in taxon squash, gourd or pumpkin plant fuzzy melon plant PLANTS:BEHI3 The winter melon, also called ash gourd, white gourd, wax gourd, winter gourd, tallow gourd, ash pumpkin, and Chinese preserving melon is a vine grown for its very large fruit, eaten as a vegetable when mature. It is the only member of the genus *Benincasa*. The fruit is fuzzy when young. The immature melon has thick white flesh that is sweet when eaten. By maturity, the fruit loses its hairs and develops a waxy coating, giving rise to the name wax gourd, and providing a long shelf life.[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winter_melon] wax gourd ash gourd benincasa hispida var. winter melon chinese vegetable marrow hairy melon mogwa tallow gourd waxgourd winter melon Benincasa hispida requires discussion