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How To Make (and grow) A Luffa! |
155 Comments |
| By Aaron Newton in Green Living, How To | November 26, 2006 | ||
For the third autumn in a row I am pleased to be harvesting my shower sponge for next year. Now I know that must sound like a strange statement but it’s true. Many people are surprised when they find out I grow my own Luffa sponges. “Don’t those come from the sea?”, is the standard question to which I respond that the Luffa is a vegetable you can grow in your very own garden.
This annual requires a long growing season of frost free weather. But for those of you in colder climates it is possible to start seedlings indoors and then transplant them outside allowing you to grow your own sponges. The vine can grow to great lengths producing beautiful yellow flowers all summer. Next spring I will be sure to remind you to start your sponges. Right now though I am focused on the harvest. I almost waited too late to get my Luffa started this spring so I was lucky to get a hand full of mature sponges. This one grew right outside my bedroom window.
I pick the fruit just after the first frost kills the vine. Next I peel off the outer skin.
Then comes the process of “milking” the sponge- squeezing it repeatedly from the middle towards the ends in an attempt to remove the fleshy substance inside. Plenty of seeds will come out as well.
I set aside some of the seeds from my best sponges for next year. If a sponge is discolored I soak it for 5 minutes in warm water with a little bleach. Add a length of hemp rope if you like to hang up your shower sponge. A large crop can yield quite a few Christmas gift sure to have your friends and family talking. Try growing your own Luffa sponge next year.
UPDATE: For those of you curious where to buy Luffa seeds, take a look at this online garden store!
Click here for Part II of this article!
Jiltedcitizen said,
Very cool. Is the plant called luffa? Where do you find the seeds? Do you need to let it dry out?
brooklynmatt said,
If you live in a major city, check out the stores in your local Chinatown. In the NYC Chinatown some of the groceries which sell seeds also sell Luffa seeds.
Domestic Goddess said,
Who knew?! I had no idea they were a veggie you can grow.
Tabby said,
I had no idea you could grow luffa and that it was a vegetable, I also thought it was harvested from the sea
. Great info, thanks!
Pollywogs! » Blog Archive » Hey, I wrote that a week ago… said,
[...] How to grow and make a luffa… [...]
Arcadia said,
i love this idea!!!
Kristine said,
Wow! And there’s lots of seed catalogs that carry them! Didn’t know and thanks for the info- my mom’s going to LOVE this….
XiaoGui said,
This is quite common in Malaysia. Albeit i don like eating it, it did make a good sponge.
GIGANTIC DWARF » Blog Archive » How To Make A Luffa! said,
[...] Link [...]
keelber elf said,
That’s awesome!
…Can you eat them?
Grow your own Luffa sponges « Later On said,
[...] Gardeners, behold: For the third autumn in a row I am pleased to be harvesting my shower sponge for next year. Now I know that must sound like a strange statement but its true. Many people are surprised when they find out I grow my own Luffa sponges. Dont those come from the sea?, is the standard question to which I respond that the Luffa is a vegetable you can grow in your very own garden. [...]
How to grow your own luffa sponge. :: canspice.org said,
[...] Aaron Newton over at Groovy Green has an excellent article about growing your own luffa sponge. Regardless of whether you spell it “luffa” or “loofah” — I’m of the latter persuasion — you probably didn’t know that they’re actually a vegetable akin to a zucchini (or courgette for my British and Kiwi friends). And I’ll bet you really didn’t know that to get the luffa “sponge”, you have to “milk” the seeds and flesh out of it, leaving the sponge-like fibrous material we all know and love as our favourite exfoliant. [...]
green said,
discolored? bleach?
GreenBean said,
I’m confused about the bleach as well, not sure why it would be needed. I live in Canada where we don’t have much of a warm growing season, any thoughts about growing these here?
Ret said,
Why don’t you let the sponge dry on the vine. It’s much easier to peel it and get rid of the seeds: No milking or fleshy stuff. I think your working with still green luffas.
Dirty Carl » Blog Archive » How to grow a sponge said,
[...] The tutorial can be found after the jump. Link & Image: GroovyGreen Tags: Sponge | Luffa | Tutorial [...]
Ben said,
This is a great project! I’m glad everyone else sounds as surprised as I am… now if only our growing season up north was longer.
GroovyGreen.com - Start Today :: Save Tomorrow : Blog Archive : More On How To Grow A Luffa said,
[...] Quite a few people were interested in my recent harvest of Luffa shower sponges. I thought Id explain a bit more about the plant and the process of growing it. Luffa aegyptiaca Mill. or as it is commonly called, the Loofah, is a vegetable native to South America. It can be eaten when it is smaller. I have stir fried them but only up to a size of about 4 inches. After that they become tough like an over ripe squash. Left to fully mature each fruit produces an excellent sponge. Seeds for this plant are readily available through vegetable catalogs and you’ll only have to buy seeds your first year- one mature Luffa sponge will produce at least 30 seeds. Some will produce many more. [...]
aaron newton said,
Thanks for the interest and all the comments. I am writing a follow up post to offer more information.
wubbahed said,
I’ve personally found that after peeling the vegetable, you can boil the luffas for about 10 minutes and that goes a long way to getting rid of the “milking” phase. Also, I second the earlier comment about leaving the luffa on the vine for as long as possible. That works very well too.
aaron newton said,
You can let them dry on the vine but depending on your climate and how long you wait, the sponges can get discolored doing so. Also you might have dead vines clinging to your home all winter.
