How's this for rapid growth? One week ago, this gourd was just a flower! :)

Picture this: Just a week ago, I was anxiously transferring pollen from male to female loofah flower in the fading light of day.

Now here’s this little gourd hanging off the vine measuring in at around 15cm already. It’s hard to think that just 7 days ago it was a flower blooming on a vine!

I’ve heard about how gourds and cucurbits have an amazing growth spurt after the flowers are pollinated, but watching it happen before my eyes is just phenomenal. Remember, I suffer from severe Doubting Thomasism. Seeing is believing, and I believe, now I do!

However, just so you don’t think I’m only focused on vegetables (LOL), here’s my next project that I started with my niece a week ago:

The first two sunflower sprouts.

… sunflowers!

I got a bunch of seeds from DG on the GCS forum, and because I was impatient (and my niece bored), I started the seeds in paper pots to steal some time to prepare the plots to grow them. Once again, I am going to experiment with different locations (that’s why I call myself the curious gardener), so I need plenty of plants. If all goes as planned, the garden will be full of bright yellow sunflowers in August. That ought to alleviate the gloom of the haze that normally descends on the region at the time. I can’t wait to see the flowers!

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