Re: Gourds

Hi Island Jim...if nobody has answered this for you (yet) here is what I
know. I grow them almost every year (birdhouse gourds, dipper gourds,
Luffa, etc.) and they want to climb. They don't HAVE to but it is what
they normally do. The gourds are soft at first and if they are on the
ground they will tend to rot on the vine from moisture in the ground. I
have had them climb on a trellis, a tree and a fence. Any of them work.
They do not like a lot of moisture because they can get mold/mildew
(like cucumbers and such). Hope that helps! Oh..and if you want to use
the mature gourds for something, just let them dry on the vine or pick
them when they are the size you want and let them sit until the next
year, someplace dry. And no matter how dry it is...most of them will be
covered with black spots of mold all over them. This is normal for the
drying process. When they are hardened and you can hear the seeds rattle
in them, take them and scrub them down with a bleach/water

 solution and scrub them with one of those "Chore Boy" sponges.  Usually gets most of that black mildew stuff off of them.
 
Jess

james singer <islandjim1@verizon.net> wrote:
I've got a seedling bottle gourd growing in a 1-gallon pot in the 
lathhouse; it is just beginning to produce secondary leaves. And I need 
advice. I want to plant it somewhere so it will produce a bottle or 
three, but I have no idea what it wants, including whether it needs to 
go in the ground or can stay in a large pot [say, 15 gallon]. I know it 
may run all over hell's halfacre no matter where it's planted, but 
that's okay--I've got the room. But does it want/need to climb?

Island Jim
Southwest Florida
27.0 N, 82.4 W
Hardiness Zone 10
Heat Zone 10
Minimum 30 F [-1 C]
Maximum 100 F [38 C]

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