My Loofah Growing Experience

My Loofah Growing Experience

This article may appear a little deceiving in that my final loofah doesn’t look like the photo above…which is why I wanted to share my loofah growing experience! Many of you, like me, enjoy seeing what we can grow in our gardens, even if it doesn’t make sense in our growing zones. I love to use a loofah in my normal showering routine. In attempt to become more self-sustaining in my life, it made sense to me to try to grow my own.

Growing a loofah plant from seed took a little more patience than most of my other plants. They usually grow in zone 7 or higher. My particular seeds took over four weeks to sprout (I’m in zone 5b). In fact, I really thought the seeds were duds. But, then all of a sudden, there they were….lovely looking plants that almost looked like baby grape vines.

Once the tender plants broke through the soil, the leaves and stem seemed to grow pretty quickly. However, in spite of the quick growing spurt, it was important that i had the plant growing in a warm place in my greenhouse knowing it would take some time to grow.

Characteristics of a Growing Loofah Plant

The loofah pod itself first appears at the base of a bright yellow flower. It grows into an oblong shape that would have probably filled out if it’s root system was allowed to expand in a larger pot. I did have two different plants growing in one 2-gallon pot. This was definitely too small. If I would have transplanted at this young stage, it may have traumatized the plant (I did traumatize young plants the first year trying to plant them in a bigger pot).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My growing season was only about 7 or 8 months in my greenhouse. I had to pull the loofah off of the plant somewhat prematurely (I think).

After allowing the loofah (pictured above, looking like a zucchini) to dry on the counter, I was able to peel away the skin to reveal the loofah texture. Unfortunately, the loofah sat too long, and moisture got inside of the dried plant. Either the plant wasn’t allowed to grow as big as a normal loofah plant, or it wasn’t dried properly. Either way, I’m feeling pretty determined to try again, since I love to use loofahs!

 

 

---

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”

Mark 10:27

---

 

 

Here are the seeds if you’d like to try growing them for yourselves!

 

Equipment you might like:

Garden Journal

Gardening gloves (these are awesome)

Other Seeds from High Mowing

Consider growing these plants for your flock

If you don’t want to grow a loofah, but would just rather buy one, get some here.

 

 

Here is a great place to order seeds.

Strainer Lids for jars (Sprouting)

Another option for straining (Sprouting)

Trays for growing Microgreens with Domes

A Kit if you would rather have everything together

 

Good resource for explaining and growing sprouts versus microgreens

Another great blog resource for growing information

 

Some links are affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. See more info here.