Dan Ladd is out of his gourd! These amazing veggies were grown in molds to create the most interesting sculptures. He explains the process here:

The small gourd fruit after dropping its flower is inserted through the mould opening. The gourd grows into the mold confines during the summer season. At frost time the stem is cut leaving the mould with the gourd inside. The mould is then opened and the gourd is set to dry. When dry the gourd may be treated in certain ways, the skin may be scraped away, partially scraped away or left intact. The gourd may be mineral oiled or waxed with bowling alley wax. The artifact has as definite a viability as any hard, cellulose, wood like material, and will endure as such with reasonable care.