Over the Garden Fence: Time to celebrate gourds at Ohio Gourd Show
One year ago this month my journey to the Delaware County Fairgrounds and the annual Ohio Gourd Show and Festival brought me face to face with temptation. From all the years when the festival was held in Mt. Gilead, my mind held a file drawer full of visions of the baskets full of gourds and piles and heaps on the ground. So many people wearing gourd hats and stunning artwork on display shelves. Birdhouses, native American bowls, Santas and so much more.
Though my invitation was to man the Gourd Society sales table, my mission was to find small gourds — though I did not know their name. Also, the thought of bringing home eight apple gourds was in my head. On the way out of the show both had been purchased.
About a month ago, as Harvey One Room School was preparing for our Heritage Harvest, my usual thought of teaching a quick and simple cornhusk craft fell through for lack of enough husks. Short on time I remembered the wee gourds. There they were in plain sight in a wire basket in the garage.
Eureka! Redeemed by a purchase a year earlier, I gathered fine point markers, small squares of sandpaper and stretchable cord for beaded necklaces. Forget the beads. This would become a harvest necklace — a simple small gourd on a soft strand of string.
That day Sept. 10 the kids made small mockups of a banjo with Diane Fortner. We had Jacob Howell and his own real banjo so that everyone could see how a banjo is played. There was a scarecrow contest, too. There were games in the back yard. Suzanne Rothhaar was there with her crafted gourds. Colorful items. We had apple dumplings and kettle corn. John and Wanda Schimpf brought their press and plenty of apples so visitors could crush the juice from them or simply eat one.
Tennessee Spinners
Near the end of the afternoon Suzanne wandered over to see the necklaces that were being made. That's when she told me that these little gourds were called Tennessee Spinners. What a relief. Now I had a name. She showed us how they could spin like a top if turned upside down.
That was almost a month ago now, and this weekend — the first full one of October — the Ohio Gourd Show is at the fairgrounds in Delaware. Here is news: There is no admission charge. You can come right to the show and find endless artful entries of items made entirely of gourds. Gourd artists and vendors fill the building.
There is horticultural competition meaning growers bring entries. You will be amazed. A silent auction and raffle is planned. There are make-and-take crafts for visitors and kids family day on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday it is open from noon to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. This provides many opportunities to drop in and see transformed gourds. At OhioGourdSociety.com you can find out more.
On Saturday afternoon Suzanne asked me — invited me — to come and make floral designs using gourds. This will happen with fresh materials from 3 to 5 p.m. Pile your family in the car and be sure there is some space for gourds. If you "get hooked" we will likely pass one another with bags of gourds. I will have some Tennessee Spinners for sure.
Mary Lee Minor is a member of the Earth, Wind and Flowers Garden Club, an accredited master gardener, a flower show judge for the Ohio Association of Garden Clubs and a former sixth grade teacher.
This article originally appeared on Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum: Gourds take center stage at the Ohio Gourd Show at Delaware County Fairgrounds