this post was submitted on 20 Aug 2025
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Science Memes

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[–] Duranie@leminal.space 118 points 3 weeks ago (4 children)

My mom used to do arts and crafts things with gourds. When she passed there were easily over a dozen laying around the house plus a giant one she had started prepping, but never finished.

She was cremated, and the plans were to bury her in the plot she already had next to my dad. State or county requirements, however, that works, allowed us to be the ones to dig the hole to actually place her urn in the ground. When the time came, her five children, their spouses and many grandchildren gathered to dig a great big hole in the ground. We ended up taking the big gourd that she had been working on and placed it in the ground, then as we filled that with dirt we placed her urn inside the gourd. In the end everyone took shovelfuls and handfuls of earth and covered her up.

I can never look at a gourd without thinking of my mom.

[–] GreyEyedGhost@lemmy.ca 41 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

Someday in the distant future, there is going to be a very confused archeologist.

[–] Duranie@leminal.space 22 points 3 weeks ago

Lol when it was discussed with the funeral home folks (who gave us the shovel to dig with - left it leaning against the back door of the funeral home the morning of) they just said to let them know when we were done so they could document what was left there for the records.

Yes. This happened in a very, very rural area lol.

[–] chaogomu@lemmy.world 9 points 3 weeks ago

Depending on how far along the prep work on the gourd was, it may have decomposed.

[–] CobblerScholar@lemmy.world 14 points 3 weeks ago

Thats really sweet, thanks for sharing

[–] grysbok@lemmy.sdf.org 12 points 3 weeks ago

My dad grew gourdes. One of the happiest pictures I have of him late in life is him standing on the porch, surrounded by gourdes hanging to dry. I have three of his goudes. I also have one of his loufas.

[–] flambonkscious@sh.itjust.works 4 points 3 weeks ago

What a delightful way to go!

Love the whole thing. How big was the gourd? (I gather it held the ashes?)

[–] Broadfern@lemmy.world 90 points 3 weeks ago

Emotional support water bottles are human nature confirmed

[–] Zwiebel@feddit.org 63 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (2 children)
[–] Warl0k3@lemmy.world 46 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (3 children)

Among other things.

The gourd is used traditionally to administer enemas. Along the upper Congo River an enema apparatus is made by making a hole in one end of the gourd for filling it, and using a resin to attach a hollow cane to the gourd's neck.[52]

which sounds... splintery...

[–] Randomgal@lemmy.ca 11 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Ok now you got my attention

[–] rautapekoni@sopuli.xyz 19 points 3 weeks ago

There's also a 13th century persian poem called The Importance of Gourd Crafting that offers other rather intimate uses for the produce.

[–] chtk@feddit.nl 3 points 3 weeks ago

If only we had told this to Aleksey Tartarov sooner.

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[–] ryedaft@sh.itjust.works 46 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

They probably just made really good bongs

[–] ruuster13@lemmy.zip 37 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Why do you think we say "stoned off his gourd"?

[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 19 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Just going to sit here and stare at this comment for a while.

[–] ruuster13@lemmy.zip 11 points 3 weeks ago

That's what I do when I am.

[–] wetbeardhairs@lemmy.dbzer0.com 27 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)
[–] jballs@sh.itjust.works 19 points 3 weeks ago
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Why would ancient humans have bothered growing bong gourds when they could have just punched holes in empty beer cans instead?

[–] Contramuffin@lemmy.world 45 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

It probably has to do with weight. Pottery is pretty heavy and I assume this gourd, when hollowed out, isn't

[–] Ashiette@lemmy.world 37 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

And resistance. Pottery tends to break easily, organic material is more resistant to most types of mechanical stress.

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[–] carotte@lemmy.blahaj.zone 42 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

holy shit is that why a common word for reusable water bottles in french is gourde??? whoa

[–] WhiteOakBayou@lemmy.world 9 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

You have an accent aggue on your name, so I'm inclined to believe you, but so do I. I I don't know how much authority it really imbues. Can you be trusted?

[–] carotte@lemmy.blahaj.zone 15 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

i am to be trusted, in my opinion (which you can trust because i am to be trusted) ☺️

/j

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[–] mavu@discuss.tchncs.de 39 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

more durable and lighter than pottery.
gourd does the job better.

[–] janus2@lemmy.zip 33 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

also carries water much better than a basket

[–] mavu@discuss.tchncs.de 6 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

I hope someone is going to post a "well, actually.." with an obscure wiki link soon, or i might lose my faith in the internet.. it's been almost 8 hours..

