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Cyclanthera pedata

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Cyclanthera pedata, known as caigua, is a herbaceous vine grown for its edible fruit, which is predominantly used as a vegetable. It is known from cultivation only, and its use goes back many centuries as evidenced by ancient phytomorphic ceramics from Peru depicting the fruits.

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Not known in the wild, but presumably native to the Andes where it has been traditionally cultivated.[2]

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Cyclanthera pedata is a vine that can be 12 m long; the stems are thin; and the leaves can be up to 24 cm long, palmate or pedate in shape.[2] The small flowers can be greenish or white and are borne in racemes.[2] The fruit is light green, ovoid, curved, up to 15 cm long, almost hollow (except for the seeds and a thin flesh layer), with smooth skin or sometimes covered in soft spines; the seeds are black.[2][3]

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