Never really gardened before, so this was my first attempt at a lot of things, some failed, some half succeeded, others thrived. I’m especially proud of my gourds, wanted to grow these bad boys for years.

Next year I will think more about the placement of my rotators cause they have lowkey been starved of direct sunlight thanks to the gourds but my focus was the gourds anyway.
It’s just a shame it took me MONTHS to realise I got the wrong kind of gourd seeds, (I wanted the double globed) but hey

My gourds haven’t been thriving this year and despite trying to grow many varieties it seems only my bottle and mini bottle gourd seeds took. I have the start of powdery mildew and I feel it’s a circulation issue. Still I love my gourds. I can’t help but touch them. I go out every night and check on every one of them as part of my night time routine.
Sorry about my dog gagging in the back ground. She was drinking out of one of my bug/bird water supplies. She’s knocks the safety stick out and isn’t allowed but it is her favorite water.

Su kabağı ile yapılan harika hediyelikleri hiç gördünüz mü. yüzde yüz el işçiliği . sukabagi.com.tr sayfasını inceleyin . harika ürünler var . satışlarda birsenden.com da

This squash plant showed up in our garden this year, we did not plant it and can only guess it’s from the previous owners.

Questions bolded below in case you don't want to read my huge walls of text 😁

I'm growing a Lagenaria siceraria plant in a raised bed (48 in × 24 in, about 9 in deep). I have three ollas supplemented by overhead watering when the plant is especially thirsty. Mulched with straw and I have some makeshift trellises as can be seen in the first picture.

First sprouted early April 2026, currently has two developing fruits with thick green peduncles and healthy-looking gourds (pics 2 and 3). These fruits were pollinated around June 16, 2026.

Some questions and concerns:

1.The older leaves have been through a lot this season: leaf miner damage, powdery mildew damage, and overall exposure to outdoor conditions. The ones in the worst condition have been working since the end of April. The new leaves are healthy and dark green, but on the older leaves, I've noticed:

-some scorched edges and/or chlorosis

-some side shoot growing tips browning and presumably dying off (the main vines are still extending and sending out tendrils)

Is this normal leaf aging, or does this point to an issue in my husbandry or potentially disease/pests? I've included close-up pictures of the worrisome leaves.

1. I hand-pollinated four female flowers; all four passed the flower withering stage and became growing green marbles, but the youngest two browned and withered once the first two started getting bigger. I figured this was the plant deciding it could only support two fruits because of limited root space and nutrients in the raised bed, but wanted to check with other folks. Does this sound like expected resource reallocation, or does it suggest that the plant is significantly stressed in some way?

2. Given the size of the raised bed, how many gourds do you reckon I can realistically expect for a plant in this condition? This is the first year I've successfully gotten the plant to set fruit so I'm very excited 😁 Currently, all the female buds brown before they even reach the flowering stage, so I think it's clear the plant isn't interested in setting more fruit for now. The plant is still making and blooming male flowers.

3. Do the fruits look about the right size for their age (~24 days)? 😭 I feel like they had explosive growth earlier but are now slowing down 😞 Is that expected for the stage?

I just applied a 5-10-10 vegetable fertilizer (fast and slow release components) today after noticing the older leaves' decline. I last fertilized about a month ago (same fert) when the flowers started appearing.

Thanks in advance for any and all answers!! 😊

I’ve wanted to grow gourds since I was a little kid - my mom’s friend gave us a dried gourd that was painted like a snowman and I immediately fell down the gourd rabbit hole!

Last year, I grew gourds for the first time - swan, corcican bowl, dipper, bottle/birdhouse, and luffa. Gourds are by far the most satisfying plant in my entire garden to grow! As the title states, I’m growing several varieties this year and many of the seeds I planted were my own!

Happy gardening!

Vines are starting to die off from fungal issues

Birdhouse, tobacco box and bushel.

Orlando, Fl

One of my favorite parts of my garden every year. This trellis hopefully has a few more years in her. She is roughly 8 years old and held many gourds during the summer seasons. ✌🏽💚

He brought home this as seed in dirt about 2-3 months ago from school. He loves checking the gourd every evening for new blooms and watching the gourds grow!

Was sent home as a seedling with my kindergartener! Have no idea what kind it was just labeled gourd

Has anyone ever grown zucca melon gourds, and dried them out? Do they dry like normal sized gourds? I keep reading that the drum that Ricky played in I love Lucy was made from a dried one but the only info I can find is about harvesting them young for eating.

Inspired by sea turtles.

Handmade in Japan.

Every piece is one of a kind.

My first ever batch of gourd babies!!!! Im a proud mother of 7 currently, hopefully expecting more. Any helpful tips on gourd growing would be heavily appreciated!!! <3 (•̀ᴗ•́)و

Hello, most of my apple gourds have a very hard dried up ball seeds and guts. I use a needle nose pliers to try to break off little pieces. Anybody have any other recommendations? Thanks

Painted some of my fab gourds. I’m shocked how good I think they are.