How to grow bottle gourd

Bottle gourd is a winter growing vegetable and usually in the months from November to January in India. Raise the seedlings in a four-inch pot indoors (growing vegetables from seeds) or in a hot frost-free place (Temperature at least 20°C) in the ground by sowing two seeds, half inch deep.

Growing Gourds in Containers

It can be planted both in the ground or in containers. Unless you have a really large space, it is important to provide a sturdy trellis because gourds will sprawl everywhere. The trellis helps them grow under control, keep the fruit clean, and also require less garden space.

Organic manure can be well rotten cow dung manure, farmyard manure, Compost or Vermicompost. . Top dressing: When your Bottle Gourd climber is more than 45 days old, Provide one tablespoon of 15:15:15 (NPK) Fertilizer per plant or mix handful of Vermicompost in the soil around each plant.

Gourds are warm-season crops that need a long growing season free from frost. The best time to plant gourd seeds outdoors is in spring after the average last frost date.

Bottle gourd should be grown in open and sunny locations. Top dress the plant with a thick layer of coco peat and well-rotted manure in equal parts. Repeat this 2-3 times during the growing season. Bottle gourd plant requires plenty of watering for growth.

Water your gourd seeds at planting time to increase their chances of surviving. Give your bottle calabash plants a constant water supply and water the soil deeply 4–5 times a month. The soil should be damp at all times since that will help the gourds grow faster.

Spring and rainy seasons are best for crop production. Harvesting is mainly after 45-50 days of sowing. Azad Toria-1: It is recommended to grown in Uttar Pradesh regions.

In the plains, the summer season crop is sown from January to February, whereas the rainy season crop is sown in the month of May. For planting one hectare area 4-5 kg of seed is required. Before planting the seed is treated with Thiram (3 g/kg of seed).

Bitter Gourd or Bitter Melon usually takes a long time to germinate almost about 10-15 days.

The results of this study showed that 4000 mg/kg of M. charantia fruit extract (Bitter melon) as single dose has not any significant adverse effects on renal function and structure. Longer-term consumption for 7 days can cause some complications in kidney tissue and its function.

Bitter Gourd plant care:

The plant should be grown in full sunlight. This climber needs plenty of watering, that’s why it grows very well in monsoon season. You should protect your plant from powdery mildew when the plant is young by spraying fungicides.

Bitter melon seeds germinate best when sown very fresh. Fortunately, there is no mistaking when bitter melon seeds are ready for sowing because the fruit dries out, splits open and reveals the shiny, crimson seeds against a golden yellow background.

Fertilizer Application

Apply 10 to 20 tons organic fertilizer per hectare or decomposed animal manure or compost before field preparation to supplement inorganic fertilizer. At planting, apply complete fertilizer (14-14-14) at the rate of 20 grams or two tbsp per hill.

Bitter gourd or bitter melon is technically a perennial plant but it is grown as an annual all over the world. In USDA zone 6-9 bitter gourd is grown as annuals. Even in the best tropical climatic conditions, these plants are grown as annual vegetables for commercial purposes.