How To Increase Female Flowers In Bitter Gourd

Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

The following topic is virtually Growing Biting Gourd In Containers.

Introduction To Bitter Gourd (Karela)

Bitter Gourd is a tropical vine vegetable plant widely grown in Asia. Bitter guard is a quick crop, grown easily in the container with very less effort and produces proficient yields. The vines of the plants grow up to 6 to 7 feet and bear light light-green alternate leaves with iii deeply separated lobes. This found bears xanthous colored male and female flowers, which are pollinated past insects. The bitter guard comes in many varieties and each one has different shapes and sizes. Bitter gourd is oftentimes eaten light-green before information technology begins to plow xanthous. The biting gourd is easily grown from seeds and produces fruits round the yr. Bitter gourd is a vine establish, information technology needs some support to grow. Bitter gourd has very delicate flesh with large seeds. Bitter gourd is a warm season plant, thrives well in hot and humid climates. Bitter gourd needs fertile, well-drained soil with pH levels betwixt v.5 to half-dozen.7. Bitter gourd thrives well in soil with rich organic affair. the Bitter gourd plant needs abiding watering and produces fruit in 4 to 6 months after sowing seeds. Biting guard plants are susceptible to diseases and pests, they need good care during the growing period and fruiting period.

Scientific Name for Bitter Gourd: Momordica charantia.
Common Names for Bitter Gourd: Bitter Gourd, Biting Melon, Biting Cucumber, African Cucumber, balsam spear, and Bitter Apple.
Family: Bitter Gourd belongs to the family of Cucurbitales.

Varieties for Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

At that place are many varieties of bitter gourd bachelor based on fruit shape, color, size, and skin.

White Bitter Gourds : these fruits have white peel and flesh. Harvesting period is 55 day Some whi te varieties bitter gourds are Taiwan White, White Pearl, and Dazzler white.

Light-green Biting Gourds: Green bottle gourds are of 2 types, one is Indian multifariousness, and some other is Chinese diversity. Indian bitter gourds are small and are in dark and brilliant green color with sharp ridged skin. Chinese bitter gourds are big with calorie-free greenish color with smoothly ridged skin.
Choose hybrid varie ties for practiced yields.

Propaga tion for Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

Biting gourds are propagated through seeds and transplants
Seeds are the best way to propagate bitter gourd in containers.
Seeds can be sown in the months when the temperature starts to rise. March and May are the best months to sow seeds in containers.
Buy the seeds good quality seeds from reputed dealers. Bitter gourd seeds are available in all the nurseries and garden centers. Seeds are available online also.
Seeds can exist collected from the full ripen bitter gourd. Make sure that the seeds are fully
Soak the seeds in water for at least 24 hours to fasten the germination process.
Seed germinates in 3 to 4 weeks; germination catamenia depends on the temperatures.
Removing the outer cherry coat of the seed will increase the formation rate and fastens the formation.

The Best Containers for Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

Biting gourd grows well in medium-sized containers.
Select the containers of 12 inches deep and 10-inch width for growing bitter gourd.
The biting gourd institute grows up to 5m long, needs a sturdy trellis.
you tin can abound bitter gourd constitute in plastic/clay/ceramic containers with a practiced draining system.
you lot can employ plastic buckets/wheel barrels/ growing bags/ any reusable boxes to bitter gourd.

Read: Sugar Beet Cultivation.

Soil Requirement for Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

Bitter gourd grows well in a wide range of soils.
Thrives well in sandy, loamy soil rich in organic matter.
Bitter gourd prefers slightly acidic to the slightly alkali metal soil.
The pH range of soil should be around 6 to 7.i.
Instead of gardening soil, use a commercial potting mix.
Mix the potting soil with compost and dried creature manure.
Add perlite or vermiculite to in soil in a ratio of ane:1, to keep the soil loose and well tuckered.

The All-time time for Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

Bitter gourd is a tropical and subtropical crop.
Bitter gourd can be grown around the twelvemonth.
All-time time to sow the bitter gourd seeds is summertime, in the months of tardily April and May.
In USDA Zone x, xi, Biting Gourd seeds are sown any time.

