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The Gourd Report
Vol 1. - Drying Gourds



Fig1 - scrubbing the skin off a dried gourd after soaking

A HELPFUL METHOD: of cleaning the skin off is to wait for your gourds to get light, but not entirely dry. If the gourd still has some dampness to it, the skin removes much easier than when the skin has fully dried on. However, the mold will still be active and present on the gourd, so before handling the gourd, pick it up by wrapping it with a wet towel or rag, or spray it down to prevent mold spores from being spewed into the air around you. Once you have the gourd prepared for moving in one of these methods, submerge it entirely underwater, then you can begin scrubbing.
CAUTION: Larger gourds may not fare well if you remove the skin before they are fully dry. This holds true not only for cleaning before it is completely dry, but for green cleaning, and boiling, which we will cover later in this booklet. We have had large kettles which only weighed a couple pounds, (dried from their original 11+ pounds when freshly picked),

   

Page last updated 7/25/05

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