Edible gourds instead of summer squash?
 

[SIZE=4]Has anyone tried edible snake gourd, Tambuli, Italian Edible, or other edible gourds, or maybe a long vine squash like Tatume? Or maybe luffa?
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I'm growing bitter melon this year. I wanted to get something orangey ripe instead of green.

I've never grown the snake gourds or luffas. They are really good though.

Wintermelons are really good too.

I'm only growing Japanese squashes (kabocha type) and bitter melon this year for the squash category.

I've eaten Luffa before. Wasn't bad, but not one of my favorites. They did have to be eaten when very small fruits. Once they start getting some size on them they starting to become sponges.

Not a crop I would grow for food really. Too many other good veggies out there.

Yes we called them baseball bat squash because we didn't know they were a gourd.
Very tasty.
If I recall correctly they tasted like butter salt pepper and garlic.

[QUOTE=KC.Sun;623255]I'm growing bitter melon this year. I wanted to get something orangey ripe instead of green.

I've never grown the snake gourds or luffas. They are really good though.

Wintermelons are really good too.

I'm only growing Japanese squashes (kabocha type) and bitter melon this year for the squash category.[/QUOTE]
[SIZE=5][SIZE=4]I grew bittermelon in the past. Seed from both Evergreen and Baker Creek sometimes I got plants, most of the time I didn't. Last year I tried Baker Creek Green Skin Bittermelon again-I had 100% germination! I ate some raw(thin sliced) I also par-boiled it in salted water, then cooked it with onions, garlic, and tomatoes. I also nibbled the leaves and tendrils a little too. To me, it is more bitter cooked than raw. I did not let my bittermelon turn completely yellow before picking it though, except to sample the red pulp on the seeds!
I hope you have great success with you bittermelon this season!
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Yes, the luffa are wonderful when young and tender. I love them.
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The edible snake gourd is great too. Better even than Tambuli. I couldn't find fresh seed for it last season. I was buying the it from Ferry Morse. I found an old pack.
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Again have fun growing you bitter-melon this year!:D
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[QUOTE=Starlight;623305]I've eaten Luffa before. Wasn't bad, but not one of my favorites. They did have to be eaten when very small fruits. Once they start getting some size on them they starting to become sponges.

Not a crop I would grow for food really. Too many other good veggies out there.[/QUOTE]
[SIZE=4]I guess it depends on what we like. Luffa, esp. the long ridged is one of my favorite vegetables. But I sure agree with you on one thing-no I can't depend on luffa as a food crop. Last season 4 plants made more luffa than I could keep up with-but most years, I will get vines but no luffa. Sighs, the only thing I can really depend on is purslane! lol! But I only stand so much of it:)
anyway, thanks for the reply! :D
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[QUOTE=Worth1;623306]Yes we called them baseball bat squash because we didn't know they were a gourd.
Very tasty.
If I recall correctly they tasted like butter salt pepper and garlic.[/QUOTE][SIZE=4]Gasp! That sounds so very good! :cry: It is a long while until we get squash, gourds, even a tomato! Oh well! :)[/SIZE]

[QUOTE=Worth1;623306]Yes we called them baseball bat squash because we didn't know they were a gourd.
Very tasty.
If I recall correctly they tasted like butter salt pepper and garlic.[/QUOTE]
In other words, the only flavor was what you added to them? :roll:

Haven't figured out how to multi-quote here...

[I]"I'm growing bitter melon this year. I wanted to get something orangey ripe instead of green."

[/I]They should only be eaten when green. The red pulp around the ripe seeds is edible though (but not the seeds themselves). Super productive here, I give away buckets full to Filipino friends. Really good bee plant too, and fragrant when in bloom.

The Italian edible gourd Cucuzzi is good, and is edible until fairly large (at which point they might become that "baseball bat squash"). The younger 'squash' (1-2" wide) can be peeled & cooked like zucchini; medium-large squash can be peeled & cored. Once the gourds stop growing, they begin to get fibrous. Night pollinated, so sometimes fruit set can be iffy... but if pollinators are present, very productive.