Low Mileage Food » Grow your own loofah said,
[...] Linky: http://groovygreen.com/groove/?p=689 [...]
The Blog of Dave5 » Blog Archive » Loofas Grow on Trees… said,
[...] … well, on vines. Sorry, and odd thing to post about – but it was one of those “whoda thunk?” moments. [...]
Bulletz of Knowledge » Blog Archive » Gadgets: Did you know? said,
[...] That a loofah *spelled luffa* is actually a vegetable? I didn’t know that either. Apparently you can make your own loofah sponge. Here are some instructions to show you how easy it really can be. You can buy your own seeds to grow the vegetable yourself. This is a great way to get a luffa sponge and have some as presents to give away *or sell them to others for a wicked profit*. Take it to the world:These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. [...]
Mark said,
Fucking sweet. I have to try this next spring!
…You can grow your own Loofa? at Didn’t You Hear… said,
[...] [Groovy Green] [...]
John Foust said,
The easy way to get some loofa seeds is to go to a Mexican market where they’ll sell a tub of them. Shake a few, and seeds will fall out.
eJabs blog spot » Blog Archive » Grow your own Luffa sponge! said,
[...] GroovyGreen.com has posted this article that gives us step by step instructions on how to grow our own Luffa sponges. They’d make a great Christmas present folks! [...]
Grow your own luffa sponge….. » said,
[...] Complete Article [...]
Luffas are Plants said,
[...] And you can grow them yourself to make shower scrubbing sensations! [...]
i.ndustrio.us » Blog Archive » Grow your own Luffa? said,
[...] People are weird. Who would want this hanging in their shower anyway? Apparently more than a few, judging by the comments. These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. [...]
the wacky wombat weblog - » something spongey said,
[...] Somebody’s actually grown the luffa plant and harvested it as shower sponge. (read it here) And Wikipedia tells me that the plant is actually Chinese Okra, and it grows well in warm temperatures. [...]
X-hong-?-????? » links for 2006-11-29 said,
[...] GroovyGreen.com – Start Today :: Save Tomorrow : Blog Archive : How To Make (and grow) A Luffa! (tags: cool luffa) [...]
Turok said,
I leave it for 2 weeks to harden then I peel it, mush faster and easier and you also can collect the seeds that comes out by shaking it for future planting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
HalfCup.net » ?? ??? ? ??? said,
[...] ?? ???? ?? ???? ????????? ????? ?? ???? ??? ??? ???? ??? ?????? ? ???????? ????????? [...]
pat said,
Hi, thanks for the article. Are they always cucumber shaped ? I like more of a spherical scrubber thing.
buchin said,
cool, did you find this trick yourself?
weee said,
next…how to milk a luffa
Divina said,
Just a lil warning, this is quite unhealthy. It is a living fiber so it is a breeding ground for bacteria and fungi. If you are to rub your body with something, this is not something I would suggest. The same goes for real sea sponges and bath-brushes with bristles made of silk.
aaron newton said,
Any surface used in close combination with water for cleaning your body is a possible breeding ground for bacteria. Luffa sponges are not a living fiber. Like cotton, they are once living fiber. But any fibrous, porous structure, previously living or man-made, should be placed somewhere it can dry after use. If noticeable contaminants arise in any brush, sponge or washcloth the article should be sanitized or possibly discarded and replaced. You can wash Luffas with a load of laundry. Grow 12 Luffas if you’d like; one for each month. Really though they dry out fine between daily showers- better even than my towel.
The Daily Loper - November 29, 2006 | Medialoper said,
[...] How To Make (and grow) A Luffa!This one’s for Bill O’Riley [...]
Nan said,
My entire body is a breeding ground for bacteria, mites, viruses….
And Divina wants me to worry about a LOOFAH?!
Cool to know I can grow these so I can use their potentially bacteria infested fibers to exfoliate all my dead skin cells. This will not make the mites(that live on me, eating my dead skin cells)happy, but will feel fabulous. Skritchy-skritchy. Thanks for letting us all know it’s a veggie! Cool. I shall attempt to plant them in the spring, in the bacteria & worm-poo laden soil. How filthy! Yay for nature,
Nan
links for 2006-11-30 « Jet Grrl said,
[...] GroovyGreen.com – Start Today :: Save Tomorrow : Blog Archive : How To Make (and grow) A Luffa! (tags: HowTo Science) [...]
Brock Log (BLog) - A BLog in the Life of… » Harvest a loofa lately? said,
[...] Harvest a loofa lately? By Thomas Brock From GroovyGreen by way of Lifehacker. [...]