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[–] Hotzilla@sopuli.xyz 33 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

There could be some sense figuring first out water containers. Old saying is that human survives few minutes without oxygen, few days without water and few weeks without food. Water > Food

Also as a hunter gatherer, food is around you (berries, roots, game) and you can carry them with you. Drinking water is more scarce and keeping it with you when you move around needs some container.

I saw bucketloads of blackberries growing down in the trees behind the park the other week. But as water with decreased nanoplastic contamination levels continues to become scarce in as many accessible places throughout nearly every system in our environment, Gourd is Good for keeping a filtered fitty (50 fl. ounces) of crystal clear lectrolyzed gulpers on hand in a pinch. It may even prove itself to be Great again, who knows!

[–] Zephorah@discuss.online 27 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Consider the luffa next. It’s a squash of sorts that grows on a vine. The inner matrix of the large zucchini looking fruits is the luffa sponge. Zone 10.

[–] faythofdragons@slrpnk.net 5 points 3 weeks ago

You can even eat the luffa before it gets too old and fiberous.

[–] Zorsith@lemmy.blahaj.zone 24 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Portable water is kind of a big deal technologically, IMO. Especially for a persistence predator species (aka humans).

[–] ChickenLadyLovesLife@lemmy.world 16 points 3 weeks ago

Some fun facts: Grover Krantz, the originator of the concept of human persistence hunting (which Wikipedia labels "conjecture"), was better-known as a staunch advocate for the existence of Bigfoot (there is of course no such thing as Bigfoot - it's obviously a Yeti in a gorilla suit). Interestingly, he didn't propose it as an explanation for bipedality, one of the unique characteristics of the human lineage, but rather as an explanation for our big brains, speculating that bigger brains would allow persistence hunters to survive a large fraction of their brain neurons dying from the heat stress that would result from long-distance running during the day.

For apparently no reason, Krantz' skeleton and that of his favorite dog are on display at the Smithsonian.

[–] ImWaitingForRetcons@lemmy.world 23 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (2 children)

Bottle gourds are still eaten pretty regularly in India, and I suspect, other parts of the world too.

Yep, I just checked Wikipedia, and yes, tons of people around the world still eat it.

[–] Whats_your_reasoning@lemmy.world 23 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

tons of purple around the world still eat it.

I wonder what the other colors eat.

[–] humorlessrepost@lemmy.world 11 points 3 weeks ago

The blues eat away at my life.

[–] SoleInvictus@lemmy.blahaj.zone 11 points 3 weeks ago

I was surprised to see them called inedible. The young gourds are tender and taste like squash.

[–] solarvector@lemmy.dbzer0.com 23 points 3 weeks ago

I just found my solution to bringing water to a concert without using a shitty plastic bottle.

[–] dumples@midwest.social 22 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

At the art fair by my house is a lady who makes gourd earrings, birdhouses and instruments. She even wears a gourd hat. She grows them all herself. I tried to grow a luffa this year inspired by her. It failed because they are hard to germinate. Next year I'm doing a bottle gourd

[–] darklamer@lemmy.dbzer0.com 16 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

Never wear a hat you haven't grown yourself.

[–] logicbomb@lemmy.world 10 points 3 weeks ago

"As you can see, this hat is felted from my own body hair, and the decorative bits? My toenails."

[–] dumples@midwest.social 4 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Real baller move. Time to get some sheep so I can make my own wool hats I guess. The gourd hat is more decorative than functional in the winter

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[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 6 points 3 weeks ago

I'm growing bird houses and luffa! Get another pack of luffa seeds. Mine are 2 or 3 years old and almost every one has sprouted. This year I just stuck 'em in the ground.

Be aware! Once they get rolling they can grow nearly 1' a day!

[–] a_little_red_rat@hexbear.net 16 points 3 weeks ago

This reminds me of Ursula Le Guin's "bag theory": that the first tool humans developed, was not a weapon which is usually taught, like a spear, but rather, a bag, to carry things: for example for berries we picked. A nice reframe from the violent status quo.

[–] quediuspayu@lemmy.dbzer0.com 16 points 3 weeks ago

They were also used as personal flotation devices and floats for fishing nets.

[–] Genius@lemmy.zip 8 points 3 weeks ago

Is that what Gaara kept his sand in?

[–] Vanth@reddthat.com 7 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

I kinda want to get a gourd and stencil "Stanley" on the side.

[–] fossilesque@mander.xyz 3 points 3 weeks ago

I'm gonna slap a Coach logo on it and make a new purse. Maybe spray paint it black too.

[–] Cat_Daddy@hexbear.net 3 points 3 weeks ago

They make great marlin houses

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