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Tips for Turning a Gourd into a Birdhouse

Turning a gourd into a birdhouse can be a long drawn out process depending on to what extent you want to take the process. If you plan to or are growing gourds to use as birdhouses don't get too excited you may have many months ahead of you. From seed to birdhouse can actually take as much as a year or more.

First you will want to obtain seeds for your gourds, plant them, tend to them and wait for them to grow (the plants and the gourds). Most gourds that work well for birdhouses take from 2 to 3 months to mature. Make the most of this time and enjoy watching the attractive vines spread over your fence or trellis. You can grow them on the ground but the birdhouse gourds develop a nicer shape if grown on climbing vines.

What ever you do don't pick your gourds until the vines have died off. It is best if possible to wait until that first fall frost. There are two reasons for doing this. First the gourds will continue to mature and grow in size as long as the vine is supporting it. Second it is much easier to find your mature gourds which can become almost invisible in the large lush green leaves of the plant.

Don't get too excited once the vines die off though the steps of taking your gourd from living thing to birdhouse is still several months away. If there is any dirt on your gourds you will need to clean that off and let the gourds dry in the sun for a couple days. This is a very important step. The gourds must be dry before going into the next phase.

Now you must find a dark, dry, cool, well ventilated area where the gourds can be stored for several months to a year. This time mainly depends how dry the area is and how thick the skin is on your gourds. The ideal gourds for birdhouses are a thick skinned gourd. This is necessary for the birdhouse to hold up in exposure to the weather.

During the drying period you will want to inspect them at least once every week or two. You should be checking for any gourds that are rotting; through these out, they will not be able to be used for birdhouses. You will also want to inspect for unwanted guest such as mice who love to borrow into the gourds and make a home for themselves. You will also want to check the drying process you will know your gourds are dry when you shake the gourd and the seeds rattle inside. Until that happens they are not ready to be birdhouses.

Once you hear the seeds rattling inside then you start the real work. First you will need to clean

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