Ash Gourd is a very popular vegetable in India and grown throughout the country. This melon is mostly consumed in India and china, while Indians give more importance to this vegetable because of its medicinal properties in the Ayurvedic medicine system and yogic science.Its precise origins cannot be traced but botanists suggest its native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. Its widely grown throughout Asia. When the vegetable is young the fruit is coated in fine hairs and fuzzy. A young melon tastes sweet but as it ripens its fine hairs and sweetness disappears. Mature gourds exterior color can vary from pale grey to dark green and are coated in a distinctive white ash. Hence it gets the name Ash Gourd. The white ash and chalky wax on the exterior deters micro-organisms, due to which it has excellent storage qualities and can be stored for a complete one year. Continue to read more : Here.