photo credit: Spudjnr123

As I was doing outdoor chores and picking up the yard and gardens and preparing them for winter I was distracted by last years gourd collection. The gourds were dry early this summer and I cut and cleaned the interiors about a month ago. I have about 20 I have selected for bird feeders or for hanging plants.

I still need to sand and clean the exterior and seal the insides (if used for plants) to prevent the gourds from attracting moisture and slightly molding. You should not seal the interior of a bird feeder. The sealer will affect the seed and hurt the birds.

You also need to use a pot inside the gourd if you want your gourd planter to last several seasons. Gourds and water really do not mix well, unless the gourd has been sealed on the inside and out.

photo credit: timlewisnm

If I get my outdoor chores done this week I will start on my gourds next week. I have an art show coming up that I would like to display some of the finished gourds.

I have grown gourds in my gardens since my very first garden and each year they add interest and usually a few horror stories for my family member to tell the neighborhood. Many people consider gardening to be a bit boring, but they haven’t visited my gardens!

Here’s a link to my one gourd garden that that still pops up in local neighborhood conversations. Grow your gourds on swing sets.

And one more fun thing to try with gourds is shaping them while they grow. Creative gardening: Shaping your Gourds

I’ll share a few of my finished gourds in a few weeks.

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Post tags: country living, fall gardening chores, gourd crafting, Gourds, grow gourds on tee-pees, shaping gourds

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photo credit: coconut wireless

There are many mis-conceptions about the gourd and what they are. Yes, some are edible and some are not. As a matter of fact many are quite toxic, particularly when cutting and sanding for gourd crafting.

In my 15 plus years of growing gourds I have grown more than 35 varieties. I have dried them, painted them, engraved on them and made tables from them. I have even made paper from the dried fluff collected from the interior of the gourds.

Here are a few helpful tips about growing gourds.

• Start the gourd seed indoors. They will germinate faster and with a better success rate.
• I use Styrofoam cups and wet paper towels to start my gourd seeds. I will have seedlings in 3 to 7 days from most gourd seeds.
• Grow you gourds vertical. They will grow with a better shape and have less insect problems.
• Make sure your gourd trellis is very strong. Gourds get very heavy and will pull down many trellises. (An old swing set makes a great gourd trellis and has a unique look.
• For bigger gourds remove all but 4 blossoms from each plant and them clip the end of the vine to stop plant growth and direct all the growth to the gourds.
• If you want a really big gourd, such as the bushel gourd, remove all but one blossom from the gourd plant
• It takes six months to a year for a gourd to dry.
• There are many crafting ideas and uses for a gourd.

photo credit: OakleyOriginals
Add a few gourds to your garden area. They will add color,  interest and laughter  to your backyard garden area.

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Gourds can vary from the small decorative gourds most popular for fall decorations and to the dishrag gourds used for cleaning. And who can forget the larger gourds that are used for canteens or even tables or toy boxes.  
photo credit: timlewisnm

I have grown almost every variety of gourd there is and in my zone 5 climate this can be a challenge.  Many of the larger gourds can take 125 to 130 days to mature.

This year in my crafting garden I am growing the smaller decorative gourds, two other small gourd varieties and the dishrag gourd.

In my swing set garden I have nine gourd varieties growing and near the barn I have the bushel gourd and two rare gourds that are new to me this year. I separated them from my other gourds so they would not cross-pollinate and I would be able to save seeds.
photo credit: Otto Phokus

My swing set garden is exactly what I named it. I like to grow my gourds vertical so that insects do not bother them and so they grow evenly. Since they are very heavy I needed strong support so I use an old swing set.

By placing a heavy layer of rotted manure in the triangular section of the set, I create a barrier against weeds and also supply a source of nutrition for the gourds, which are heavy feeders.

I place heavy twine from the top of the swing set to stakes in the ground to supply support for the gourd to grow on.

I also include flowers and sunflowers mixed in with the gourds to help attract bees for the gourds pollination. The flowers also add color and interest to the garden area.

Growing gourds on a swing set has improved the quality and production. And later in the year I can cover the swing set with clear plastic if I need to extend the season for a week or two.
photo credit: Aunt Owwee

I use the gourds I grow for small furniture, gourd instruments, wall decorations, birdhouses and ornaments.

