The Loofah Patch

Spelling: In New Zealand most people commonly associate with 'loofah' but there are many different spellings (loofa / lufa / luffa), with luffa being the botanical name.

Natural loofah are a type of gourd grown on a vine and are a member of the cucurbit family where they are grown for eating in many different countries. About 90% of the people I talk with at markets think that a loofah comes from the ocean like a sea sponge but they are grown on land and are 100% sustainable. They are a great conversation topic.

The loofah looks similar to a marrow but at the end of the season we wait for the loofah to start to dry up and crack the skins open to reveal the loofah fibres inside. Growing loofah is labour intensive as everything is done by hand. The Egyptian Loofah available for wholesale on this website is about 5 times bigger in fruit size than what we grow in NZ and it's actually a similar variety but with a different seed strain and growing conditions.

You can find more information and see more images over on our retail website The Loofah Patch

Or you can read our articles/blog at The Loofah Patch Blog