میوه های گرد کروی دارد، کالاباش مکزیکی میوه هایی بیضی و کشیده دارد
پوسته چوبی میوه های این درخت به عنوان ظرف در آمریکای مرکزی استفاده میشود
همچنین دانه ها خوراکی هستند و طعمی شیرین شبیه طعم شیرین بیان دارد
