The smooth luffa (Luffa cylindrica) is not widely available for sale in most Singapore markets. What we have here on sale in the local wet markets are the angled luffa (L. aegyptiaca) which is the much longer and slimmer version that has with eight ridges that run lengthwise along the length of the fruit. People in the West called it the “Chinese okra”.
Fruits of the smooth luffa hanging from the vines.
In contrast, the smooth luffa do not have ridges and at the young edible stage, the fruit is much shorter and fatter when compared with the angled luffa. Apparently, it yields more edible mass compared with the angled version. Nothing much is left after the angled luffa has its outer skin peeled off before cooking.
There is another interesting use for the smooth luffa: mature smooth luffa fruits can be made into very good sponges which are bigger than those derived from other varieties of luffa. This is the reason why luffas are sometimes called “sponge gourds”. Luffa fruits grow at quite a fast rate and they need to be picked at a very young stage. Any later will result in fruits that are not palatable because they become stringy and fibrous.
Fruits that have passed the edible stage can actually be picked and sun-dried to obtain the fibrous network which is essentially the ‘sponge’. When the fruits are dried properly, the skin that covers the exterior can be easily peeled off and seeds can be removed by shaking them out. The vegetable sponge that result can be seen in the picture below on the left while the immature, edible fruit is on the right.
Mature smooth luffa fruits can grow quite large, up to 60 cm in length. However, bear in mind that is way past the edible stage! But a fruit of that size would make a sizable piece of vegetable sponge but one has to wait for about one to two months for the fruit to reach that size.
The luffa plant is a rewarding cucurbit to grow in the tropics. It is a perennial plant here and therefore, does not die down like its relatives such as the cucumber. What that means is that the luffa plant will grow and grow and produce fruits indefinitely until one decides to chop it down.
In order to keep the vine happy and continue to produce fruits that are fat and nice, it is vital to fertilise the plant well and give it enough direct sunshine. The luffa grows very vigorously and needs a very strong and big trellis for it to climb on. It can actually be grown on the ground like watermelons. Finally, the luffa plant is seldom bothered by pests and diseases.
But before you go rush to buy the seeds, ensure the variety you are buying is a day-neutral one.
