from the vine, being careful to harvest with 
part of the stem left on the fruit. We clip all 
the gourds in a sulpho-naphthol solution and dry 
in the sun. Store in an airy place. Coat with 
liquid wax, white shellac, or varnish when dry. 
The wax gives a fine dull lustre and is pre¬ 
ferred by many. Wax gives better protection 
than shellac and varnish. Shellac is inexpensive 
and quite satisfactory. We prefer a good coat¬ 
ing of a medium-quality varnish. It dries much 
slower than shellac but affords good protection 
and heightens the natural color of the gourd. 
The hard-shelled gourds, Lagenaria, native of 
tropical Africa and Asia, require a long time to 
mature. The vines sometimes run thirty to forty 
feet and should not be planted closer than eight 
feet apart. To this species belong the interest¬ 
ing Hercules Club, Dipper, Bottle, Powder Horn 
Serpent, and others. The flowers are a white 
night-blooming kind fertilized by moths. They 
are well worth attempting to grow if one has 
the space and can start early. In Massachusetts 
we keep trying, with success about half the 
time. We leave these fruits on the vine until 
frost and then harvest with care. We hang them 
in a warm airy place after washing and drying. 
It takes all winter to dry them until the seeds 
rattle when shaken. Do not attempt to cut or 
work these gourds until thoroughly dried. 
We raise and sell gourds and gourd seed, and 
will do our best to answer all inquiries about 
them. 
Our seed specialties have won many awards 
including first and special prizes. This season 
they have been awarded four Silver Medals in 
the Boston and New York shows. You will 
make no mistake in planting our seed. 