I've been growing cucuzza for several years now instead of squash. The vine borers here are awful and they don't touch cucuzza or luffa. You do have to have a place for the huge plants to grow, but they're pretty self sufficient once they establish. I grow luffa in the yard along a chain link fence with little to no amendment or care.

One drawback to growing these for food is that they don't produce too well until the Fall. They might put out a little in the Spring/early Summer, but production seems much better when the days get shorter.

Cucuzza is wonderful when picked small and used like zucchini. You can use the young leaves and grow tips as a green during the summer. A friend of mine makes a killer soup with the gourd and leaves. Luffa you really have to pick young. It gets very fibrous kind of quickly.

Good luck!

[QUOTE=Zeedman;623518]In other words, the only flavor was what you added to them? :roll:

Haven't figured out how to multi-quote here...

[I]"I'm growing bitter melon this year. I wanted to get something orangey ripe instead of green."

[/I]They should only be eaten when green. The red pulp around the ripe seeds is edible though (but not the seeds themselves). Super productive here, I give away buckets full to Filipino friends. Really good bee plant too, and fragrant when in bloom.

The Italian edible gourd Cucuzzi is good, and is edible until fairly large (at which point they might become that "baseball bat squash"). The younger 'squash' (1-2" wide) can be peeled & cooked like zucchini; medium-large squash can be peeled & cored. Once the gourds stop growing, they begin to get fibrous. Night pollinated, so sometimes fruit set can be iffy... but if pollinators are present, very productive.[/QUOTE]
[SIZE=4]I did not always peel the edible snake gourd, when I did I used a vegetable peeler. It was easy. Also, while I did cook some of the gourd, I also ate more than a little raw.
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I grew bitter melon last season, I loved the delicate , little yellow flowers.
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:)
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They are all edible when young, even the leaves and flowers. Some skin are think and soft but turn tough when cooked. I open used the young tender loofah and opo squash, skinned and suateed with garlic and onions. Sometimes used in soup.

You can actually eat bitter melon when it's ripe. I want the ripe fruits because I like the taste of them when cooked. We cook them in a pressure cooker with ribs and never have enough to eat. It's hard to come by the ripe ones because it can rot easily. The ripeness I'm after is when the colors changes from green to orange. But not orange and so ripe that it falls apart when picking it. We don't eat the seeds. We've always scooped them out and discarded them.

Also delicious in teas by itself or with some goji berries boiled with it.

How many bitter melon plants do you usually grow? I'm wondering if 4 plants will be enough. Usually we use about 15lbs of bitter melon to prepare the dish with ribs. It feeds about 5 people.

Is it a productive plant?
[QUOTE=Zeedman;623518]In other words, the only flavor was what you added to them? :roll:

Haven't figured out how to multi-quote here...

[I]"I'm growing bitter melon this year. I wanted to get something orangey ripe instead of green."

[/I]They should only be eaten when green. The red pulp around the ripe seeds is edible though (but not the seeds themselves). Super productive here, I give away buckets full to Filipino friends. Really good bee plant too, and fragrant when in bloom.

The Italian edible gourd Cucuzzi is good, and is edible until fairly large (at which point they might become that "baseball bat squash"). The younger 'squash' (1-2" wide) can be peeled & cooked like zucchini; medium-large squash can be peeled & cored. Once the gourds stop growing, they begin to get fibrous. Night pollinated, so sometimes fruit set can be iffy... but if pollinators are present, very productive.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=TessSR;623616]They are all edible when young, even the leaves and flowers. Some skin are think and soft but turn tough when cooked. I open used the young tender loofah and opo squash, skinned and suateed with garlic and onions. Sometimes used in soup.[/QUOTE]
[SIZE=4]Hi
Why do I have to peel the Opo? The young gourds I grow for vegetables are very tender, even the skin is edible. I only peel it if I can't cook it soon after picking. I do pick it while I can still pierce the skin with a fingernail. About 8" to 10" long.
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I tried some bitter-melon leaf and tendril(raw) But forgot to try Edible Snake or the Tambuli gourd leaves, I will this season. If I grow it.:D
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I also grew a Hybrid edible gourd-but it was just called Hybrid Opo Short. Sort of generic name.

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Normal luffa is very good, strong for many people. Ridged luffa, which is another species is much milder and a great vegetabke.

