Family of pumpkin. Ancient representatives of the family of pumpkin

Pumpkin is represented by annual or perennial, creeping or curling grasses, less often bushes. The family of pumpkin includes about 900 species. The most common include: cucumber, pumpkin, zucchini, melon and watermelon.

Every plant of the pumpkin family loves light very much, therefore it can only grow in an open, sunny place. In addition, they are very thermophilic, therefore, a temperate climate can negate all attempts to grow some crops, for example, watermelon and melon.

Structure

Escape from a pumpkin plant usually creeping or climbing with antennae, which is a modified lateral stem. The sheet is simple, regular, to various degrees dissected. Flowers can be actinomorphic, same-sex, single or collected in the axillary inflorescence. The perianth and the base of the stamens usually look like a tube fused with the ovary. Corolla can be schistoseptive, five-lobed, often yellow. The number of stamens is 5, sometimes 2. The pestle contains 3, and sometimes 5 carpels. The ovary is the lower, and the fruit is represented by the squash.

The oldest members of the family

Ancient man probably collected wild plants, such as beans and peas, or root vegetables-for example, carrots. It is generally believed that these vegetables, as well as lettuce and cabbage, were grown in their gardens by primitive people. For the latter are characterized by developed and delicious leaves.

Ancient Egyptians preferred various kinds of lettuce, cabbage, beans, watermelons, radish, onions and artichokes. That is, even thousands of years ago, a person's dining table boasted a good set of vegetables.

The ancient Romans and Greeks cultivated the same vegetables as the Egyptians, but at the same time replenished the list with cucumbers, asparagus and celery.

In general, the most ancient representatives of the pumpkin family are cucumbers and watermelons.

The most popular representatives of the family

The family of pumpkin are:

• Cucumbers - the most common vegetable on the globe . The main positive point is the fact that cucumbers can be grown all year round - in winter-spring time in heated greenhouses, in spring and summer - in ordinary greenhouses, hotbeds and small-sized film shelters, and in summer-autumn - in open ground. Cucumbers - ancient representatives of the family of pumpkin - are annual herbaceous plants and the most heat-consuming vegetable crops. Normal growth can ensure a temperature of at least 25-27 degrees, otherwise the plant ceases to develop.

• Pumpkin is an annual plant with male and female solitary flowers. The fetus grows large and multi-seeded. On the penta stem are 5-7 lobed leaves. Some varieties can bear fruit weighing up to 90 kg. The bush type of a pumpkin is called a tavern. The country of origin is Mexico, the pumpkin came to Europe in the 16th century.

Melons and Watermelons

Melons and watermelons are melons and melons, especially demanding for air and ground temperatures.

Melon is an annual plant that belongs to the pumpkin family. Flowers are often same-sex, rarely bisexual. A male flower is usually collected in a bundle, and a female one is single and very large. The fruit turns out fragrant, juicy.

Watermelon is a plant characterized by recumbent fences, deeply pinnat-dissected leaves and a set of three-parted antennae. The flesh of the fruit is blood-red and sweet. Juice contains up to 5% sugar. The native land of watermelon is Africa, where representatives of wild watermelon-coloccint grow, for which a small fruit (not more than walnut) and hard flesh are characteristic.

Pumpkin

Pumpkin, of course, is part of the pumpkin family. Which plants are fodder plants, and which ones can be placed on a table? For the first is characterized by a huge size and weight, and the second meets a completely different requirements - a small amount, good taste and a high content of nutrients and medicinal substances.

Pumpkin is a very ancient culture that grew on the territory of America 3 thousand years ago. After the New World was opened, the plant was brought to Europe. Currently, many southern regions believe that this is a primordially Russian culture.

The nutritional value

The family of pumpkin is rich in sugar, carotene, various vitamins, namely B1, B2, B6, C, E, PP, T. The latter greatly speeds up the process of digestion, and facilitates the assimilation of meat and other heavy products.

Pumpkin contains salts of such substances as phosphoric acid, potassium, magnesium, and if you take into account the amount of iron, it can be called a champion among vegetables. In addition, it has a lot of potassium and pectin, which block the occurrence of inflammation in the large intestine.

Knowledgeable people assure that pumpkin porridge, often used for food, has a wonderful therapeutic effect against hypertension, obesity and metabolic disorders. And insomnia can be cured with pumpkin juice or a decoction of pumpkin with honey.

Seeds of this miracle vegetable are an absolutely safe anthelmintic.

About the types of pumpkin

Large-fruited pumpkin is the coldest, but much later ripens than hard-core. The stalk of the plant has a cylindrical shape. The fruit is characterized by such indicators as large size, long-term preservation, high taste qualities and a large number of seeds.

The solid pumpkin is not afraid of sudden temperature fluctuations. The stem is faceted, grooved. For the fetus are characterized by: small size, a woody crust and a prickly awlous lowering.

Muscat pumpkin is considered to be the most thermophilic and late-ripening, often long-leafed, without a cluster form. The stem is represented in a rounded form. The fruit is small or medium, has an elongated shape and is narrowed in the middle. The flesh has an orange color and a nutmeg aroma.

In addition, among the vegetable growers-lovers are very popular: dining room, fodder, gymnosperm, decorative and crockery pumpkin. Their biological characteristics are not very different from those described above.

The healing properties of pumpkin

The pumpkin family includes an indisputably useful representative - a pumpkin. It contains a huge amount of vitamins and minerals, very useful for human health.

Useful influence of pumpkin:

• Ensuring normal operation of the gastrointestinal tract;
• Getting rid of such troubles as constipation and parasites;
• Normalization of metabolic processes;
• Diuretic action;
• Elimination of toxins;
• Decrease in the amount of cholesterol in the blood;
• Removal of pain in acute cystitis and urethritis;
• Weight normalization;
• Healing of headaches, insomnia and even nervous disorders.

In addition, this vegetable is very much appreciated in the field of beauty. So, with the help of a pumpkin mask you can smooth the skin and make up vitamin reserve, cure acne and various kinds of eczema.