As Green as a Gourd

I've heard the idiom, "As Green as a Gourd" many times growing up.  It is always used to describe something that is not ripe or not ready for use.  It just so happens in this case the saying is literal.  My gourds are green, unripe and not ready for use. Somehow I acquired a small packet of birdhouse gourd seeds. Now that I think about it, I think it was at a seed swap at a sustainable agriculture conference I attended.

In the very last row of the garden, I planted a few seeds thinking that it might be neat to grow some birdhouse gourds, dry them and make birdhouses to hang from the trees.  I'm normally all about growing things that are edible, but I made an exception!  I built a crude trellis for the vines to grow on and looking back, I can now see that I highly underestimated the vigor with which birdhouse gourd vines grow. The vines promptly weighed down the trellis and collapsed it and now I'm doing everything I can do to keep it from using the okra plants as a trellis.  It has started to grow on the perimeter fence and the cows and goats don't even eat the vine.

It's like a jungle!

They do make beautiful flowers, though, that open in the morning sun and brighten the back side of the garden.  My yellow squash and zucchini squash have been attacked by some green worms that have really put a dent in our squash harvest, but the worms have left the gourd foliage alone.  Wow, the plant doesn't seem to have predators.

Yellow blooms of the birdhouse gourd

Now underneath the collapsed trellis, you can get a look at one of the actual 'birdhouses.'  There are several in that jungle along with one that has rotted on the ground.  I will try to get out there tomorrow after church and see what I can do to lift these off the ground so that they don't rot.  We have had a lot of rain, so they are in danger of rotting, if I delay doing anything about it.

One of the 'birdhouses'

According to what I've read, you are to leave them growing until the vine turns brown.  Then you hang them and allow them to dry.  Once you can shake the gourd and hear all the seeds shaking inside, you can drill a hole in it and make your birdhouse.  The vines are very far from turning brown and in fact are the healthiest thing in my garden right now.  

Next year, I'll be better prepared and will build a sturdier trellis, but for now I'll try to do something to salvage the green gourds I have.  If I'm successful, it will be a neat project to try my hand at making some birdhouses out of them.  As you can see they have some interesting shapes.  Right now I'll wait as my gourds are still green (as a gourd).