Jhingaka, an Indian Medicinal Plant is a large annual climber. The scientific name of Jhingaka is Luffa acutangula. Jhingaka is commonly cultivated throughout India in gardens for its fruits as these are edible. This Indian medicinal plant is considered to be indigenous to the subcontinent and is found wildly in northwest India, Bihar, West Bengal, Sikkim and Assam, and in Tamil Nadu.
The Indian medicinal plant, Jhingaka, is known by several names in various parts of India. In Bengali it is known as Jhinga, Sataputi; in English as ridged or Ribbed Gourd; in Gujarati as Ghisoda; in Hindi as Jhimani, Jhinga Tori, Kali Tori; in Kannada as Heere Balli, Kirekayi; in Konkani as Gonsali, Sir-Gonsolim, Sirgousali; in Malayalam as Djinji, Piccinna, Pichenga, Puichenggah; in Marathi as Dodali, Sataputi, Shirola; in Oriya as Janhi; Tamil: Pekankai, Pikunkai, Pirkankai; in Telugu as Birakaya, Burkai and in Urdu as Torai.
The flowering of Jhingaka occurs mainly in July and August and fruits mature in September and October. The slender 5-angled stems vegetable, Jhingaka is endowed with multiple medicinal properties and uses. In Ayurveda the fruit and leaves of this Indian medicinal plant are considered stomachic, antibilious and antipyretic. Jhingaka are both used to treat bronchitis, and the leaves are used to treat asthma. The pounded leaves are used as a poultice to treat hemorrhoids, leprosy and splenetic. The juice of the fresh leaves of Jhingaka is useful for treating granular conjunctivitis in children. In some rural parts of southern Bihar the fine paste of the tendrils of the vegetable is used externally and internally to treat snake bite among. The ripe seeds are bitter in taste and posses emetic and purgative properties. Even though the seed oil of Jhingaka is toxic, it is used as a local application to treat skin affections among the inhabitants of Bhadrak District in northeastern Orissa.
Jhingaka is a large, annual climber with slender, shortly pubescent, 5-angled stems; tendrils usually 3-branched. Leaves are alternating with orbicular in outline. The petioles of this Indian medicinal plant are angular. The male flowers of Jhingaka are yellow in color with 3 stamens, borne in 10 to 20-flowered racemes that are 10 to15 cm long. The female flowers of Jhingaka are yellow, solitary grown in same axils as males. The fruit of this Indian medicinal plant are cylindrical or club-shaped, tapering towards the base. The fruits are usually 15 to30 cm in length with 10 prominent, narrowly angled, longitudinal ridges. The seeds of Jhingaka plant are compressed, 0.9 to1.4 cm long and 0.5 to 0.8 cm wide, slightly corrugated on edges, not winged, black or white when ripe.
