Luffas - How many ways can you use them?

For years, I thought luffas (or loofahs) came from the ocean and were relatives of sea sponges. I was ecstatic when I learned that I could grow them, but I didn't realize how much one vine could produce. I planted multiple vines and ended up with dozens of luffas! How many uses can we come up with for them?

Here's what I came up with. What else?

1. Soap stand. Cut a 1-2" thick piece and place your soap on top to prevent the soap from sliding or sitting in water.

2 - Dish scrubber. Scrub stuck on food, or simply use it like you would a cloth to wash dishes.

3 - Exfoliator. When dry, luffas are pretty rough on skin. When they're wet, they're much more gentle.

4 - Dog's chew toy. I used to toss a fresh luffa straight from the vine to my dog every week. It was still soft, so I didn't worry about the sponge poking his mouth or throat. He'd spend hours peeling and shredding it with his teeth. They stayed outside and decomposed fairly quickly, so I didn't bother to clean up the mess, and the morning dew kept them softer for the next few days until I gave him another one.

5 - Clean odd shapes, since the luffa can be bent and squished to fit odd places, like the tread of shoes or baseboards.

6 - Scrub tough stuff, like grill grates or splatters on the oven door.

7 - Eat when young, before they get dry and spongy. They can be used in similar ways as zucchini, though the flavor of ridged luffa is said to be better than the common smooth-skinned luffa.

8 - Possibly as an alternative to coconut coir. I plan to pulverize some and use them in soil blocks to help hold their structure and water retention.

9 - As a paint sponge to give texture to your project

10 - Use in place of floral foam to hold plant stems in place.

11 - As a lining for wire baskets to hold soil inside.

12 - To clean up dirty or gross jobs when you want to throw away your cleaning supplies afterwards.

Some of my list came from my own experience, and some came from Little Sprouts Learning.

giving the ones that didn't dry right (or have a bad spot) to the dog is a briliant idea. Now that I've got another young'un around the house I'll have to do that (it's early to see if I'm going to get a lot this year or not, they take a long time and haven't started to run yet).

I use mine mostly for dishes and for scrubbing in the shower, but I am looking forward to eating them if I do get a lot of fruits.

I am growing luffa for the first time this coming spring. So, thanks!

I have heard of soap makers putting luffa pieces into the soap mold and pouring the soap over the luffa, so that the exfoliating luffa is incorporated into the bar of soap.  But I have never tried it

I haven't started my seed, yet, but first plan on using them as a desperately needed shade plant for my nasty-hot & glaringly sunny, treeless chicken run! I've already set up the trellis and overhead cage. My eight lovely girls will truly appreciate some cool leafy shade! I might grow them over the worm bin I have yet to start, too?

Most inspiring ideas above? Instead of painting textures (which I will also do!) making stamps for textural fabric designs. Also incorporating them directly into soil and pot bottoms to hold soil. Moisture retention is a massive gardening issue in drought-stricken California. The various soap ideas are far more obvious.

I love growing luffas. Though I find that I get male flowers all summer and only in the autumn, do a few females show up!
Any reason for this?
I use them for dishwashing sponges. They do not get slimey and gross the way store-bought sponges do.
I would like to try some of these other ideas too.
thanks

Thekla McDaniels wrote:I have heard of soap makers putting luffa pieces into the soap mold and pouring the soap over the luffa, so that the exfoliating luffa is incorporated into the bar of soap.  But I have never tried it

I do that and it works like a charm. I find that if I have less soap around the loohfa it is better at creating a good foam. My biggest issue is that many of them are so big they don't fit in my soap molds - I had to use drain pipe and ended up w. some huge soaps.

You can also cut the inside out and stitch up one end and put a bar of soap inside (or use as a glove).

I grew my first harvest of Luffa this year. I still have some to strip of there skin and seeds.
It occurred to me while reading the suggestions that if you gave dry luffas to dogs, it could be a good tooth scrub?
In my mind the dog would not actually eat it, would they? If it were dried?
I am also thinking about using it a filter material for aquaponics.

I think I could use some suggestions about how to remove the thick skin and seeds. So far my chickens have done the best job of this.

"making stamps for textural fabric designs" - that sounds like a neat idea!