Gourds can be quite good too.

Tatume is a very good summer squash.

If they are fingernail soft, you don't have to skin the opo squash. Some gourd skin tends to get toughter when cooked. I don't what kind, but I had one before that about half was just wasted after cooking as my kids don't want the tough skin. The opo squash skin is so tender, you don't even see or feel the skin when cooked.

It depends on what kind of bitter melon you are growing. There are some very prolific variety that you will only need 2-3 to grow to harvest a lot. If you use that much bittermelon, I would say plant several more.

I hardly cooked bittermelon. I pickle it with garlic, shalot, vinegar and black pepper. I hardly use salt with it. I read that the salt is what induce the bitter taste. So if must use a salt, use at the end of cooking. But you said you always cook with it, so you're a pro in cooking it :)

I'm sorry, I'm new here and still don't know how to navigate post, reply and quote.

[QUOTE=tarpalsfan;623670][SIZE=4]Hi
Why do I have to peel the Opo? The young gourds I grow for vegetables are very tender, even the skin is edible. I only peel it if I can't cook it soon after picking. I do pick it while I can still pierce the skin with a fingernail. About 8" to 10" long.
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I tried some bitter-melon leaf and tendril(raw) But forgot to try Edible Snake or the Tambuli gourd leaves, I will this season. If I grow it.:D
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I also grew a Hybrid edible gourd-but it was just called Hybrid Opo Short. Sort of generic name.

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This reminds me of the woman I had squash growing at her place.
I had yellow crook neck and flying saucer squash.
She would wait till the darn thing were the size of a hog before she picked them.
Totally worthless as far as I am concerned.
Worth

[QUOTE=KC.Sun;623659]You can actually eat bitter melon when it's ripe. I want the ripe fruits because I like the taste of them when cooked. We cook them in a pressure cooker with ribs and never have enough to eat. It's hard to come by the ripe ones because it can rot easily. The ripeness I'm after is when the colors changes from green to orange. But not orange and so ripe that it falls apart when picking it. We don't eat the seeds. We've always scooped them out and discarded them.

Also delicious in teas by itself or with some goji berries boiled with it.

How many bitter melon plants do you usually grow? I'm wondering if 4 plants will be enough. Usually we use about 15lbs of bitter melon to prepare the dish with ribs. It feeds about 5 people.

[B]Is it a productive plant?[/B][/QUOTE]
Yes, very productive. I even let one fruit on each plant go for seed, and it does not appear to slow production.
[IMG]http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n244/zeedman/GardenPictures103.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n244/zeedman/004_zps630a2055.jpg[/IMG]

I usually grow a 24-30' row, with plants spaced about 24" apart. The photo above is one picking, during peak production. .. so you can probably estimate from that how many plants you will need. In my climate, they are best started as transplants.

In my experience, productivity varies widely, depending upon variety. The Chinese cultivar above, and a [I]very[/I] bitter cultivar from Thailand with small, spiky fruit, are the most productive. Another Chinese cultivar I grew was less productive - but the top-shaped melons were up to one pound each!

Your comments on eating the ripe fruit are interesting. Most of the references I've seen - including advice from Filipino friends - says that the ripe fruit becomes toxic; perhaps pressure cooking neutralizes that. The stage of ripeness you mention is very short lived, they can literally turn to mush in 2-3 days.

I'm not sure about toxicity or if it's a myth. I grew up eating bitter melon. We like the ripe and non ripe versions. My family really like those that start to ripen but are not mushy for the rib dish.

Using about 15lbs bitter melon broiling with ribs or in a pressure cooker with some black bean sauce and you're in heaven.

If you soak it in salt water, it helps reduce the bitterness. You can just boil it and make a tea also.

It's supposed to be really good regulating blood sugar levels.

[QUOTE=Zeedman;623761]Yes, very productive. I even let one fruit on each plant go for seed, and it does not appear to slow production.
[IMG]http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n244/zeedman/GardenPictures103.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n244/zeedman/004_zps630a2055.jpg[/IMG]

I usually grow a 24-30' row, with plants spaced about 24" apart. The photo above is one picking, during peak production. .. so you can probably estimate from that how many plants you will need. In my climate, they are best started as transplants.

