After curing, the fruits of brightly colored ornamental varieties may be polished with a dry cloth and waxed or dipped in shellac. Utility gourds require additional drying for extended periods in a warm, dry room. The gourds should be hung on wires until they are thoroughly dry. They may then be made into dippers, plant containers, pipes, birdhouses, wastepaper baskets, etc. Zucco gourds are harvested before killing frosts and stored for fall use.
Some cooks use the thick flesh in soups and stews.
Harvest luffa gourds after a hard frost. When they are dry, the outer surface can be easily removed. The resulting rectangular sponge may be used as a scouring pad, bathing sponge, inner soles for shoes and other purposes. The Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service offers its programs to all eligible persons regardless of race, color, national origin, religion, gender, age, disability, marital or veteran status, or any other legally protected status, and is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The mention of any commercial product in this web site does not imply its endorsement by the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service over other products not named, nor does the omission imply that they are not satisfactory.