Bloomah, I don't know where you're at, but that sounds like the vines aren't having enough heat before August. They like a long warm growing season. This thread about growing luffa in cooler climates may be helpful: https://permies.com/t/207437/luffa-cooler-climates

Carroll, I imagine it depends on the dog, but mine didn't eat them.
I found it easier to peel the luffa when they were still somewhat fresh rather than completely dried out. I beat them against a cinder block to break the outside fibers and sometimes used a knife to score a few lines down the length of them. I cut the end of to get it started and then peeled the skin off. Some still peeled easier than others, and I had enough ripe ones that I could pick and choose which ones I continued to peel.

Im going to grow luffas for the first time this year and have been thinking of others uses for them.I just thought i would give most of mine away and keep a few for scrubbies,but now i may use more for other things,this is a very good list, thank you for putting it together.I just got an idea for a chicken toy by putting small grains in one open side of the luffa and let them figure out how to get to them,i guess that could be listed as "entertainment".

Thekla McDaniels wrote:I have heard of soap makers putting luffa pieces into the soap mold and pouring the soap over the luffa, so that the exfoliating luffa is incorporated into the bar of soap.  But I have never tried it

I experimented with that when I was making a lot of soap.   I used a crosswise slice of luffa and poured the soap over it.  They're a cool, unique item, but not as useful as they might seem at first.   Depending on which method you use to make your soap, the soap is fairly thick when it's 'done', and it doesn't penetrate that easily into all of the little nooks and crannies of the luffa.  Soap also shrinks somewhat as it cures, so it starts separating from the luffa.

But it makes a very interesting gift!

Loretta Liefveld wrote:

Thekla McDaniels wrote:I have heard of soap makers putting luffa pieces into the soap mold and pouring the soap over the luffa, so that the exfoliating luffa is incorporated into the bar of soap.  But I have never tried it

I experimented with that when I was making a lot of soap.   I used a crosswise slice of luffa and poured the soap over it.  They're a cool, unique item, but not as useful as they might seem at first.   Depending on which method you use to make your soap, the soap is fairly thick when it's 'done', and it doesn't penetrate that easily into all of the little nooks and crannies of the luffa.  Soap also shrinks somewhat as it cures, so it starts separating from the luffa.

But it makes a very interesting gift!

They are super sellabel on markets etc.

I like mine now that the soap on the outside has been washed away, so the loohfa sticks out and actually works as a sponge and increase foaming. But mine are also huge - so the sponge part is, well the size of a normal sponge one would use in a bathroom. But - when they are that big they don't look very pretty so as a sales item or gift item they don't work as well.

I was enthusiastically using luffas for dish and body scrubbers but then I read a post somewhere by a plumber who said the edges can slowly break off and create blockages in pipes.  Makes sense, especially in the kitchen where they might be gunked up with cooking grease and soft food particles. The house I live in was an amateur job by an insurance agent and his brother, and the plumbing often has issues, so I sadly stopped using my homegrown luffas, just in case.  But glad to know about the dog toy - I will definitely try that one out next summer.

Too too sad, to give up loofa use because a plumber says they shed particles that can contribute to blockages.

Was that the only thing named as a potential problem?  The cleaned loofas I have seen for sale didn’t appear to have any problematic sized chunks ready to let go.  Disintegrating plastic and nylon and polyethylene sponges and body scrubber exfoliation products release particles which though invisible to the naked eye, are perfectly sized to adhere to lipid films inside pipes.  Then there’s hair, slowing bathtub, shower and basin drains, which we deal with in various ways according to our preferences.

Regular lye, same stuff as used in soap will open drains and dissolve the grease and oils in pipes, if people MUST pour them down, or don’t want to use a biological drain opener.

The products used to keep septic tanks healthy are fine in the plumbing of houses headed for sewers.  I’ve seen biological products that promote a microbiome for inside pipes.  Recommended for monthly use, starting from lowest drains in the house to uppermost.  

Mindblown. Mendela effect... I took for granted they were a type of sea sponges.

I wonder if they can grow in high altitude climate or need hot sea level conditions.

Great conversation! I was actually thinking of growing some for the first time, and these ideas are very useful. Thanks!