S teps for Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

Medium sized plastic container with 2 to 3 draining holes is the best choice to grow bitter gourd.
Place a layer of small stones or cracked pottery over the draining holes to forbid the soil from dripping.
Proper draining is essential to protect the plant from fungal diseases on the roots.
Fill the container with a proficient quality mix added with perlite/vermiculite and compost
Bitter gourd needs well-drained soil to thrive.
Fill the container with potting mix, leaving ane inch from the rim of the container.
Now plant the seeds directly in the containers or you can sow seeds in the seed tray.
Dig a small hole in the center of the container and sow i or 2 seeds. And cover the seeds with potting soil
Don't tap soil tightly, seeds need air and light penetration for formation.
Now water the soil, till it becomes moisture.
Keep the container in a identify where information technology receives 5 to 6 hours of sunlight.
Bitter gourd needs a good amount of water to thrive, water plant regularly to maintain constant moisture levels in the soil.
The Bitter Gourd seeds have a couple of weeks to germinate.
One time the plant emerges, make regular inspection on the growth of plants.
Water the institute generously and regularly. Keep the soil moist, not soggy.
Once the plant reaches about 2 to 3 inches long and has few leaves and wines at this stage provide support for vines to climb.
This prevents the contact of the leaves from the soil.
Insert a strong wooden stick in the centre of the container carefully without harming roots of the plant.
Train the vines of the institute'south regular climb the back up stick.
When vines commencement growing longer and longer, use a rope to allow the vine to climb up more than.
By this time, you can meet flowers blooming on the vines. Biting gourd takes 5 to 6 weeks to bloom.
And the bitter gourds will be read in 4 to half dozen months from sowing.

Wa ter Requirement for Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

Bitter gourd needs a expert amount of h2o to thrive.
Water the plant regularly, but be careful not to over water them.
Biting gourd tin can stand up by drought-like weather condition for a short span.
Continue soil moist but not soggy.
Overwatering tin cause root rot.
Use the watering tin with a fine hose for watering bitter gourd plants.
Make the soil dry before watering seeds, this prevents seeds from rotting.
Once the plants maintain constant moisture levels in the soil, bank check the moisture level of the soil with your finger before watering.

Sunlight Requirement for Growing Bi tter Gourd in Containers

Biting gourd is a warm season crop.
Bitter gourd needs 5 to 8 hours of total sun to thrive.
And it can thrive in partial shade with good light and air circulation.

Temperature Requirement for Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

Biting Gourd is a temperature resistant plant, bitter gourd tin can thrive in low and high temperatures.
The ideal temperature required for Biting Gourd seed germination is 20°C.
Bitter Gourd loves the warm and humid climate, boiling climate will accelerate the growth of the plant.

Read: Maturity of Fruits and Vegetables.

The Best Location for Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

Bitter gourd needs a practiced amount of sunlight and the place to grow.
Place the container in a location where it receives a good amount of sunlight, air. The plant vines need support to climb and creep.
yous can hands abound them in patio, terrace, backyards, and Balconies, where you can get the back up of the wall so that vines can become upwards along with it.
Biting gourd is a vine plant and tin easily impairment past potent wind, so keep the container abroad from the winds.

Pruning for Growing Bi tter Gourd in Containers

Pruning is not compulsory for bitter gourds.
If the plant produces a number of side shoots, yous can cut them off for increasing production.
The growing tips of the found can be pruned when they are about 3 inches longer. Cutting the growing tips will increase the side-growth of side branches and yields flower and fruits in a compact space.
Prune the tip of the master stem when it reaches the top the trellis with 3 to four laterals. This procedure increases the blooming and fruiting chapters of the plant.
No flowering or No fruiting: Sometimes the plant doesn't produce female flowers or produces very fewer flowers and no fruits. At that fourth dimension, to increase blooming of male and female flowers clip the growing tips of the branches when they are 1 foot long. Then the newly growing vines will produce both flowers and fruits.

S taking and trellising for Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

The Bitter gourd is a vine plant and needs the support stakes or trellis almost 6 to 7 anxiety peak for the vines of the plants to climb.
At the initial stages, when the vines are very young train them to the trellis, when the attain to a acme of 5 to 6 inches tie the ropes to ends of vines and tin spread them on walls, pergolas, arches, etc.
Vertical growth of the found volition increase the production of fruits.
Don't allow plants to grow horizontally on the ground, it may crusade fruit rot or fungal infection on the leaves.
For trellising use strong wooden sticks or garden fences.

