Gourds (Cucurbitaceae) When we talk about gourds, we refer to a broad group that includes pumpkins, melons, cucumbers, squashes, and zucchini. These plants come in many varieties, ranging from edible types to those grown primarily for ornamental and crafting purposes due to their hard shells. In this book, we will focus on edible gourds. Planting and harvesting gourds Planting and propagating I recommend starting all gourds as seedlings in the greenhouse before transplanting them into the garden. Directly sowing seeds outdoors can be risky, as providing the ideal combination of warmth and moisture needed for germination may be difficult. Gourd seeds require a lot of moisture to sprout, but overly…