A couple of years ago when I was working at an eco cosmetics company, I got a seed packet of luffa (luffas?) in order to grow my own loofah sponges. I’ve had a couple of years trying now with different problems each year*, but the one thing I HAVE nailed is how to get the seeds to germinate quickly!
*The first year I didn’t pot them on enough and kind of forgot, the second year they didn’t get enough water and perished in the greenhouse, with a couple of flowers on them. I was devastated.
Luffas are a plant that need a very long, very hot growing season, and the seeds themselves are notoriously tricky to germinate. I’ve got this bit down to an art though, with a total of three days to germinate and two more to throw up a seedling…I’ll share my secrets in the hope in return for good karma, this is the year I can finally end up with a home grown sponge (and honestly, I’m at the end of the seed packet so I’m not sure I can deal with the heartbreak of another unsuccessful pack!)
Before we get started, I really must stress the hot requirement for luffas – there is no point starting them inside and then moving them outside to our British climate, as they won’t survive – you will need a greenhouse or similar, and a warm one at that! I intend to keep my plants inside the house until around May and then transfer to the greenhouse. They are spreaders – similar to squash plants – so be aware it is a space commitment!
To speedily start your luffa seeds, you will need:
- Luffa seeds (I got mine from Suttons but I think they are fairly widely avalible)
- A propagator or somewhere warm like an airing cupboard
- Seed compost
- A kitchen towel
- Sandwich bag or air tight pot
- A small amount of water
- Scissors or snips
It sounds a bit scary but the best way to quickly germinate luffa seeds is to snip a tiny bit off the end of them so that water can penetrate the inner part of the seed. Using your scissors, snip around half to one mm off the crimped end until you can just about see the layer under the seed shell. (Here’s a little video of the whole process I did on Instagram if you’d rather watch than read!)
Once you’ve snipped your seeds, wrap them in a moist kitchen towel, and pop that in a sandwich bag or similar air tight container in a warm place – I used a propagator as I have one, but an airing cupboard would be fine too. The trick here is to not let the seeds dry out, so make sure the paper is moist at all times. If the seeds do dry out, they’re done for, so you’ll need to get new ones…
For me, the seeds had sprouted within three days, but they could be shorter or a little bit longer for you depending on the conditions, so check them frequently. Once they have sprouted, carefully remove them from the kitchen roll and pop sprouty side down (as these are the roots) in to a pot of fine seed compost. For these, I’ve used RocketGro seed compost mixed with vermiculite, because it’s what I had to hand – the key is just to make sure it’s a fine seed compost.
Pop these pots somewhere warm and bright. If you’ve got grow lights, use them, but I don’t, so my luffa pots are living on a bright windowsill for the foreseeable future.
Two days after potting, my seedling have appeared. I’ll be making sure the compost is kept moist, and then the next thing to do will be repotting these in a few weeks when they’re a bit bigger.
Hopefully I can update the luffa blog tag throughout this year with the progress – wish me luck! – Helen x
Helen Likes Plants 
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