Can you eat gourds?

Some gourds are edible, while some are poisonous. Washingtonian magazine lists eight edible gourd varieties, including the Cinderella pumpkin, the long neck pumpkin, the Australian blue pumpkin, the carnival squash and the buttercup squash. Other edible gourds are the peanut pumpkin, the baby boo pumpkin and the spaghetti squash.

Edible gourds can be used for baking, soups and purees, according to the Washingtonian. The buffalo gourd is among the list of non-edible gourds, according to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Sometimes, the seeds of non-edible gourds can be consumed. Non-edible gourds are traditionally used for decoration or as musical instruments.