The luffas (also spelled loofah or loofa) are tropical and subtropical annual vines comprising the genus Luffa. The fruit of at least two species, L. acutangula and L. aegyptiaca, is grown to be harvested before maturity and eaten as a vegetable, sometimes called Chinese okra, popular in Asia and Africa. It is also known as Ridge Gourd and is called jhinge in Bengali. The fruit may also be allowed to mature and used as a bath or kitchen sponge after being processed to remove everything but the network of xylems.
