Botanical Interests
Corsican Gourd Hard-Shelled Seeds
Corsican Gourd Hard-Shelled Seeds
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Product Details
Product Details
Once cured, hard-shelled gourds, such as Corsican, will last indefinitely and can be painted, carved, cut, or drilled as you would do with wood for dozens of craft projects. Carve them, leave the natural color, or paint these 6"–10" round and 3½"–5" deep gourds any color you want. Gourds may be sown 24" apart if trellised.
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- Variety Info
- Sowing Info
- Growing Info
Variety Info
Days to Maturity: 140 days
Family: Cucurbitaceae
Type: Hard-Shelled Gourd
Native: Zimbabwe
Hardiness: Frost-sensitive annual
Exposure: Full sun
Plant Dimensions: 15'–30' vines
Variety Info: Corsican is a lagenaria type gourd. Mature green gourds are 6"–10" in diameter, and 3 ½"–5" deep; the shape resembles a wheel of cheese.
Attributes: Frost Sensitive
Sowing Info
When to Sow Outside: RECOMMENDED. 2 to 4 weeks after your average last frost date, and when soil temperature is at least 60°F, ideally 70°F.
When to Start Inside: 2 to 4 weeks before your average last frost date, recommended for areas with short growing seasons. Sow in biodegradable pots that can be planted directly in the ground.
Days to Emerge: 5 – 10 days
Seed Depth: 1"
Seed Spacing: 2–3 seeds per mound
Thinning: When several leaves, thin to 1 per mound
Growing Info
Harvesting: Hard-shelled gourds should remain in the garden as long as there is any life left in the vines. Some gourd growers leave gourds in the garden during the winter, which adds to their characteristics for craft projects. Use a sharp knife or pruners to cut stem leading to gourd, leaving 1"–3" of stem for a handle.
- Heather G.Rated 5 out of 5 starsJun 22, 20245 Stars
I love watching this vine take off! I’m growing several varieties of squash right now and this has been the most vigorous. It has its first flowers now and I can’t wait to see how it goes. Besides that, I’m happy it’s a great climber.
Which best describes you as a gardener? Intermediate - Jenni R.Rated 5 out of 5 starsOct 2, 20245 Stars
I would like to receive WHOLE EARS your brightly color corn.
Which best describes you as a gardener? Intermediate - Luela S.Verified BuyerRated 5 out of 5 starsSep 23, 20245 Stars
I love your seeds! I haven’t planted anything from this order, but everything I’ve ordered in the past has been terrific! Thank you so much!
Blessings, Luela
Which best describes you as a gardener? Intermediate - Mark A.Rated 2 out of 5 starsAug 26, 20242 Stars
Planted these gourds, promised sister who does crafts some of them. 3 seeds germinated from whole pkg. I'm sorry they did! they put out vines EVERYWHERE. One vine is at least 20 yards long. Smothered everything else on the 30ft long trellis. I got tons of flowers but not a single gourd. It is now almost Sept and powdery mildew is killing the vine. It even reached way over onto my pepper plants, and I constantly have to redirect it. Must have had over 100 male flowers. Not a single gourd.
Which best describes you as a gardener? ExpertEGEpic GardeningAug 26, 2024Hey Mark,
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your thoughts in a review. Your feedback is invaluable to us, and we are committed to ensuring your experience is positive. The Corsican Gourd produces vines that are 15' to 30' in length, so its vigorous growth isn't surprising! We share its size both inside the seed packet and on our website, as it's quite a big grower and needs a lot of room. As recommended in the extended info inside our seed packet, we encourage people to prune vines at 8 feet to encourage branching and more gourd production.
However, you described lots of flowering but no gourds. This species flowers at night, and as a result, it's reliant on nighttime pollinators more than daytime pollinators. We often recommend hand-pollination for this variety when someone sees a lot of flowering but no fruit production.
Excess nitrogen in the soil can promote the growth of more foliage and fewer fruits, so this might also be a concern; if you regularly fertilized the plant, it'd explain the really long vines but no gourd production. We generally recommend one initial fertilization with a balanced fertilizer when planting. Otherwise, we don't recommend fertilizing this variety, although some gardeners have had results from using a single dose of a liquid, phosphorus-based fertilizer to spur additional flowering and fruit production during the season. I hope this information is helpful. Thank you once again for your input. Keep on growing 🌻️
- Elizabeth V.Verified BuyerRated 5 out of 5 starsAug 14, 20245 Stars
I am enamored by this gourd! Such a beautiful plant.
Which best describes you as a gardener? Beginner