Grow Your Own Luffa | ThingsAreGood | Good News | Good Things said,
[...] Did you know that you can grow your own luffa in your backyard? Well you can. Groovy Green has not one but two posts on how to grow your own luffa. [...]
eJabs » Blog Archive » Grow your own Luffa sponge! said,
[...] GroovyGreen.com has posted this article that gives us step by step instructions on how to grow our own Luffa sponges. They’d make a great Christmas present folks! [...]
adam said,
where in NC are you Aaron?
Daily Clerks said,
[...] Check it out! » original news [...]
urbanecoinc.com » Carnival of the Green #56 said,
[...] From blogger Aaron Newton: How To Make A Grow A Luffa “For the third autumn in a row I am pleased to be harvesting my shower sponge for next year. Now I know that must sound like a strange statement but it’s true. Many people are surprised when they find out I grow my own Luffa sponges. “Don’t those come from the sea?”, is the standard question to which I respond that the Luffa is a vegetable you can grow in your very own garden.” [...]
Nature Moms Blog » Blog Archive » Grow Your Own Luffa said,
[...] Wow! I had no idea you could grow your own luffa. Pretty nifty. Be sure to check out the process and see pictures of this DIY project in action. [...]
Mia said,
Growing your own lufah – that is the coolest thing I have seen in a very long time.
I would love to include this on my site. Could I copy the photo of the growing lufah and the finished product and link to this site?
Mia
aaron newton said,
Sure. And for the record I grow Luffa in Concord, NC just north of Charlotte.
You Sponge said,
Remember that’s http://yousponge.com
Peace!
GroovyGreen.com - Start Today :: Save Tomorrow : Blog Archive : How To Grow (and make) Your Own Tea! said,
[...] When the world goes to hell, and you no longer have ample supplies of crappy Linton tea bags lying around (but you really don’t have those do you?), it will be refreshing to know that you’re not powerless. Granted, growing tea is not something out of the realm of thought (like growing your own shower Luffa), but did you ever really consider it? Maybe I’m alone, but a great article I found today has inspired me to grow tea leaves, as well as a shower luffa for the coming season. Perhaps you’ll had them to your list as well? [...]
no more fwds » Blog Archive » grow your own said,
[...] check out this crazy tutorial on how to grow your own luffa sponge courtesy of GroovyGreen.com [...]
iDiy.mobi » GroovyGreen.com - Start Today :: Save Tomorrow : Blog Archive : How To Make (and grow) A Luffa! said,
[...] Originally Syndicated via RSS from del.icio.us/tag/diy Manage your favourites online [...]
Scrub fai da te eco-friendly said,
[...] Andando su Groovy Green ci sono le istruzioni da seguire, una pianta che si pu coltivare in un clima caldo-mite – infatti originaria dell’ Asia – e ci vuole circa una stagione per passare dalla semina al raccolto/doccia, si pianta in primavera e si raccoglie in autunno, mentre durante l’estate fiorisce con dei bellissimi fiori gialli. Una volta colta si sbuccia e si priva dei semi e della polpa rimasti all’interno, si fa asciugare et voil, dritte sotto la doccia! [...]
The Rodeo » Blog Archive » Del.icio.us Links said,
[...] How To Make (and grow) A Luffa!Grow your own sponge for the bath/shower! [...]
GroovyGreen.com - Start Today :: Save Tomorrow : Blog Archive : Return of… THE LUFFA! said,
[...] Last year I was please, and a little amazed, at all the attention we got here at Groovy Green after I posted this story about how to grow your own luffa sponge. For the third autumn in a row I am pleased to be harvesting my shower sponge for next year. Now I know that must sound like a strange statement but its true. Many people are surprised when they find out I grow my own Luffa sponges. Dont those come from the sea?, is the standard question to which I respond that the Luffa is a vegetable you can grow in your very own garden. [...]
Environment News » How To Make (and grow) A Luffa Sponge! said,
[...] For the third autumn in a row, I am pleased to be harvesting my shower sponge for next year. It may sound like an odd statement but it s true. People are surprised when they find out I grow my own Luffa sponges. Dont those come from the sea?, is the standard question to which I respond that the Luffa is a vegetable you can grow in your garden!read more | digg story April 11th, 2007 | Category: Environment News | [...]
Gardening « Josie’s Home said,
[...] Grow you own Luffa (loofa) shower sponge [...]
jon said,
Luffa is delicious in beef or vegetable soup. Treat it like a squash. It really melts in the mouth. Also, I have heard that baby luffa are delicious. Eat them as you would any baby vegtable. Will try it this year.
ola johnson said,
I grow loofah sponges and produce sponges for sale….I have high yield loofah seeds for sale
Robin Stanton said,
My freind and neighbor gave me seeds to grow this sponge. WOW! Not a day goes by and I learn something new.
Designer Handbagsk said,
Nice site. Very useful contents. I’ve been looking for information for a long time, and I’ve found it exactly here. Thank you
Carla said,
you can order seeds from Burpee. I’m trying to grow my own luffa this year to make luffa soap.