Gourds are a fun crop to grow because you never know exactly what you will get and the gourd has so many uses.

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May is iris and peony time throughout our section. The real work has already been done on these two and the results indicate just how thorough we were. The main thing now is to provide plenty of water through the flowering season, to produce top quality bloom.
photo credit: Donnaphoto

Each iris plant should have a feeding of one cupful of balanced fertilizer but it should be kept well away from the plant. It will be wise to note the ones that should be divided after flowering and perhaps prepare the soil for planting in new locations.

Peonies are subject to aphid infestation and many times this is first noticed by the presence of ants. These ants live on the honey dew secretions from the aphids and quite often there are “farms” of aphids that are milked” regularly by ants. Aphids cause a blasting of the buds quickly on peonies. Regular spraying with a contact spray will control these critters.

Rose Time

Throughout our section roses are giving their first lush crop of blooms. The annual rose shows are usually staged beginning the second week in May.

In the garden the chief chores are regular spraying at ten day intervals with products to control blackspot, spraying to control aphids, watering. feeding and light pruning to control blooming and habit of growth.

Rock garden plants respond beautifully to feeding and watering this month. Divide and transplant violets and allow a spacing of about ten inches. As the perennials come into flower, keep the faded blooms cut back to encourage new growth and a second crop of flowers. Pinch the early set chrysanthemums is one of the highly recommended plant branching ideas, and feed lightly.

For those of you who enjoy gourds, May is the month to plant. These plants are among the novelty group and are most interesting. Be constantly on the alert for weeds… most of these have an uncanny way of getting established very early.

Investigate the new herbicides for control of weeds by chemical sprays; many hours of hard work can be saved by using them. Read and follow the directions carefully. There is still time to replant water lilies and other aquatic plants. And why not plant a few herbs for both seasoning and unusual foliage for arranging?

Technorati Tags: container gardening, Creative Organic Gardening, garden, Gourds, iris, peonies, rock garden, rose, thegardenersrake.com

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photo credit: Valerie Everett

The gourd earned its name by being used as dishrags for dishes many years ago and as the sponges that are put on handles and used in showers and baths. I have even seen a craft recipe where the luffah gourds are cut into sections and covered with soap to make a specialty gift item.

The Luffah gourd is different than most gourds to grow. Its a very delicate gourd plant. It starts slowly and grows slowly, at least here in NW PA.

The first year I grew the Luffah I was disappointed. The plants looked sickly and stayed the same size. Summer was flying by the the Luffahs were not growing. I was about to write the adventure off as a flop but all of a sudden they took off.  They were all vine! Again disappointment set in. I just watered and fertilized them and pretty much ignored them.

One day I saw small gourds hiding under leaves. I was going to have a crop after all!

My first crop was small, 12 or so Luffah Gourds that were nine to 15 inches long.

It was now time to cure the gourds.

This was an adventure!

The yellow luffahs are more mature and the skin is tougher and I peeled the skin off.

The green luffahs had a softer skin and I read they needed to be soaked for four to five days in water and the skin would peel off leaving the sponge exposed. The sponges also stay  softer if they are harvested green.

I had no place to soak the gourds so they ended up in two buckets in the dining room. I had to put boards on top of the gourds to hold them under the water. Being rather pourous the gourds did not want to be submerged in water.  Day three, the gourds were getting rather slimy and discusting. I tried to shove one stubborn gourd under the water.

Suddenly it popped out of the water and acted like a rocket. It was airborn and headed 15 foot away into the livingroom where the family was. I was in shock and had no time to warn them.

To this day, I have not lived this down.

I just recently read online that others have removed the skins by freezing the gourd, putting the gourd in hot water for 15 minutes and some have cooked them. It’s really a “try a method” and see what works for you.

The Luffah Sponge Crop

I ended up with about nine luffah sponges. You need to bleach them, clean them and remove the seeds. It’s a crop that takes a lot of work but I continue to grow them. I now soak them in the greenhouse!

                                                                                                        photo credit: Valerie Everett

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