Luffa aegyptiaca
Origin: Afro-Eurasia via New Jersey
Improvement status: Breeding Population
Seeds per packet: ~35
Germination tested 10/25: 48%
Life cycle: Annual
This exciting luffah breeding mix comes our way from Meika Laszlo, of Wall Township, New Jersey, a master gardener, skincare formulator, soap maker, mother, and retired special ed teacher, who started growing luffa over a decade ago — and ended up pretty obsessed (her word!). That first luffah was a generic "dishrag" type, sold by a seed-company-who-shall-not-be-named. Meika takes over the story from here:
"The luffa I grew the first few years was great, but I knew it could be better, and by better, I mean a bigger fruit with a more compact fiber. I admittedly became a little obsessed with creating a hybrid luffa, scouring the internet and Google Scholar for different varieties so I could cross them together and create my own hybrid. To make a very long story short I ended up choosing the following varieties:
'Jupiter' (from a Ukrainian seed seller)
'Apple'
'Giant White'
'Long Skinny'
'Jade White'
'Jade Pork'
'Dishcloth'
I grew this combination of seeds on a three-year schedule, hand pollinating 2 varieties at a time, resulting in three F1 hybrids. I continued this method for the next few years until I had a consistent crop of fruits with the traits I wanted. By 2023 I started to let the bees and ants do the pollinating while I enjoyed studying the growing process and making small changes where needed (finding the best organic fertilizer, the ideal amount of water, etc.).
Although I don’t love the name, the seeds that have resulted in this work have become known in my house as “Jersey Giants”, but the variety is really too diverse to get a cultivar name yet. You will get a variety of 3 or 4 different-looking fruits, all with different types of fiber (which is the exciting part of this mix for me). The size and fiber content range from an extremely dense and heavy sponge, great for so many uses (exfoliating feet, scrubbing pots and pans, cleaning grimy leather, etc), to far more soft and airy sponges, delicate enough for exfoliating facial skin. Plus lots of types in between those extremes. When full-grown, sponges can reach 36” long and 15 to 20” in circumference, though most are smaller than that."
Luffah (or Loofah or Luffa) is a tropical annual cucurbit that likes hot sun, regular watering, and a long growing season. In the perfect world, most varieties want 200 days of growing time. These are now rather well adapted to New Jersey, but it's still advisable to start seeds inside to give them a head start.
We're really excited to see what varieties crop out of this diverse mix, and we know Meika will be too. Please keep us posted!
GROWING TIPS: Start plants indoors 2 to 4 weeks before last frost. Plant out once soil begins to warm, a couple weeks after last frost. Provide a good strong trellis, for luffahs like to climb, and ideally they will be laden down with heavy fruit (which don't start getting lighter until they dry). Allow fruits to remain on plant until they dry, or harvest at frost and take inside to a well-ventilated place for them to continue ripening.