Pollination for Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

Pollination increases the flowering and fruiting chapters of the plant.
If the plant is producing more flowers and fewer fruits, pollination can be the main reason.
Beloved bees and butterflies do the pollination, growing more flowering plants volition garden volition encourage the visits of bees and butterflies.
Hand pollination is Hand pollination tin be done by simply picking a male person blossom and rubbing its face up to face on the female flower gently.
Or tin can employ a soft toothbrush, only rub brush smoothly on the male flower then brush the female bloom. Both the male and female flowers of the plant are in yellow color. But the female bloom has an ovary shape of the fruit between the flower and vine stem.

Fer tilizers for Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

Mixing a slow release fertilizer to the potting during sowing volition promote healthy growth of the plant.
Employ natural compost or well-rotted manure at regular intervals to enrich the organic levels of the soil.
Feed the institute with liquid fertilizer or seaweed solution in one case a month during the blooming menses will increase flowers.
Using nitrogen-rich fertilizer volition reduce the production of flower in biting gourds, utilise potassium-rich fertilizers to increment fruits and flowers.

Foot ts and Diseases of Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

Bitter gourds are more decumbent to disease and pests.
Mutual pests that assault bitter gourds are aphids, fruit flies and spider mites.
Diseases that bear upon the bitter gourds are a mosaic virus, cucurbit diseases, featherlike mildew, and powdery mildew.
For common pests employ horticultural oil spray or Neem oil spray regularly.
To protect the fruits from fruit flies, reap the fruits with a paper bag.
Trellising volition protect the institute from all the many fungal diseases.
In the case of fungal illness attack, utilise some organic fungicide to treat instead of chemical fungicides.

Harvesting for Growing Biting Gourd in Containers

Biting gourd can be harvested in 5 to 6 months afterward sowing seeds.
Bitter gourd should be harvested before information technology starts to turn yellow.
Size of biting gourd is about iii to 6 inches to harvest.
After blooming, fruits volition be set in the next 3 to 4 weeks.
Matured bitter gourds take a calorie-free greenish color, young fruits can be picked for every 2 to 3 days.
The longer you leave biting gourds, they become more bitter in taste.
Bitter gourds can be stored in paper or plastic bags in the refrigerator. They stay fresh for more than a week.

Quick Tips for Growing Bitter Gourd in Containers

Bitter gourds thrive well in the hot and humid climate.
Summer flavor (belatedly April and May) is the all-time season to sow biting gourd seeds.
Too much awarding of water and fertilizer should be avoided for the healthy growth of plants.
Stale and disuse leaves should be removed from time to time.
Harvesting period of bitter gourds around 5 to 6 months.
Winter care is not required for the bitter gourd, bitter gourd can survive in low temperatures.
Bitter grows well-drained soil rich in organic matter.
Pruning volition increment the flowers and fruits of plants and keeps the plant compact.
Pollination is recommended in bitter gourds, more than flowers with fewer fruits are caused due to lack of pollination. Hand pollination should be once in a week.
Use a soft castor or cotton fiber assurance for pollination.
Trellising will promote the growth of the plants. Apply wooden sticks and garden fences for trellising.
Bitter gourd loves sunshine, it needs total twenty-four hours dominicus to grow.
The platonic temperature for seed germination is 20°C.
The Bitter gourd plant should be fertilized once in a month with liquid seaweed fertilizer. Bootleg organic compost or natural compost is also recommended.
The Bitter ground needs a adept amount of water to thrive, maintain abiding moisture levels during the growing period.
Overwatering can cause root rot.
Employ potting mix, enriched with compost and dried animal manure.
To make bitter gourd seeds, go out the fruit on the vine and let it ripen. When it completely turns yellow, open it option the seeds out. Dry them and shop them in an airtight container.
Before sowing seeds, skin the blood-red glaze over the seed to fasten the germination or soak in water overnight to speed upward the germination.
Place the bitter gourd in a warm and sunny location.

Read: Terrace Gardening.

Read:Raising Complimentary Range Craven.

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