In my experience, productivity varies widely, depending upon variety. The Chinese cultivar above, and a [I]very[/I] bitter cultivar from Thailand with small, spiky fruit, are the most productive. Another Chinese cultivar I grew was less productive - but the top-shaped melons were up to one pound each!

Your comments on eating the ripe fruit are interesting. Most of the references I've seen - including advice from Filipino friends - says that the ripe fruit becomes toxic; perhaps pressure cooking neutralizes that. The stage of ripeness you mention is very short lived, they can literally turn to mush in 2-3 days.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=TessSR;623705]If they are fingernail soft, you don't have to skin the opo squash. Some gourd skin tends to get toughter when cooked. I don't what kind, but I had one before that about half was just wasted after cooking as my kids don't want the tough skin. The opo squash skin is so tender, you don't even see or feel the skin when cooked.

It depends on what kind of bitter melon you are growing. There are some very prolific variety that you will only need 2-3 to grow to harvest a lot. If you use that much bittermelon, I would say plant several more.

I hardly cooked bittermelon. I pickle it with garlic, shalot, vinegar and black pepper. I hardly use salt with it. I read that the salt is what induce the bitter taste. So if must use a salt, use at the end of cooking. But you said you always cook with it, so you're a pro in cooking it :)

I'm sorry, I'm new here and still don't know how to navigate post, reply and quote.[/QUOTE]
[SIZE=5]I grew open pollinated Green Skin bitter-melon. I grew five plants that I started from seed in an old cast iron bathtub that I turned into a planter. I tied some jute cord to some bamboo sticks and to a near by Oak Tree branch. They grew like crazy. Flowered and made plenty of Bitter-Melon. I don't think my husband thought that was a blessing! :lol: He isn't as crazy about it as I am.
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No pro here. I don't grow it every year. My family isn't crazy about it. I cook it was tomatoes, onions, and garlic-I like it raw.
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I used to grow Oodam's Devils Claw. The pods are huge and awesome. (invasive if you don't keep the seedlings under control) I ate one young pod raw. It was even more bitter than cooked bitter melon.
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I want to try your Biter-melon recipe. It sounds great.
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I don't know why more people don't try Opo. It is really wonderful. I still have to watch the seed leaf baby plants real close, or the squash bugs or cucumber beetles will get them-but once they start running, I don't think the bugs can stop them:)
:D
WOW! That is a great harvest of biter-melon! Fantastic photo-thanks for sharing!
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[QUOTE=ilex;623694]Normal luffa is very good, strong for many people. Ridged luffa, which is another species is much milder and a great vegetable.[/QUOTE]

Yeah! The Ridged luffa's milder. Regular luffa is OK flavor, better for sponges; Ridged luffa tastes better, but not as good for sponges.

[QUOTE=tarpalsfan;623863][SIZE=5]
I used to grow Oodam's Devils Claw. The pods are huge and awesome. (invasive if you don't keep the seedlings under control) I ate one young pod raw. It was even more bitter than cooked bitter melon.
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Wow, almost missed that comment. If few gardeners have grown bitter melon, there are [B]very[/B] few who have grown devil's claw (Martynia) or even know what it is. The young pods were supposedly used by Native Americans much the way okra is used. I tried it, and it grows fast enough to thrive (and volunteer) even this far North. Like you, I found the pods to be a little too strong for my taste. I still let a few plants grow every year, to harvest the ornamental dry pods. Mine is the Paiute strain.

We call devils claw cow catchers here they grow wild.
Worth

[QUOTE=Worth1;624036]We call devils claw cow catchers here they grow wild.
Worth[/QUOTE]
Been hooked a couple times myself. Really tough spines, even my tiller can't break them. I've always wondered if I could bend the pods when young & form them into fish hooks.:lol:

There are several species, I've read that the yellow-flowered is the most palatable. It is hard to find though, so I've never been able to test it myself.

