First Time Grower

Hi all,

I've got one surviving bird gourd seedling that I need to plant outside and was wondering.....I'd like to put it on a trellis, but I'm afraid it migh over power it. I don't really have a place to let one just ramble across the ground. Any suggestions?

Betsybug...I've never trellised a Bird house gourd...but it should be interesting...the weight of the bottom of the gourd may make it streatch...maybe you'd end up with a Bottle Gourd....! Just a thought. Jo

Last time I grew birdhouse gourds, I ran them along a woven wire fence. That seemed to work fine. They neither pulled the fence down or stretched.

Good to know! Jo

Hi Betsy,

I'm also new to gourds and I'm glad you started this thread. I live on a mountain and I'm thinking about growing some down the rocky hillside. Does anybody have any thoughts on this idea?

I have a terrible mint problem in that section of the property and think maybe the gourd vines would crowd out the mint, as well as prevent erosion.

Angie

Angie...I'm glad you found us...and I certainly see no problem with growing them on a hill side....I went by a "gourd friend's house today and she gave me lots of MINT...LOL

What kind of gourds do you plan to grow? Take pictures!! Jo

Hi Jo,

Critterologist very generously gave me some birdhouse gourd seeds, but now I'm not sure where to put them. I guess I'll just stick some in the ground and see what happens. She sent me 25, so I have plenty to experiment with! I foolishly thought I could put some in the garden, but then I read that they spread 10-15 feet in all directions. I just don't have that kind of extra space in my veggie garden and I am forced to find alternatives.

Beware the mint and keep it in a container! LOL I didn't even know I had a mint problem until we got the goats. They ate everything except the mint. Now it's creeping (actually marching, jogging, and sprinting) towards the house and choking out everything else. We got rid of the goats and I can finally have ornamental plants! If those gourds will grow down the hillside, it'll be beautiful and I'll take pictures to post on the forum.

Angie

Angie, since I live slightly down hill from my neighbors (4 acres seperate us)...and during monsoon season the water would GUSH down...and my berm didn't do that much good...so I took old tires and made my "gourd hills" in them....that way my top soil didn't get washed away...and water was retained better...I'll have to look up the post that had a picture of my Louffa's growing in an old tire. Jo

Jo,

The tire thing sounds like a good idea for retaining water, which will become more important later in the season. Actually it's kind of important right now, as we're already in a deficit. Please post the pic if you find it. I love to see how other folks are doing things!

Angie

I grew my birdhouse and luffa gourds along my three foot tall wire fence last year (great way to hide an ugly fence). They overran my entire garden and my neighbor's yard but they were very good sports about it. All the gourds did well whether on the ground or on the fence.

BTW, I understand that if you plant more than one kind of gourd together, the cross-pollination will yield seeds that may not come true. FYI...

Barb

Barb....that is so true...but some interesting gourds have resulted...Jo

Found the picture...this is the Louffa...but I did 3 different tires of gourds. Jo