Mary said,
My niece has a vine growing up her back porch… we are not sure what it is. It has lots of grip and curls around the other plants vines, kind of 3 or five points on the leaves. Standinig at the top of the vine the leaves are a nice green and the leaves soft. this plant produces pods… if you break one off it has milk. I would say the pod I pulled is about 3″ long, smooth green skin, sort of tear drop shaped. What do you think this might be. We are stumped.
aaron said,
Mary,
It sure sounds like a luffa but unless you live in the tropics or unless you’ve grown luffa in that spot before I would find it unusual for a luffa to just volunteer like that. You might try checking out a book on vines from the library and comparing the pictures to your mystery vine.
aaron
Evie said,
This year I tried to grow luffah as well, but I planted the seeds rather late(around summer :S). Still, some leaves have popped up by now and they are now growing quite fast. They have a rough texture and a strange, but not bad smell. I am really curious on how it will develop.
Greetings from Greece!
Nick said,
You really do learn something new every day! Thanks for the great tip.
Eric said,
Pruning- I noticed that the growth of my new gourds slowed when there were more of them and more flowers and vines growing. Today I decided to try an experiment by pruning the vines. I cut off all remaining flowers and buds both male and female since I don’t think there is enough time remaining for any new fertilized ones to grow to maturity. I also cut the ends off runner vines. I presently have about 20 or more gourds on my four vines. I am hoping that now the strength of the plant will go into the remaining gourds.
Has anyone else tried this.
aaron newton said,
I haven’t tried that but please report back. I got a late start because of a freak frost and I am experience the same problem you are experiencing- will my fruit produce a sponge before frost?
beth said,
HOLY ****!!!!!! If you want some serious BANG for your buck grow a loofah sponge plant! I bought one on a whim cause i thought it sounded cool and it took over the world with beautiful yellow flowers and millions of gigantic squash-like fruits. We are going to get atleast 2 plants next year and trellis them. It even started to climb the house!!!! I have not harvested them yet but it sounds pretty easy. How do you store the seeds to keep for next year?
gina said,
I’ve grown Luffa’s for over 20 years, last batch about 5 yrs. ago. you get so many from one plant and I’m the only one to use them. Leaving them on to dry out on the plant is an option, however, to get one soft enough to mold to your body parts you have to pick before they are so old. Drying out in sun after peeling makes them whiter.
patty said,
No! My first was rejected. The 2nd a test. This is an attempt to get my question printed. Please. Another try. A friend told me that I was growing luffa: I thought it was a type of okra. One plant: many luffas. But they are very dry (the seeds rattle); are light brown and have rough lengthwise ridges. Your picture shows green and recommends peeling. Are mine past that? Thanks for your help.
aaron newton said,
Patty,
I am showing a green Luffa. But as they dry they will turn brown. It is actually easier to let the Luffa dry and then peel off the outer skin and clean out the seeds after it is brown. If you do this however, you run the risk of having a few of the Luffa ruined by molding or rotting. If you process them while they are still green you eliminate the possibility of that happening.
In other words, if you only harvest a few Luffa you might want to process them while still green to ensure you get a few sponges. But if you harvest a lot of Luffa you may want to let most of them dry naturally and then process them in a much easier way. It is definetely more work to get all the pulp and seeds out before they dry.
Send pictures! I hope this helps.
aaron
Tatyana said,
This is such a cute idea:)
matt said,
hey aaron I live in calabash nc,at the ocean,I have been growing luffa for 5 years now with great success. I give luffa too friends and family for xmas every year. I grow mine on the back of our house @ even bilt a 10′ wide by 20′ long by 7′ high chicken wire tralis too grow them on,things are going so well I am getting 100 to 150 top notch luffa each year, and god knows how many seeds. I do let mine dry on the vine, but just before the first frost of the year I will cut the green ones left off and remove both ends and hang them up to dry, then I can come back to them later. have taken pic but still new at computers, hopefully can someday find out how to sell sponges,seeds@ insturctions on how to grow them, I have enjoyed reading your site and the coments
matt
aaron said,
matt,
that’s quite a lot of luffa. congrats. please send pictures when you can. i’d love to see your setup.
aaron
tina said,
what is the right name, loofa ,loofah or luffa ?
linda said,
a friend of mine gave me some luffa seeds,i planted them 2 weeks ago, they are about 5 inches now. year’s ago, i did craft show’s. i made everything. one year i bought luffa’s at wal-mart. you can put soap in your luffa. i took a plastic cup, take some surand wrap and line the plastic cup. stand your luffa up in it. go to the craft store, and buy some soap making stuff of your choice, any scent that you want, i choose lavender, i love lavender. it’s not hard at all. books are at the library, or at the craft store. i made about 10 of them at a time. once the soap is ready, pour the soap into the hole’s of the luffa. i put them on a big tray. and let them harden. your luffa full of soap is ready to use, i even cut some of them into 1 inch rings. you can see the soap in it, it’s so pretty. tie a pretty lavender ribbon around them. and i gave them out to all my girlfriends they loved them. i wouldn’t use anything else to bath with. your skin is clean. to all luffa growers, try this. linda . ,. .