Dawn Hoff wrote:

Loretta Liefveld wrote:

Thekla McDaniels wrote:I have heard of soap makers putting luffa pieces into the soap mold and pouring the soap over the luffa, so that the exfoliating luffa is incorporated into the bar of soap.  But I have never tried it

I experimented with that when I was making a lot of soap.   I used a crosswise slice of luffa and poured the soap over it.  They're a cool, unique item, but not as useful as they might seem at first.   Depending on which method you use to make your soap, the soap is fairly thick when it's 'done', and it doesn't penetrate that easily into all of the little nooks and crannies of the luffa.  Soap also shrinks somewhat as it cures, so it starts separating from the luffa.

But it makes a very interesting gift!

They are super sellabel on markets etc.

I like mine now that the soap on the outside has been washed away, so the loohfa sticks out and actually works as a sponge and increase foaming. But mine are also huge - so the sponge part is, well the size of a normal sponge one would use in a bathroom. But - when they are that big they don't look very pretty so as a sales item or gift item they don't work as well.

I was given one a long time ago.  If I recall correctly it wasn’t much bigger than two inches in diameter.  I really liked it, except: the center fibers were stiffer and uncomfortable when using the flat face for scrubbing.  I kept meaning to grab some scissors and cut them out, only to forget once out of the shower.  

So, definitely enjoyably memorable (this was 10+ years ago) , but I’d recommend using the smallest gourds and cutting out the middle.

Morfydd St. Clair wrote:

Dawn Hoff wrote:

Loretta Liefveld wrote:

Thekla McDaniels wrote:I have heard of soap makers putting luffa pieces into the soap mold and pouring the soap over the luffa, so that the exfoliating luffa is incorporated into the bar of soap.  But I have never tried it

I experimented with that when I was making a lot of soap.   I used a crosswise slice of luffa and poured the soap over it.  They're a cool, unique item, but not as useful as they might seem at first.   Depending on which method you use to make your soap, the soap is fairly thick when it's 'done', and it doesn't penetrate that easily into all of the little nooks and crannies of the luffa.  Soap also shrinks somewhat as it cures, so it starts separating from the luffa.

But it makes a very interesting gift!

They are super sellabel on markets etc.

I like mine now that the soap on the outside has been washed away, so the loohfa sticks out and actually works as a sponge and increase foaming. But mine are also huge - so the sponge part is, well the size of a normal sponge one would use in a bathroom. But - when they are that big they don't look very pretty so as a sales item or gift item they don't work as well.

I was given one a long time ago.  If I recall correctly it wasn’t much bigger than two inches in diameter.  I really liked it, except: the center fibers were stiffer and uncomfortable when using the flat face for scrubbing.  I kept meaning to grab some scissors and cut them out, only to forget once out of the shower.  

So, definitely enjoyably memorable (this was 10+ years ago) , but I’d recommend using the smallest gourds and cutting out the middle.

Cutting out the middle would actually solve the problem of it being hard to get the soap in there, bc it is so thick and the space so small. And if you just pour it on the inside, you'd still leave the fibre exposed on the out side... hmmm

Hi Anne,

Welcome to Permies.

Thanks for so many suggestions about loofahs incorporated into cold process soap!

If anyone can solve the rest of my misgivings, I will go for it.  I’ve been making cold process soap for almost a quarter century, with lots of devoted buyers who would LOVE a loofah in the bar.

I pour the soap into box molds, then cut into bars with wire cutters designed to give fairly uniform sized bars.  The mold is 3 bars wide and 22 bars long, the top surface in the mold becomes one of the long edges of a rectangular bar of soap.  To put a loofah into the finished bars, I would have to lay 3 rows of loofahs into the mold, and they would have to stay put while I pour a viscous and congealing every moment into a thicker liquid into the loofahs.

Then I would have to be able to cut across the loofah as I draw the wire through the solid soap.

So, I gave up on that idea.

The other method would be to use a length of PVC pipe as a mold.  This I am very reluctant to do because I am very conscious of my plastic and other fossil products consumption.  And I would still have to figure out cutting soap with loofah in it.

So I gave up on that idea.

The last thing would be to make loofah pouches for bars to go into, as described earlier in this thread.  That would solve the cutting issue, but that’s a whole new project, and I don’t have a good loofah growing climate.

