Picture taken 6-14-09.
FAMILY: Malvaceae
GENUS: Abelmoschus
SPECIES: esculentus
CULTIVAR: Cow Horn
I always wanted to grow this variety, so this year I bought seeds from Heirloom Acres of New Bloomfield, MO. They have been spectacular!!!
I planted the seed kind of late, but they grew fast and produced quite well.
Picture taken 6-28-09for this variety.
The plants have very sturdy stalks, almost like trees! One evening we had a big storm here and it was very windy. Water was standing in the garden and some of the plants blew over roots and all. They were probably over 9 feet tall at the time. I just pulled them back
straight again and put
Picture taken 7-15-09
some bigger stakes as far in the ground as I could and tied them to the stakes. They continued to grow as if nothing ever happened.
The pods on the Cow Horn get to big to eat in a hurry. I was picking pods every day
72" tall on 8-7-09.
and I’m not kidding. Sometimes I would miss one because it was hid behind a stalk. By the time I would notice it the pod it would be ENORMOUS!
There are many varieties of Okra, and I believe Baker Creek of Mansfield, MO has the biggest selection
Nice pod on 8-21-09
that I have found so far. I am going to plant other varieties in 2010, but I intend to continue to grow Cow Horn as well. The last measurement I could get was 115 inches. I was standing on top of the ladder with the tape measure as high as I could get it and still be able to read it.
Okra standing 8 feet tall on 8-23-09
It kept growing long after that and I have no idea how tall it actually got before the weather turned cooler. It bloomed and produced pods right up until the temps dropped. It seemed to stop growing and the pods that were coming on by then I couldn’t even reach.
Top of an Okra plant. Picture taken 9-8-09.I have had more fun with this OKRA and would recommend it to anyone who likes
I would recommend these for anyone who likes HUGE plants. I was on someones website that said their Cow Horn Okra grew 18′ tall. That is absolutely awesome!
Picture taken 9-3-09.
Wow I could grow this around my porch to block out my creepy neighbors!
Sure you could grow these around your porch… Just remember, they are annual so when the frost comes, they will be dead and then your neighbors will see the dead plants!
Cowhorn seed is getting hard to find in my part of the south. and expenseve when found. So I let some stalks mature out and save the seeds.
Thanks for visiting the blog. There are many sources of cowhorn okra, and not all cowhorn grow tall. Heirloom Acres, Southern Exposure, and others (sorry, I will have to add the other sources later). Besides the variety known simply as ‘Cowhorn’, there is the Fife Creek Cowhorn, and others.
There are still many sources of Cow Horn Okra seed and some are listed under the seed sources. Cowhorn, although a specifuc variety, is also referred to as a type of okra as there are several varieties of cowhorn okra. Some don’t get exhaustingly tall either. I will go through all my catalogs and make a list of sources for Cowhorn. I could do it from memory but I don’t want to leave anyone out!
ARE THERE SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN POD DIAMETER AMONG THE DIFF VARIETIES?
Jeanie,
Definitely. There are many varieties of okra, even different varieties of Cowhorn. Not all cowhorn varieties grow 14 feet tall (lol). All okra pods can get VERY long of you don’t pick them, and Cowhorn isn’t the largest. The Burmese I am growing now has a few pods (that I accidently missed) that are bigger than the cowhorn, and are still green and growing! You asked about diameter, though… If you check Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, Baker Creek (GEEZ! My mind went blank) and many other seed companies, they have quite a list. Some varieties produce short and stubby pods, and some are rather thin. Some varieties pods are best picked at 3-4 inches, while others remain tender longer. There are so many to try!!!
Thanks for visiting the blog!