Actually, nature does it for you for the most part. The soft outside covering begins to harden after you cut it from the vine. Just one more gift provided for us to use. If my grandfather had seen me painting on one, he would have had a good laugh. He used his to dip water and to dip seeds for planting! LOL

It takes a few months at least or that has been my experience for gourds to dry out. Once it is hardened, the seeds inside and the pulp have also dried. If left out in the weather, they turn darker with aging but are fairly sturdy little things! You can use them for bird houses outside or use them as decor. If I take the time to paint on them, I generally put the polycrylic clear coat on and keep them inside. My sister-in-law was so excited about them, she grew her own and painted them but she has them hanging in her trees (bird house gourds, not dipper gourds) in her back yard.

I am interested in growing some basket gourds but have not been able to locate viable seeds. The ones I have purchased were apparently not mature seeds so didn't produce. Do you have any knowledge of these?