Luffa cylindrica/Sponge Gourd
Luffa aegyptiaca, the sponge gourd, Egyptian cucumber or Vietnamese luffa, is an annual species of vine cultivated for its fruit, native to South and Southeast Asia.
Luffa cylindrica is an important edible and medicinal plant that belong to the Cucurbitaceae family. It has many common names including smooth luffa, sponge luffa, vegetable sponge gourd, climbing okra, dishcloth gourd, and Chinese okra.
Luffas can be used in a variety of ways as a food source, skin scrubber, and home cleaning sponge. The dried fibrous skeleton of the gourd also makes a great natural craft material. You can create fiber crafts, mixed media art projects, and home items using dried vines, gourds, and seeds.
Grown for its unique fruit, luffa takes much longer to grow than other gourds, about 90 to 120 days. And once the fruit has reached its mature size, you need to figure in several weeks for it to develop its tough inner fibers and dry on the vine before you can harvest it.
Luffas thrive in hot and humid conditions. They need a trellis or fence to grow upon as luffa is a vining plant, similar to cucumber. Luffa is a relatively easy plant to grow, but is susceptible to pickleworm, like many other curcurbits.
Edible Gardening
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