Everything Else > Tropical Vegetables and Other Edibles

googootz in So. Flo

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gnappi:
I had my brother in law send me some googootz seeds and I am sprouting them in wet paper towels.

I have questions before I waste time on them.

1. Has anyone grown googootz in south Florida successfully?

2. If so do you have any recommendations on soil to use and sun / water requirements?

3. Finally are there any pests I should expect and if so what remedies do I have?

pineislander:
Yes, it is Bottle Gourd,  Lagenaria siceraria. Grew great for me during winter/early spring. Lpves water, fertile sun, and something to climb up on. Grew well for me in the Caribbean, well known to asian people. Had a bit of trouble with powdery mildew but it kept going. Pick young and small for tender fruit, remove oversized fruit or the plant will try to ripen them with a decrease in production. When vine declines the gourds harden to a shell which can be used for bottles, cups, etc, crafts, musical instruments, birdhouses. There are many shapes of lagenaria siceraria, from round to very long and everything in between. Search bottle gourd youtube and google.

recifecbba:
YES! they grow great in south florida! and the caterpillars don't seem to bother them at all (as for cucumbers and squash just are impossible for me) I have some growing right now

gnappi:
My initial attempts were foiled by weather and my dog digging around them. This year I have one plant growing nicely and it's flowering already. On a sad note the flowers shrivel up and fall off the vine.  It seems to be happy and continues to grow well and snake its way around my trellis.

Why would flowers die? Are the flowers not "perfect" and need a separate pollinator plant?

pineislander:
They have male and female flowers on the same vine. Usually you will get a lot of male flowers first then you will start getting female flowers. The female flowers will have a small ovary visible under the flower.

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