Comparative Performance of Various Bottle Gourd [lagenaria Siceraria (molina) Standl.] Genotypes

Bottlegourd [Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) Standl.] (2n=2x=22) belongs to family Cucurbitaceae and is one of the most ancient crop cultivated during summer throughout the world. The genus Lagenaria is derived from the word lagena, meaning the bottle. It is also known as Calabash, Doodhi and Lauki in different parts of India (Deore et al., 2009). Its primary centre of origin is Africa (Singh, 1990). The fossil records indicate its culture in India even before 2000 B.C. It has been found wild in India, the Moluccas and Ethiopia. In India the total area under its cultivation is 185 thousand hectares with an annual production of 3072 thousand MT (NHB, 2018).