[QUOTE=Zeedman;623980]Wow, almost missed that comment. If few gardeners have grown bitter melon, there are [B]very[/B] few who have grown devil's claw (Martynia) or even know what it is. The young pods were supposedly used by Native Americans much the way okra is used. I tried it, and it grows fast enough to thrive (and volunteer) even this far North. Like you, I found the pods to be a little too strong for my taste. I still let a few plants grow every year, to harvest the ornamental dry pods. Mine is the Paiute strain.[/QUOTE]
[SIZE=4]I grow Oodhams Devils claw. What was supposed to be Oodhams' as the claws I grow have 3 of four tines instead of 2. I think my seed got crossed somewhere.
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About the Devils Claw plant, aside from the sticky leaves, do you think that other plants like it. I kind of think other plants like it?
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I still have seed, I will drop some and grow another few plants. But probably pick off the pods as I have too many.
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You will think I am strange, but one of my plants grew an awesome branch with 4 big claws on it...I have had it for years-we hung it from my porch like a wind chime.
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thanks for the rely;):)
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[QUOTE=Worth1;624036]We call devils claw cow catchers here they grow wild.
Worth[/QUOTE]
[SIZE=3]Cow catchers! I bet they are too! Shudder! [/SIZE]

I grow Seminole Pumpkin both to eat in place of squash when it is young and also let some mature into small pumpkins. I have given up on growing squash here because if the vine borers don't get it powdery mildew does. The vines are tough and I have never had a squash vine borer bother them. If you pick them green when they are about the size of a baseball you can cook them with the skin on or off. Because of their size a mature pumpkin is just the right size for a pie. I also use the ripe ones for any recipe that calls for butternut squash.

The vines can grow up to 100 feet long and will climb a tree if there is one around. You can keep cutting the vines back if you don't want it to take over your yard. They do put down roots as they grow along the ground. One of my vines grew over an 8 foot privacy fence so cut it at then fence line and forgot about. My neighbor ended up with a nice harvest of them too.

[QUOTE=tarpalsfan;624373][SIZE=3]Cow catchers! I bet they are too! Shudder! [/SIZE][/QUOTE]
That's how they spread their seeds by getting hung up on the legs of a critter after they bust open.
Nature is amazing.
This is the one we have here.
Cant count how many times I have seen a cow with one on its ankles.
[IMG]http://waynesword.palomar.edu/images2/unicor5b.jpg[/IMG]

[QUOTE=Worth1;624379]That's how they spread their seeds by getting hung up on the legs of a critter after they bust open.
Nature is amazing.
This is the one we have here.
Cant count how many times I have seen a cow with one on its ankles.
[IMG]http://waynesword.palomar.edu/images2/unicor5b.jpg[/IMG][/QUOTE]
[SIZE=4]I feel sorry for the poor cow with one of those claws around it's ankle.
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Those are neat claws! (not for a cow of course!) But the claws I grow are different, most of the claws 3, or more likely 4 tines, the tines alone are about 8 about inches long.
The claws I have are white seeded. My friend sent me some black seed for another claw...I got a new camera for Christmas, IF I can figure out how to use it, I will share a photo of one of the 4 tine claws.
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By the way, you have Devil's Claw growing wild? I grew up in S. Texas. I only saw a Devil's Claw once there, and it was one my grandfather had. :)

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[QUOTE=kayrobbins;624377]I grow Seminole Pumpkin both to eat in place of squash when it is young and also let some mature into small pumpkins. I have given up on growing squash here because if the vine borers don't get it powdery mildew does. The vines are tough and I have never had a squash vine borer bother them. If you pick them green when they are about the size of a baseball you can cook them with the skin on or off. Because of their size a mature pumpkin is just the right size for a pie. I also use the ripe ones for any recipe that calls for butternut squash.

The vines can grow up to 100 feet long and will climb a tree if there is one around. You can keep cutting the vines back if you don't want it to take over your yard. They do put down roots as they grow along the ground. One of my vines grew over an 8 foot privacy fence so cut it at then fence line and forgot about. My neighbor ended up with a nice harvest of them too.[/QUOTE]
[SIZE=3]I thought about trying Seminole Pumpkin. I think that they are interesting, coming from South Florida. You mentioned insect resistance, how about disease resistant? Also, when you prune the vine, do side runners start? My neighbor-my in laws-if I thought the vine would repel...:twisted:[/SIZE]

Yes it is wild just north of me everywhere.