However, if someone else can grow and make the loofah pouches that would fit my bars of soap, I am sure the retailer who sells most of my soap would give them a try if I brought them in and explained their use and origin.

A loofah grower and crafter could pm me for specs and further info.

Bloomah Simkin wrote:I love growing luffas. Though I find that I get male flowers all summer and only in the autumn, do a few females show up!
Any reason for this?

Hmmm...  Never heard of this.  I've had male and female flowers up until first frost.
FYI- If you didn't know, males vs. female flowers are very easy to identify.  Females have a single flower on a stem.  Males have a long stem that continuously grows and forms additional flowers.  Flowers are only open for a day or two before they shrivel up and eventually fall off.

Also, the female flower has a structure (it’s called an inferior ovary, and will become the fruit)  between the stem and the base of the flower which is absent in the male.  And the flowers themselves are different too.  The male flower makes pollen and so will have anthers.  The female flower will have a stigma.  

It’s pretty usual for curcubits to make male flowers before female flowers, as it would be a waste of the plant’s energy and productive resources to produce pollen before there were female flowers to pollinate.

Sure, pollen eating creatures would benefit, but for the most part, as generous as
plants are, they are not “public service plants.“ institutions supported by contributions from other plants.  Especially in annuals, their main business is producing seeds for next season’s plants.

Do any of the luffa growers have problems with squash vine borer? That's what's holding me back from trying the plant. I can get cucumbers, but can't grow any squash because of the borers.

Elizabeth, i find that all my normal pests stay away from loofas. To me the foliage has a very strong smell, not sure if that is why but the loofas seem to survive well, as long as they have good sun and can climb.

I haven't been able to grow squash because of vine borers, either. No pests have bothered the luffas.

I have never made luffa soap before. When I just searched online, the image of soap came out quite different than I imagined. They are all cut in rounds and the cross sections are used for scrubbing. Is there a reason why not to use the smoother surface? Is it because it is easier to pour liquid soap into the big cavities this way? If one cut out the center of a luffa sponge and put weight on it, it will turn into a flat square and that's what I thought the luffa soap should look like.

So my kid tried a few different approaches to this (i'm the gardener and she's the soapmaker who sells her wares, so we were experimenting) and ultimately, as mentioned above, while it's super pretty to have a slice of soap with a loofah in the middle, I'm all about usability.....it was so much easier to use when you had a "sleeve", or better, if you just used the loofah by itself after soaping up!! (the exception might be leftover soap bits, which are great to wedge in the middle). Like you mentioned, a cross-cut loofah is scratchy!

Then again, when you're selling, sometimes you're going towards aspirations rather than reality...... almost all the search results I'm seeing for loofah soap are slices.
I'd love to hear what others have done, and I'll pass it on to my soapmaker.

May Lotito wrote:I have never made luffa soap before. When I just searched online, the image of soap came out quite different than I imagined. They are all cut in rounds and the cross sections are used for scrubbing. Is there a reason why not to use the smoother surface? Is it because it is easier to pour liquid soap into the big cavities this way? If one cut out the center of a luffa sponge and put weight on it, it will turn into a flat square and that's what I thought the luffa soap should look like.

I agree that the flat square is a better design.  Unfortunately I think it’s less visually dramatic so wouldn’t sell so well.

I’m trying to think of a way to make it look cool, but there’s a reason I’m not in marketing. :)

Did anyone try the loofah as sub for coconut coir idea?
It occurred to me that they might work to fill the bottom of larger pots where you do not need heavy soil all the way to the bottom. I have used other fillers before, but an abundant biodegradable plant sourced filler might be the best idea yet (as long as they don't disturb the ph or something like that).
I guess, along those lines, they could be used to pack and ship fragile things instead of styrofoam peanuts....

I was checking out a couple of new stores today, and noticed a flat rectangle of loofah being sold to go under soap.  I would hope it would go in a soap dish to keep soap scum to a dull roar, but it carried no instructions.

Perhaps a soap seller could offer the square as a quick accessory, and/or work with a potter?

(Now I am reminded that I used to travel with a solid shampoo in a metal tin - think Lush brand - and put a sponge on either side of the soap so it wouldn’t permanently adhere to the tin. A loofah would be even better there.)