Trial @ Epicurean Hermit - Hermit Crabs ~R~ us said,
[...] a little research (says it’s like Okra and okras on the safe list) then searched for some seeds. How To Make (and grow) A Luffa! GroovyGreen.com – Start Today :: Save Tomorrow Starshine, I’m not sure yet as I need to do a bit more digging on info. But great questions for [...]
nicole said,
Can’t believe noone has mentioned that each plant yields 100′s of seeds, and if the climate is right, they can be quite a pesty plant that springs up wherever a seed has dropped, like all over the place where they dried out etc. Very useful indeed, but a little annoying too…
A 100 THINGS YOU CAN MAKE YOURSELF!!! « Real World Martha’s Weblog said,
[...] A loofah [...]
Harnessing The Power Of Luffas For Shade And Sponges » GroovyGreen.com - Start Today :: Save Tomorrow said,
[...] For our original classic, “How To Make (And Grow) A Luffa”, click here [...]
How To Make (and grow) A Luffa Sponge! « Tricklethis3’s Weblog said,
[...] read more | digg story No Comments so far Leave a comment RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI Leave a comment Line and paragraph breaks automatic, e-mail address never displayed, HTML allowed: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong> [...]
Jan said,
I grew a luffa vinwe for the first time – planted seeds last spring and am still harvesting the gruit. I leave them on the vine to dry then peel and shake out the seeds. I live in the southern hemisphere in a sub-tropical climate in Australia so the area is very suited to growing luffa. As with previous comments – my friends and family were surprised to find the source of the sponges they buy. Everyone without exemption thought they came from the sea. And so did i before i found the seeds at my local market
I peel the dry luffa then shake the seeds out and soak in a very mild solution of bleach. What puzzles me though, is how they get to be flat shapes i see sealed in bags for sale? I guess they press them in some sort of press?
www.otton.org » Grow Your Own Loofah said,
[...] Grow Your Own Loofah [...]
Stella Coe said,
Hi,
I”ve been growing my loofah’s for at least 2 months and the vines must be 8 to 10 feet tall, but just leaves, no flowers or loofah’s. I’m in Cyprus, so it is certainly hot enough, maybe too hot? Help would be appreciated. Thanks
Karin with a luffa said,
I just picked my first luffa. It is 5 inches long. The vine broke so I had to harvest it early. I have 6 vines which are ~ 10 feet long and two more tiny fruits are forming and there are tons of flowers. I live in Ontario Canada and I hope to get large enough fruit before the frost. I started the seeds indoors to extend the growing season and the plants initially looked very sad. With all the rain this summer, the vines took off. I am so excited about this and I look forward to having ‘green’ showers.
Kat said,
I planted loofa for the 1st time this year. Bought some seeds on eBay and planted them among my cucumbers since they are trellised. Got nothing but vines vines vines for about 10 weeks then the large yellow flowers started popping up. Now I have loofa hanging everywhere! Cant wait till harvest!
Julia said,
I’ve been growing them in Georgia, and are actually choking out the kudzu on my fence. I didn’t think anything could beat kudzu.
Gardening-Try not to kill it | Blissfully Domestic said,
[...] When planting vegetables the other key piece of information you need is the “time to maturity” (usually found on seed packets). In laymans terms that is how long it takes from seed to having edible fruit. Here in Upstate NY we only have about 144 days of the growing season-if mother nature is smiling at us! So if a watermelon takes 160 days to mature, it’s really a gamble. And that loofa plant that takes 190 days-well, it’s just a pipe dream. (Yes, Loofahs are actually from a plant). [...]
Matt Garza said,
Love the post, but not patient enough to wait an entire growing season for my Loofah sponge, found a good selection of loofah and sea sponges at the natural bath & body shop Try this link to get to the Sponge Store: Sea Sponges & Loofah
cscolvin said,
To keep a loofah clean and unstained, add a capful of H202 to water in a cup or vase (for the long ones) and let the loofah rest there between uses. Change out the H202/water solution weekly. We do this with our toothbrushes and combs, as well as soak hair brushes the same way occasionally. For those interested in purchasing food grade H202, try Guardian of Eden. H202 is very handy.
Reader’s Question :: Growing Luffas « Women Not Dabbling In Normal said,
[...] growing season, but did find a few thinks I thought were good, though you may have them already: Groovy Green and University of Georgia’s Extension Service. Good [...]
Simone said,
wow great idea, that is really cool and would love to grow my own luffa but i am in South Africa and have hunted high and low for seeds but every garden centre i speak to looks at me like i am speaking Greek!! HELP!! well if there are any South Africans that grow their own luffa’s please could you hook me up with the place that you buy your seeds from. thnx a mill, Simone!!
Plants for next year « Duchessdreams’s Weblog said,
[...] sponge. Sounds weird huh? Here’s the link I ran into on this one http://www.groovygreen.com/groove/?p=689. I figure since it’s a gourd type plant it should be happy [...]
