Sponge gourd (luffa, smooth loofah)

Smooth loofah (Sponge gourd) - Luffa cylindrica = Luffa aegyptiaca.
Three in one: garnish, bath accessories, medicine!
Plant height up to 200 cm. Climbing stems, powerful, with intensive growth and large lobed leaves.
The fruits are cylindrical, smooth, up to 50 cm or more. Flowers are yellow-orange.
Used for vertical landscaping of the garden and to obtain a "plant sponge".
Agrotechnics.
The plant prefers deeply cultivated, fertile soils. Grows well in open sunny places.
Propagated by sowing seeds in March. The depth of seed placement is 0.5-1 cm. Landing in greenhouses: in May-June after 70 cm.
In plants, lateral shoots are pinched and growth is limited. To obtain a sponge, ripened fruits are cut, dried,
the crust is separated, washed from the mucus, the seeds are removed, the skeleton is boiled, dried in the sun on twine.

Sponge gourd, loofah, common loofah, dish-cloth gourd, dishrag gourd, gourd towel, luffa, smooth loofah, vegetable sponge, wash-rag sponge.
Bot. syn.: Luffa cylindrica (L.), Luffa pentandra Roxb., Luffa petola Ser., Momordica cylindrica L., Momordica luffa L.