Drying gourds

I grew a few gourds this season (first time). Is there some tricks to drying them.

I was planning on giving them to my 3rd grader so she colud do a craft project

I am keeping the gourds in my (heated) basement out of direct sunlight

Is this correct?

Do I leave them unmodified until they are dry?

How do I know when they are dry?

Prep for painting?

Thanks

Lester

If they were fully ripened, when you picked them, you are doing the right things.

Whenever I've grown harder shelled gourds & dried them...I let them ripen on the vine for as long as I could (needed them out eventually for the next crop), then when I picked them I 'hung' them to dry on my clothesline...for the whole winter, lol. It doesn't get too cold for too long here in Phx, so they were just fine....they do get moldy, but once they are hard & dry, the mold and powdery stuff scrapes right off with various things (green scrubbie, steel wool, wire brush, etc).

I LOVE crafting with and growing gourds. Have fun with your projects!

~Kim

I tried forced drying in a closet with a dehumidifier one year. Found out that it doesn't work. Any others I have ever dried aren't fully dry until the next spring. Keep them up off the ground, like on a pallet. The freeze-thaw cycle seems to help. They are dry when you can hear the seeds rattle inside.

Darius

Did you mean that you should leave them in unheated areas like a shed ro garage?

I assume freezing would break them

I am also zone 5b

Thanks

Lester

As far as I know, they can freeze and thaw outside all winter long, but I think an unheated garage would work just fine.

I too have left the larger gourds outside all winter. It is best to get them off the ground. I have hung them on fences or laid them on top of tall grass.