Karin with a luffa said,
I harvested my luffa and got twenty 12 to 20 inch fruits. I have cleaned out 5 of them so far and the rest are on the window sill to dry out. When they dry naturally the seeds just fall out. I prefer it to having to milk them which I find damages some of the fibres. I am in Ontario and our frost came much later than usuall so that helped them to mature more. I have saved tons of seeds for next year and again I hope to start them indoors to extend their growing season. I love the luffa!
Gail Stevens said,
I hope this question goes thru. I wrote the question yesterday but I don’t see it here. I started my gourds late in the year this year and they are still green. We have had a frost or 2 and some of the foliage has turned back but most of it is still green. No where close to dying. I’m wondering if I should cut the fruit now or wait. I have never heard of the milking part of the harvest. Last year I just cut them green and then put them in the garage to hang and most of them rotted! HELP@ I’m in Dallas, Texas, Does anyone have any suggestions? I’m afraid if I let them freeze they will just turn to mush. Please write me back ASAP its suppose to freeze tonight.
Thanks
Autumn
rudanici said,
Luffa recipe
I was browsing through the net trying to find an english name for this ‘fruit’, we called here Petola. I was starting a vegetable garden. It’s one of my favourite vegetable dish. I’d like to share with you, so you can try scrub with it, and eat it too! My favourite recipe is a Petola soup (a Malaysian recipe)
1 red onion, medium size
2 cloves of garlic
a thumb size of ginger
(optional – 2 flower cloves, 2 cardamon, 2 star anise. Not to be eaten, but to add taste…you can really differenciate the taste. Try an asian shop to get hold of these herbs. It’s dried, but not the powdered kind they sell an indian shop)
4 shrimps cuts to small pieces
salt and pepper to your own taste
1 young luffa (where the inside is not fibrous yet) cut up into 1/2 inch width. Remove the skin totally
Preps: onion, garlic and ginger and be sliced and diced thinly. I usually mashed it up in a stone grinder. Heat a little oil in the pan. Fry the herbs for a minute. Add in the onion/garlic/ginger. Add in shrimp. Once it starts to brown a little bit, put it plain water, about 500 ml or so, just enough to cover the luffa. Once it starts boiling, add in luffa. Add salt and pepper as needed. Once luffa is soft, it’s ready to be eaten.
Sometimes I add tofu’s skin to the soup. Hope you will try it. If the cooked luffa is fibrous, it means you picked the one that’s too old already. Pick a younger one
Tony said,
My wife got luffa seed from my brother, planted last summer, now growing very nice. one of them is 75 inches long. it’s probably the longest luffa in the world. I’m located in central Florida, U.S.A.We use this for soup and boiling for chillipaste.
"Toil in the Soil" 2009 - Hippymom - An Evolution of Female Community said,
[...] I made awhile ago. these: GrabaCuppaJoe: 09/23/07 and here is some more detailed info: How To Make (and grow) A Luffa! GroovyGreen.com – Start Today :: Save Tomorrow i use them for everything that needs scrubbing- my body, dishes, floors, tubs, etc [...]
Going Green said,
Someone said a loofa is the same thing as ocra. Is that true? I love ocra. I had no idea I was eating the same thing I bath with.
cindybarney said,
hi can anyone tell me thing i can do with the luffa spongue. also where can i buy the seed thank you cindy
Alternative Cleaning Cloths | Green Living Ideas said,
[...] growing your own loofah, a vegetable that dries out into a super-sustainable exfoliant! Check out GroovyGreen.com for step-by-step instructions and [...]
luffa, loofa, loofah… « musings of a kitchen witch said,
[...] http://www.gardenguides.com/how-to/tipstechniques/vegetables/luffa.asp http://www.groovygreen.com/groove/?p=689 http://ecobites.com/eco-news-articles/organic-gardening/839-the-loofah-or-dishcloth-gourd [...]
Nancy said,
Real easy to grow, haven’t done it in years and was looking for seeds..thanks
Spring Cleaning « said,
[...] rags to save paper towels from entering the landfill. If you want to be truly green, you can cultivate luffa (a.k.a. “loofah”) in your garden and grow your own “sponge [...]
Johanna Draper said,
Oh my goodness, I really want to try this sometime!
Joe - I Find Stuff » Blog Archive » How To Make (and grow) A Luffa! said,
[...] http://www.groovygreen.com/groove/?p=689 Bizzaro! [...]
Mary Martin said,
I live in Central Florida and recently planted some loofah seeds someone gave me several years ago. I wanted to make sure they were still viable, so I planted them in a small seed tray, several seeds in each of the six compartments. The plants are coming up beautifully, but do not look like vining plants to me. They look much more like 6 inch tall grass sprouts. (The seeds were definately not grass and looked like squash seeds)
How do the seedlings look?
Thanks for any help you can give!
julio said,
I just bought some seeds today i live in south florida hopefully they will go nicely over here.
oh and to the person that wanted an image of the seeds go here
http://www.luffa.info/images/LuffaSeeds.jpg also a great site for info on luffas
Happy Earth Day! | Runaway October said,
[...] How to make (and grow) your own Luffa – via Green Groovy [...]
