Luffa aegyptiaca Mill.

Blustru, or sponge gourd (Luffa aegyptiaca), is an annual climbing plant up to 10 meters long of the Cucurbitaceae family, believed to be native to China and now widely grown in gardens across Java and other parts of Southeast Asia. Its fruit, young leaves, and flower buds are commonly cooked as an everyday vegetable. Nearly every part of this plant is used as a traditional remedy, from the fruit for fever to the fibrous sponge for relieving rheumatism and body aches.

Blustru grows well in tropical regions. Lives at elevations of 500-1,500 m above sea level, requiring a dry climate with adequate water supply year-round. Required temperature is around 18-24°C with humidity of about 50-60%. Rainfall 50-100 mm/month, soil pH 5.5-6.5.

• Roots taproot with fibrous roots.
• Stem climbing with tendrils, five-angled, green.
• Leaves simple, petiole 4-9 cm long, alternately arranged.
• Flowers unisexual, yellow corolla.
• Fruit cylindrical, 10-50 cm, containing a dense fibrous mesh inside.
• Seeds flat with winged edges, smooth, black.

• Propagated by seed.
• Plant seedlings in planting holes of 25 cm x 20 cm with a planting spacing of 50-60 cm x 200 cm.

Saponins, coumaric acid, apigenin, luteolin, alkaloids, tannins, oleanolic acid, carotenoids, flavonoids, terpenoids, cardiac glycosides, phlobatannins, steroids.

Fruit: fever, wheezing cough, vaginal discharge, irregular menstruation, poor milk flow, constipation, bleeding. Seeds: edema, urinary tract stones, intestinal worms, lower back pain. Leaves: shortness of breath, testicular inflammation (orchitis), burns, boils, hemorrhoids, ringworm, and snakebite. Fruit peel: rectal abscess and wounds. Flowers: wheezing cough, sore throat, sinusitis, hemorrhoids, and boils. Fibrous sponge: joint rheumatism, body aches, phlegmy cough, swollen breasts.

• Prepare and wash blustru roots thoroughly.
• Roast on a roof tile until dry
• Once dry, grind the roots into a powder and store in a tightly sealed, airtight package.

Hurung jawa, Ketola, Timput (Palembang), Lopang, Oyong (Sunda), Bestru, Blestru (Java), Dodahala (Halmahera), Gambas belut.