Q&A for How to Grow Gourds

Are you using the same pot? Did you change out the soil and/or add compost? Your soil might be stripped of nutrients, or there might be a disease lingering in the pot. When plants are over watered, usually what happens is that the stem and lower leaves will begin turning yellow or brown and drop off. Try adding some fertilizer or compost and see if that helps.

You don't ever want to quit watering your gourds. Keep the soil regularly moist in order to help them grow well.

You can absolutely plant gourds next to your vegetables. However, it's important that you give them plenty of space; don't plant them too close to each other.

The gourd plant should produce both male and female flowers. The female flower will need to be pollinated by the male. Usually, bees or other insects do this. However, sometimes that doesn't happen. You may have to step in and help by manually pollinating them by hand.

When the leaves die, simply cut them off; this will make room for new healthy leaves to grow. When leaves turn yellow that indicates the lack of chlorophyll, meaning too much or too little water. Unfortunately the plants do need to be fertilized, as most planting soil lacks essential nutrients.

They are probably getting too much direct sunlight. You may want to move them to a slightly more shady area.

You should plant them like any other seed: horizontally and flat.

Large green gourds (soft leaf varieties) take a long time to germinate, two to three weeks.

Plant more gourds. Seriously, some vines will produce many, some not as many fruit. I think that if you have a rich soil with lots of compost, water deeply (but not too often), and the weather is suitable for the gourds with a long enough growing season (at least 120 days) you will get the greatest number.

You should remove them by hand, as using a pesticide will affect growth of your plant. Or, you can use soapy water or neem oil.

You can trim them and all the suckers off of plant to focus all the energy on the growth of plant, but you won't have any gourds growing. This is a good way to grow the plant larger.

Gourds seem to need to be pollinated to grow to maturity. The little gourds probably weren't pollinated and therefore the vine rejected them.

Gourds produce male and female flowers. The male flowers appear first in late evening; they are somewhat bigger than the female. Use a small, clean, soft watercolor brush. Collect pollen from the male flower -- a somewhat sticky, light yellow power produced on anthers -- and then place it on the stigma, a structure that sits atop a small vertical stalk on the female flower. Continue the process with all female flowers by collecting pollen from as many male flowers as possible. Be sure to grow other plants that attract moths since gourds need to be pollinated once the sun goes down, and moths, unlike butterflies, are active at night.

About 6 months. I place mine in my garage on shelves in the winter, then in the summer I clean them.

Yes, they will be straighter if they hang.

Sometimes this happens when plants are stressed. Check to see they are receiving adequate water and mulch, to prevent overly dry soil conditions. Extreme heat may also be a problem.

Make sure it's not root bound. If you have more roots than dirt, transfer to a bigger pot. Also, make sure your gourd gets at least 6 to 8 hours of sunlight. Soil should be kept damp, but not soggy. Use miracle grow or other fertilizer as directed.

If you are referring to immature gourds that die and mold, they can be removed. However, it is not necessary. Mature, ripe gourds should be allowed to air dry on the vine until harvesting time.

Gourds need hot, summer weather, so once fruit production starts, you'll continue to have flowers and even baby gourds until frost. After the first frost, the plants will be wilted and at the end of their growing season.

Some gourds naturally have spots, so be sure what you're seeing is not part of the gourd's genetics. If white spots appear on mature, solid green gourds, it is probably a type of mold that is harmless if the gourd is completely mature. Any mold growth, regardless of color, can be removed with a damp cloth and bleach solution. Some vigorous washing may be needed. Completely dry your gourd after washing it.

It depends on the variety. Size information is typically included in descriptions given by seed producers based on the variety of gourd. Of course, the fewer gourds on each vine, the bigger they will grow since they will get all the food and water from the parent plant.

Either a lack of bee activity in your yard or excessive heat could be the cause.

Pinching back the vine will bring you more female flowers, not bigger gourds.

No. Gourd shapes depend on the variety types. When purchasing your seeds, read the type descriptions carefully. For instance, "bottle" gourds will naturally produce "bottle" shapes. "Dipper" gourds will produce long "handles" and round bases if hanging from a tall support. (Grown on the ground, they will have curled handles.) Loopha gourds grow to resemble giant cucumbers.

A Drimel kit works quite well and ensures more safety than using a knife. However, folks have used knives of some sort since humans began saving gourds to use as vessels for food storage and serving. To make a cut, always drill a "pilot" hole with either a bit or the pointed tip of a dull knife. The Drimel bits can also be used for beautiful surface carving work.

Yes, if you slant the pole at a 45 degree angle or attach horizontal bars to provide enough growing space for the gourds. Poles can be used to create a teepee shape, too.

Use a sharp knife or a electric saw with a small blade. First draw the shape you want, then cut it.

Black spots are mold on the removable skin. Best is to soak in warm dish water about 15 - 30 minutes and scrub with wire cleaning brush. Some take a few times before they get clean.