Sarah J said,
This is so awesome. I heard about luffa plants in a garden catalog and am growing them this year for the first time. I’m so excited and this is cool to see that I’m not the only one.
Laminated Garden Guides said,
Very interesting! I’ve never tried to grow a Luffa before, but after reading this, I’ll give it a try! Thanks!
Dirk said,
Hi there, I have used the luffa plant for most of my life, it was always very easy to come by. Lately I have a battle to find seeds, could you please help me on this.
Thanks a million for your write up about this.
Stacie said,
I bought some seeds back in the winter on eBay and I’m so excited with my first loofah experiment! I planted them with the rest of the vines in the garden (cucumbers, gourds, pumpkins, etc.) and they seem to be doing OK, but not great. I live in VA where we have decent summers and usually no frost until October maybe Novemeber some years. I cannot even count the number of baby loofah’s I have out there, but it’s a lot, but they are so small! I saw above someone talking about a 75 inch long loofah, mine right now are anywhere from 1 to 3 inches. I know that we got a late start on our garden all the way around, everything was late going out! But, I started the seeds in cups before planting them and they never came up, so my husband just went ahead and stuck them out in garden anyway and much to my surprise, they finally came up. Well, my question is…….. Does it sound like these are going to do OK this year or should I just not get my hopes up and try again next year? The plants seem to be healthy!
Paula said,
Stacie,
I just got some seeds from a “veteran grower” last week. He told me if I plant them right away (here in Indiana), I should be able to get a few veggies before the frost. He told me that if you add some MIRACLE GROW, or other sort of fertilizer you will get some really good sized luffas. Hope this helps!
sarah said,
Soaking the loofah in vinegar is one way to debug it, Maybe this has been said in a previous post, sorry if it has . . . . . . impatience got the better of me
100 Things You Can Make Yourself (cool list!) - Deals, Coupons, Free Stuff - City-Data Forum said,
[...] A loofah [...]
Grow your own luffa | A Green Life - Tree-hugging Optional said,
[...] Grow your own luffa This is definitely something I will be doing next year – growing my own luffa. [...]
dawn said,
i decided to grow some loofa for the first time this year. i only planted one plant. didn’t get a whole lot of gourds, but the ones that i do have are getting big. i plan to leave the larger ones on the vine for one more week and then bring them in to cure in the attic for a couple of weeks before peeling and removing the seeds.
i’ve purchased loofa and soap making supplies at a craft store before and made loofa slices filled with soap. they make very nice gifts. going to try it again this year with the few sponges that i grew.
btw, i grew lots of different kinds of squash in my garden this year and all except the loofa was seriously attacked by squash bugs. i believe in organic gardening, but i did have some omri products to fight the bugs. i opted out. just didn’t want to spend the time or money ‘chasing the bugs’ for the rest of the growing season. i still had a very nice harvest of two different kinds of pumpkins, spagetti squash, butternut, patty pan, zucchini, etc. so the bugs got some. i’m still overwhelmed! and the loofa vines stayed green and undisturbed!
Grow your own luffa | Eco-Friendly Cleaning said,
[...] Grow your own luffa Easy AdSense by UnrealThis is definitely something I will be doing next year – growing my own luffa. [...]
The Frugal Musician grows Luffa « the frugal musician said,
[...] http://www.groovygreen.com/groove/?p=689 [...]
Grace said,
I grew up in the Caribbean and loofas grew wild in my backyard from strewn seeds. You can just let them dry on the vine in the sun and then easily peel the dried skin and shake out the seeds. You can then soak it to make it softer if you want or use it in its rough state to exfoliate dead skin cells. It’s WAY easier that way.
Lettuce Share » Blog Archive » Growing Luffas said,
[...] it dries and hardens into a sponge. I’m going to let Groovy Green’s blog post, How To Make (and grow) A Luffa! be my guide. It seems easy enough – grow, peel, deseed, and [...]
solarpanelsforsale said,
This is pretty cool. I wonder if these would glow in a warmer climate? Looks like a lot of fun to grow them. They would also make good gifts.
luffa question said,
When do you replace the sponges? Also, is there like a expiration date on the sponges? i.e.: 30 luffa sponges are planted but are not used yet, will they expire or go bad at certain point in time?
Weekly Link Roundup — A few random sites we like « innBrooklyn said,
[...] I didn’t know that you could ‘grow’ your own luffa sponge [...]
kitty said,
i wonder if you added food colouring to some warm water could you change it’s colour???
100 Things you can make yourself : Thrifty Mommy - Time and Money Saving Tips from Thrifty Mommy said,
[...] A loofah [...]
Honey said,
Awesome! Great article and pics. I appreciate the update with where to buy the seeds.
eric drews said,
hello! i would like to buy loofha sponge seeds. help me. thanks
monica said,
I’ve bought the seeds following the link you gave us. I’ve never grown Luffa before, but I have some space in my vegetable garden, so I thought why not try this year..:) And since it can be grown on fence or trellis, it won’t take much space anyway! Thank you.
