MELBER, Ky. – Fifteen miles south of Paducah, Ky., on Owens Chapel Road in Graves County, is The Gourd Barn, owned and operated by David and Donna Meeks. The farm sits halfway between Paducah and Mayfield, and roughly 30 minutes from the Illinois, Missouri and Tennessee state lines.

“I see people all the time from four different states,” David Meeks said, “for the reasons I have so many gourds to choose from and my prices are reasonable.”

An area that was once rich with tobacco fields is best known for gourds these days. All thanks to the Meeks, whose farm has become a go-to place for gourds of all shapes and sizes. Meeks offers a large selection of raw gourds, cleaned gourds or dyed gourds. Meeks has dedicated 1.5 acres to growing this hard-shelled fruit.

Meeks, 80, started growing pumpkins, gourds and corn as a hobby after he retired from teaching welding at West Kentucky Community & Technical College roughly 25 years ago. His pumpkin patch became a prime destination for many school children. Meeks opened his farm to students for 10 years.

“We offered the kids a free miniature pumpkin and a free fruit drink, didn’t charge them one red cent,” Meeks said. “That was smart business because the kids would go home and tell their parents about our farm and many families would show up on the weekend.

“That was a lot of work and we had trouble providing enough pumpkins for the masses. I even went across the state lines to buy pumpkins from growers just to have my own supply. But that was a lot of work and we shot that venture down and put our efforts into gourds.”

To this day, the Meeks grow thousands of gourds on just 1.5 acres. While Meek’s pumpkin patch was a lure for children, his gourds are coveted by the older crowd, mostly artisans from four states.

Meeks plants his gourds around May, and the vines begin producing in late June or early July. Some of the gourds, like the Indonesian bottle gourd, grow up to 5 feet in length and require support so they don’t fall to the ground and burst.

“That’s why visitors to my arbor will see gourds wrapped in pantyhose,” Meeks said.

Meeks’ barn houses as many as 8,000 dried gourds of all sizes and shapes. Gourd artists come from miles around to get their hands on these gourds to make such things as birdhouses, bowls, musical instruments and drinking vessels. Meeks’ daughter, Tammy Thomason, is one of those avid gourd artists.

“Gourds are like any other craft you get into, it’s habit-forming,” Thomason said. “You enjoy and get pleasure and relaxation working on one.”

In addition to growing gourds under the open skies, Meeks grows some in his 30-foot-by-80-foot arbor.

“Artisans oftentimes add a stain to the gourds to give them an appearance of exotic wood,” said Ronny Moyers, a volunteer at Mayfield’s Ice House Art Gallery, which hosts the annual Gourd Patch Arts Festival and All About Gourds exhibition. “They’re real versatile.”

Meeks can be found manning his 40-foot wagon full of gourds at the Mayfield festival every year.

Meeks’ gourd patch is best known for the long-handle dippers (which range from 5-6 feet long), Tennessee spinner (roughly the size of a quarter), bushel gourd (roughly 2 feet across) and African wine kettle (about 24 inches tall).

Oh, and there’s so much more. Quite popular are bottle gourds. These hard-shelled gourds can be used for a variety of practical purposes, such as making water bottles, dippers and birdhouses. Apple gourds (shaped like apples) can be dried and painted for decorative purposes. These are also edible when young and are used in curries in some cultures.

Luffa gourds are known for their fibrous interior and often used as natural sponges. They can be eaten when immature but are primarily grown for their sponge-like texture when dried. Snake gourds are long and slender and can be eaten when immature. They are often used as a substitute for tomatoes in cooking. Thay have a unique appearance and can grow up to 6 feet long. Ornamental gourds are small and colorful, often used for autumn displays and crafts.

“Gourds, being 90 percent water, require constant hydration, and we use special drip irrigation that maintains water flow inside and out,” Meeks said.

Meeks harvests his gourds after the first killing frost.

“When the frost kills the vines, the gourds are done growing,” he said.

Each fall Meeks makes use of 110 wooden pallets and fills each one with gourds. He drills quarter-inch holes in each and lets them cure until April.

“Gourds are 90 percent water, so a drill hole helps them cure faster,” he said.

His curing process also involves spreading the gourds around 100 pallets and drying them until spring in March or April. This process protects them from rain, snow and cold weather, preventing molding.

“I had a man come by recently and he bought 100 gourds,” Meeks said. “He attends all these festivals, and he makes bird houses out of them. I had a young woman stop by and purchase 100 or so because she was making musical instruments and bowls out of them.

“We used to ship our gourds across the country, but the problem with that is shipping costs more than the gourds themselves. And we stopped shipping seeds. The problem was people would tell me on the phone what gourd seed they’re wanting, I’d ship them, then I’d get a call back and they’d tell me it wasn’t what they were looking for. We eventually discovered that the plants were cross-pollinated at night by moths, so we stopped selling the seeds. Now, we just sell gourds from our farm here in Melber.”