Allotments 4 All

Hello there all.

When I first took on the plot last year I read an article in a gardening section of the newspaper about this novelty plant. You grow them and dry them out and then paint with acrylic paints... make a novelty musical instrument kind of shaker for the kids I thought.

Little did I realise how many of the things would end up growing :-\, they are all still pretty small but by the looks of it I will be able to furnish a whole orchextra with them all.

Anybody else grown these and had the same results??

Will try to post a picture when next visit the little treasures   :D

Hi Ted
There's an abundance of choice with this lot, which is yours? they look a fun plant but are they difficult to grow?
Good Shaking Kev

Click on photo to enlarge!!

1. Teasel Gourd (Cucumis dipsaceus); 2. Ornamental Gourds (Cucurbita pepo); 3. Summer Crookneck (Cucurbita pepo); 4. Wild Cucumber (Marah macrocarpus); 5. Horned Cucumber (Cucumis metuliferus); 6. Coyote Melon (Cucurbita foetidissima); 7. Vegetable Sponge (Luffa acutangula); and 8. White Bush Scallop (Cucurbita pepo).

Thanks for the reply... beginning to think no one cared... only joking. :D

Don't recognise any of these as baing similar to my abundant crop.

Must be doing something right if they are difficult to grow, hopefully they will all get past the small stage they arfe at now amd fatten up a bit... not sure when harvest time would be.

Ted go to this site it will tell you more -
http://waynesword.palomar.edu/ww0503.htm

your grand kids woill be amazed at your knowledge!!

Musical gourds from Africa and India, such as drums, lutes and sitars have beautiful, polished finishes decorated with beads and carved designs. Some of the earliest guitars and violins in the United States were made from gourds by African slaves. Shaker gourds are probably one of the earliest of all musical instruments. In Africa, hollow gourds are covered with a loose netting strung with hundreds of beads from Job's tears (Coix lacryma-jobi). The tear-shaped "bead" is actually a hollow involucre that contained the female flowers of this pantropical grass. As the beads slap against the gourd, a loud shaker sound is produced--as good as any modern instrument for this purpose. Using the neck of the gourd as a handle, the sound is amplified by the hollow interior.

Ted if you scroll to the bottom of the website you will find yet another use of Gourds, as a thingy sheath!! i haven't posted THAT photo on here, and make sure the Grankids arent with you when you peep!!! :o :o ;) ;)

Hi, I'm growing gourds as well, grew some last year and they didn't do too well, only got two out of them, this year I've got loads they are taking over  :) Really like growing them though, I've got egg gourds (very light green and shaped as an egg) and yellow trumpet gourds, small and large warty ones, green striped ones and half yellow and half green ones.  I don't know whether you know or not or if this helps, but you pick the gourds when the vine and leaves are dead and they take about a year to dry, best in a warm dry place and wipe them every now and again or they get covered with mould and smell.

A packet of mixed gourds and squashes was another of my star buys from Lidl - excellent germination, and loads of 'fruit'; half yellow halfgreen, green stripy, and light green eggs, the latter now hanging from my runner bean wigwam, very bizarre sight. My question though is (now I know when to pick them - thanks Okell) are they all ornamental, for drying, shaking, etc or can we cook them? I got them cos I just wanted to see what kind of things would grow - this is our first year of growing stuff.

Quote from: Mike J on August 31, 2005, 23:22:24
My question though is (now I know when to pick them - thanks Okell) are they all ornamental, for drying, shaking, etc or can we cook them? I got them cos I just wanted to see what kind of things would grow - this is our first year of growing stuff.

They are considered edible while they are in flower but the skin will get hard and the flesh bitter if harvested after that point.

Mmm...Thanks John, looks like I'll be getting musical and arty then!