Plant Spotlight: Luffa Gourd

I’ve grown luffa gourds for three years now and I love them. Full-sized luffas become natural sponges as a more Earth-friendly alternative to plastics. Small-sized luffas are edible and serve a staring role in several Indian and Sri Lankan dishes. I love luffas!

Growing notes:

• Needs a lot of sunlight — at least 8 hours, but more is better.

• Fine in poor soil, but it will take over any area where you plant it. So plant it somewhere out of the way.

• Will keep producing until frosts kill the plant.

• Best to harvest luffa small when you want to eat it and brown when you want to use it as a sponge.