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I must have been out of the room when the DNA for gourd planting was passed out. I have spent the last 7 years planting gourds for the simple reason that I want to paint on them.
I know a lot about planting gourds, but the birds know more. So this year I just gave up on the whole affair.
Planting gourds is basically simple as they are grown like squash (and my squash does well). I have sown the seed after the last frost where I want the plants to grow and nothing happens. I have even checked the hills where the seeds have been planted and they all seem to have disappeared. I have been told that the birds eat them. I have seen where my daughter-in-laws cats have been in there on occasions scratching up the dirt so that might be part of the problem.
One year I planted some Maranka (Caveman’s Club) gourd seeds which grow about 10 to 16” long and are used for dippers when they are finally dried out. Zippo, nothing!!!
The following year I planted the Birdhouse Gourd which, when grown and dried, are good for making birdhouses, obviously, bottles and painting on. Zippo, Strike Two!
The next year, I thought I would try the Small Spoon gourds which are those brightly colored orange and green striped small spoon shaped gourds and use them for fall decorations. Wrong!
That fall, I saw those lovely Swan gourds at a farmer’s stand and the lady basically said any fool can grow these, so I bought some seed in the spring and sowed it. I had visions of them growing like crazy with their curved necks resembling swans, harvesting and drying them out and painting wonderful pictures on them. Wrong again. Where the heck did these seeds disappear to?
So the following spring I decided to plant some gourd plants instead of the seeds and I was able to get a dozen healthy Calabash gourd plants which gow into the large bottle type gourds that are great for making crafts and water jugs. Eureka! I finally got some blossoms and a few scrawny gourds to harvest.
Tenacity is one of my major traits. After spending the winter researching gourd growing and the do’s and don’t I “hied” myself back to the gourd nursery and bought a dozen Big Apple gourd plants that spring. The nursery owner gave me lots of tips and I happily forked over my money because she assured me that I would have 8” fruit that looked like giant apples and once dried, and then I could paint them red or make them into birdhouses.
Well, they did grow and I got some good big ones and happily harvested them and went about drying them that fall according to the instructions I received from several artists that grow gourds and paint gourds. This was the final straw that broke the camels back because somewhere along the way all my drying gourds developed mildew and I just threw in the towel.
I don’t understand it. Whole nations and tribes have been growing gourds for centuries, drying them out and using them. Why not me?
I think I will stick to the things I do well because obviously growing and drying gourds is really not one of them.
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Author Bio Box: Arlene Wright Correll
 For more gardening or cooking information click http://www.learn-america.com/
To see Arlene’s Gardens and to read her gardening diaries or click on Arlene’s Books where you can download or buy her gardening & cook books. Remember to check out her artwork, especially of her fruits and vegetables. Arlene says, “All my royalties from the sale of my books go to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and I thank you for visiting my site.”
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