SimplePlant

Cucurbitaceae

Sinkwa towelsponge

Luffa acutangula Roxb.

Family
Cucurbitaceae
Genus
Luffa

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Sinkwa towelsponge (Luffa acutangula)
FlowerPhoto: Dinesh Valke, CC BY-SA 4.0, from iNaturalist

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Common names

By language (7)
Chinese
丝瓜, 丝瓜叶, 丝瓜子, 丝瓜子胃, 丝瓜根, 丝瓜皮, 丝瓜络, 丝瓜花
Dutch
Teroi, Teroi luffa
English
Sinkwa towelsponge, Angled luffa, Chinese okra, Silk gourd, Turai, Vegetable gourd
Indonesian
Oyong
Javanese
Oyong
Marathi
दोडके, शिरांचा दोडका, शिराळे
shn
မၢၵ်ႇၼွႆး

Synonyms

  • Cucumis acutangulus L.
  • Cucumis lineatus Bosc
  • Cucumis megacarpus G.Don
  • Cucumis operculatus Roxb. ex Wight & Arn.
  • Cucurbita acutangula (L.) Blume
  • Cucurbita campanulata D.Dietr.
  • Cucurbita umbellata J.G.Klein ex Willd.
  • Luffa acutangula var. acutangula
  • Luffa acutangula var. amara (Roxb.) C.B.Clarke
  • Luffa acutangula var. forskalii (Schweinf. ex Harms) Heiser & E.E.Schill.
  • Luffa amara Roxb.
  • Luffa cattu-picinna Ser.
  • Luffa drastica Mart.
  • Luffa fluminensis M.Roem.
  • Luffa foetida Cav.
  • Luffa forskalii Schweinf. ex Harms
  • Luffa gosa Buch.-Ham.
  • Luffa kleinii Wight & Arn.
  • Luffa plukenetiana Ser.
  • Luffa tenera Royle
  • Luffa umbellata (J.G.Klein ex Willd.) M.Roem.
  • Momordica tubiflora Wall.

Flowers

In flower
February, August to November (from 39 flowering iNaturalist observations worldwide)

Characteristics

Growth habit
Forb/herb, Vine
Lifespan
Annual
In the US and Canada
Lower 48 states: introduced, Pacific Basin: introduced, Puerto Rico: introduced

Photos

More in Luffa

Sources: classification, synonyms from World Flora Online Plant List (2026-06, CC0 1.0); common names, popularity from Wikidata (2026-10-26, CC0 1.0); common names, US characteristics from USDA PLANTS Database (2025-05-29, CC0 1.0). About our plant data.