Tipton farmer grows luffa sponges

When Erin Shockley first moved to the city of Tipton, she wasn’t entirely familiar with gardening, let alone farming. That didn’t stop her from trying, though.

Although Shockley has a fairly busy schedule — she’s a softball umpire, bartender and does a bit of marketing and communications work — she still finds time to grow crops like heirloom tomatoes, hot peppers and cucumbers.

She’s carved out a bit of a niche in her garden, too. Shockley grows luffa, the fibrous, sponge-like plant that people often use while bathing. She puts soap in some of her harvest to sell as ready-made scrubbers.

Luffas grow from vines, Shockley explained, with each plant capable of growing 20-30 feet long. Vibrant yellow flowers blossom from the vine alongside leaves larger than Shockley’s head.

Each plant is able to grow 10-20 luffa, Shockley said, with each luffa carrying hundreds of seeds that can be planted for more crop.

“You’ll have seeds for life once you grow one,” Shockley said.

Other than using the luffa to clean, Shockley explained the plants are edible when they’re young and about the size of a cucumber. It’s similar to okra in taste and texture, she said.

Shockley has tried sauteing them and adding a bit of sauce. They have a bit of vegetable sweetness, she said, adding she would like to try it in a muffin or bread loaf.

She’s spotted one restaurant that served luffa dumplings, but hasn’t had the opportunity to try them yet. One couple purchased a few pounds of the dish, Shockley said, and promised to return for more — they served it with shrimp and other vegetables.

Planting the seed

After living in Westfield for about 20 years, where Shockley raised her daughter, she and her boyfriend decided to move to Tipton in 2017.

When she decided to start gardening around 2018, she found the soil was far better nourished than the residential neighborhood she came from. The garden started fairly small, but now sprawls across her yard.

When a friend offered her some luffa seeds five years ago, Shockley couldn’t turn them down. She’s since been dubbed the “Luffa Lady” by people who recognize her work — she’s appeared on Wish TV twice to show off her sponges.

Shockley said there was a bit of a learning curve when she first started growing luffa. She tried to read up on the crop, but there weren’t a ton of resources online.

“I’ve always been drawn to different and weird things,” Shockley said, later adding, “I’ve never looked back.”

Still, Shockley was quick to acknowledge she doesn’t grow luffa large scale. Her goal is to expand the operation a little bit every year.

This year, she’s been faced with a new challenge. Rabbits have been eating her luffa plants before they have the chance to grow the vegetable. She said she’ll have to find new ways to protect her crops.

Walking past rows of various fruits growing beside her house, Shockley explained she tries to grow everything from seed — some of her crops were planted as seedlings this year after rabbits got into the garden — and doesn’t use pesticides.

She took a few moments to list off each color of heirloom tomato growing in her garden: the hues ran the gambit from pink, red, orange, green and purple. The purple tomatoes, she added, are especially good for tomato sandwiches.

She always brings a handful of tomatoes to her family in Florida when she flies down for autumn visits.

Walking a bit further, she stopped at an archway covered with vines. She explained she has to wrap the tentacle-like growth around the archway’s metal skeleton so the luffas grow upward. The vines tend to get chopped up by her lawnmower if they leave the confines of the archway.

She starts the seeds indoors around February and moves them outside once the threat of frost dissipates.

“They’re a fragile plant,” Shockley said.

She usually waits until the luffas have fully matured, but before the light brown skin around the sponge becomes too tough. Unlike most luffa sold in stores, Shockley doesn’t bleach her sponges.

She harvests until the first frost of winter.

Visiting the market

The Tipton County Farmers & Artisans Market faced closure in the midst of 2020’s COVID pandemic.

Shockley didn’t want to lose the community market, so she decided to step in and run the operation. It’s since become a nonprofit organization.

“I’ve always been a farmers market-type gal,” Shockley said. “Now, I’m just more involved.”

She sells her crops at the market, under the name E-Love’s Garden. Shockley said it’s fairly common for people to mistake luffa for sea sponges. She brings sea sponges to the farmers market so people can see the difference.

“It’s fun because a lot of people don’t know about it, so it gives me a chance to actually talk to people and inform them about something that they wouldn’t have otherwise known about,” Shockley said.

Luffas are fairly versatile, she added. They’re machine washable as sponges, edible when they’re young and can even be made into shoes. She uses luffas to scrub her dishes.

She said she also likes to bring homemade pies, cobblers and artwork to sell at her booth.

If you’re interested, the Tipton County Farmers & Artisans Market is held 9 a.m. to noon Saturdays just east of the Tipton County Courthouse, 101 E. Jefferson St.

“It’s just a fun plant,” the luffa farmer said. “I just think it's amazing because it kind of encompasses a little bit of everything.”