Gourd Art

As we raced through the aisles of the San Francisco Flower & Garden Show, Betty’s gourds slowed us to a crawl. We were famished and in search of lunch, so promised ourselves a trip back to her booth. I’m so glad we went back.

Check out these show-stoppers:

Gourd Man holding a cat

Can you believe she sculpted these as they grew? I love the cat’s casual pose and expressive eyes.

Kitty gourd with amber eyes

Here’s another kitty. She has some amazing horse sculptures on her site as well.

That’s Betty taking of her mask

I wish I had a better shot of the artist, but you can see several of her photos on her website linked below. People were clamoring for a closer look.

Extraordinary chess board

If you don’t play chess, this is certainly a good excuse to start.

Gourd mask

Betty uses a variety of techniques to encourage the unusual growth of these gourds. I found her website after the show and learned a bit more about the technique. I grew a few birdhouse gourds several years ago, so can attest to how fun they are to grow. I’m still waiting for a mama bird and her family to move in.

Betty’s website says she’s

an avid gardener and specializes in experimenting with hand-trained, manipulated and molded gourds. This interest is what led her to meet with master gourd trainer, Jim Story of Pendleton Indiana from whom she learned the art of growing gourds in knots, spirals and flat wood molds.

You can read more about her growing technique and inspiration on her site.

If you’re as fascinated as I am, be sure to check out Finch Gourds. She’s written a book on the subject as well.

In most gardens green is good. Brown, not so much. That old saw gets turned on its ear, however when you’re drying birdhouse gourds.

I planted these gourds from seed for the first time last summer. Adorable green mini-gourds came and went, but in the end only two grew to full size. Then the cold weather set in and that was that.

The Birdhouse Gourds Twins

I brought ‘the gourd twins’ inside thinking the forced-air heating would speed up the drying process. You can’t rush nature so I did the next best thing: I dressed them up in scarves, moved them around as household decor, and eventually set them on top of a cabinet to dry undisturbed.

Cozy gourds settling in for the winter

A few weeks ago, my son came to me and said “Mom, I don’t think you’re going to like this.” He assumed they had gone bad. In this case, brown is good. It means the gourds are finally dry and ready for crafting.

Of course, now I’m afraid to make my move. I want to use one of the twins for its intended purpose: a birdhouse. To do that, I need to drill a hole.

What if it cracks?

What if it snaps?

What if “I” make the hole too big?

Truth be told, my husband is the power tool guy around here, so he’ll be doing the drilling with me hovering nearby like the nervous new mom that I am. Let’s face it: I’ve waited nine months for these twins. I don’t want to mess this up.

The second gourd, if all goes well, will be welcoming garden fairies. I don’t really have an heir and a spare. I’ll be pressing both gourds into service. That’s a lot of pressure resting on their sloping shoulders. Let’s hope we are all up to the task.