How To Make & Grow A Loofah Sponge : TipNut.com said,
[...] feature is from Groovy Green with their instructions on how to grow Luffa (or Loofah) and Make Your Own Luffa Sponges: For the third autumn in a row I am pleased to be harvesting my shower sponge for next year. Now I [...]
Adele said,
What a great way to go green! I will be trying this and will keep you updated
Cyprus Girl said,
This loofah is just the gift of nature.
Linda said,
I had my first plant this past season and got lots of loofahs. I let them dry on the vine however, the plant starts to get a bit shabby looking at the end of the season and I tore it down. Now I have lots of green loofahs. I want to know how to properly dry them without rotting (off the vine)? I live in AZ and it is getting quite warm. I took the plant down yesterday and now I have them sitting in the sun right now.
just starting said,
Are these plants perennial or annual? Thank you, but I can’t find the answer to this question anywhere. Good info on how to grow, but it needs a little more on the basis of the plant. The type, where to grow, what amount of space in between plants, perennial or annual. That kind of stuff. We need to know where to plant since we are doing a 4 year crop rotation plan.
Donna said,
We absolutely love the Loufa. Have a small goat farm and we use the loufa or Loofa or howevr you wont to spell it, To clean the feed buckets and watering troughs with. They are great for scrubbing the bug stuff from vehicles and even scrubbing the whole vehicle. Great for scrubbing dishes, pots and pans etc, yes, and they are great in the shower. I don’t know why I didn’t save my seeds from 2 year ago. but cannot find the seeds anywhere in the stores, this year. Have to have some more seeds asap. We just planted ours on the back fence at the back of the garden in the past. Live in Krum, Tx.
Wild Woman Fundraising How many things do you buy? How many things do you make? – Wild Woman Fundraising said,
[...] for ricotta gnocchi) A guitar 4th of July sparklers A lava lamp Tortillas Kimchi A hula hoop A loofah Cheese 3D glasses A Kite An igloo Modeling clay Crossword puzzles Cuff [...]
Luffa Plant – What is it? Loofah Plant, really? | WidiWidi said,
[...] case you have not seen this plant before, this is a pic of the luffa vine in action. This is an article I found with pics on what to do when you get your luffa fruit.I recently found some free bamboo on [...]
Aarthi Chandrasekhar said,
The vegetable is called ‘ridge gourd’ and is commonly available in India. Traditionally, it has been used in the form of a loofah for ages and is a cheap source of exfoliation found in local markets, well before the nylon loofahs came in. While local markets have them in the whole form, boutiques sell overpriced versions with a flat piece framed on a turkish towel material.
The vegetable in itself is a tasty dish. You could eat it with the skin to obtain optimal nutrients (just scrape off the ridged portion). At the simplest, you can cook it with salt and turmeric and eat it with rice or bread.
Ben Hodges said,
Michael’s Original grow and sell Luffa we recommend them for doing the washing up, we also make sponges from coconut pith, and brushes from sago palm fibre…all hand made, fair trade and biodegradable..http://www.greenbrands.co.uk
Kelli McCollum said,
Is a Zucchini Squash the same as a Luffa sponge squash ? I have some Large Zucchini Squash that i would like to make into a Luffa sponge if i can ? Thank You for your answer to this question !
Ellis said,
Hi, can the luffa be grown on a commercial basis and where is the market
Regards,
Ellis
Dennis Kammerer said,
Hello
first time at growing luffa I live in florida & having growing luffa the only thing I find they demand water every day or they start 2 wilt. my vine is about 40 or so feet covers a large bush & produces many beautiful flowers allot of people stop to ask what is that so I spend much time greating people lv meeting people.
Dennis
PS runs along fence that is were the length comes in
Jadalina said,
We got our seeds from Walmart, of all places, but have seen them for sale in numerous garden catalogs. They’re typically listed with the gourds.
Jadalina said,
@JustStarting
They’re annual, full sun, like a lot of water. The “tropical” part shoulda clued you in. They’re vines, go up to 10 ft from what ours do, so you can figure out how to space it from that.
EGControls Peter said,
Learn how to grow/make your own Luffa shower sponge! Completely cool.
Jon said,
We lived in southern Sudan in the early 80s and this plant grew like weeds all over the place (especially on fences). Everyone used these sponges (Sudanese Arabic calls it “leefah”) to scrub taking a shower or even on dishes sometimes. Whenever you needed a new one you just went out the back door and picked one. No one ever got rid of the vines so they just constantly kept going. We thought it was hilarious that Americans were paying money for this thing. I later lived in Egypt and the Middle East where they call them loofah.
Dave from Solar Power said,
Pretty cool, I never knew about growing a Luffa.
Things you can make yourself instead of buying | That Frugal Girl said,
[...] Loofah [...]
The Turning Of The Worm | Green Energy Panels - How to Save Energy said,
[...] up out of the soil in into the backyard garden, Groovy Green has a post on how to grow a luffa (plus a follow up). For the third autumn in a row I am pleased to be harvesting my shower sponge [...]