Bottle gourd

How to grow Bottle gourd growing and care:

Mulch the ground, trellising, well-drained soil

What is the best way to start growing?
Plant / Seedling / Seed

Is it necessary to graft or use vegetative reproduction?
No

Difficulties or problems when growing:
Attacked easily, when the plant attacked in the base if not treatment well it will die

Planting season:
Spring to summer, but better in the spring and in hardiness zone 4-7 need to start in the middle of the winter indoor, the plant need enough hot days when mature to bear fruits without, if the plant won’t be with mature fruits in the autumn or the plant won’t bear fruits or the fruits will die before fully ripen, also better to choose cultivar that bear the fruits faster.

How to plant:
Planting in well ventilated soil, dig bigger hole than the plant and put organic matter, humus and dead leaves

Pests and diseases:
Powdery mildew, aphids, moth, virus, beetles

Pruning season:
All the season

How to prune:
Infected leaves needed to take out, also try to clean them infected part

Size of the plant:
3-5 m 9-15 feet

Growth speed in optimal condition:
Fast growing

Water requirement:
Average amount of water

Light conditions in optimal condition for growing:
Full Sun

Is it possible to grow indoor as houseplant?
No

Growing is also possible in a planter /flowerpot / containers:
Yes, planting in containers need to be at least 20L (5 gallons) possible in 10L (2.5 gallons) but it will keep the plant really small, well-drained soil, the plant not react well to overwater, need to make enough holes in the container for good drainage also choosing soil for container important and need to be soil well ventilated, can be potting mix or peat soil with perlite, when use bottom for the pot need that it will dry in the same day.

Blooming information

Bloom season:
Spring / Summer / Autumn

General information about the flower
White flower with five lobs, there are female and male flowers

Pollination is done by:
Bees +

Edible Fruit

Fruit harvest season:
Summer / Autumn

Fruits pests or diseases:
Powdery mildew

What can be done with big quantities of Bottle gourd fruits?
Cooked, salad, roasted,

Work requirements on the fruit:
Trellising the plant that the fruit won’t grow on the ground

How long does it take to bear fruit?
100-120 days

Edible leaves

Leaves harvesting season
Spring / Summer / Autumn

How to harvest the leaves?
After the plant establish trim fully grown young leaves

Information about leaves:
Green the leaf have five lobes

Uses of Bottle gourd leaves:
Cooked, staffed

How to grow bottle gourd from seed

How to grow Acorn squash from seeds

Sowing requirement:
Easy to sow no special treatment, sowing temperature 15-40C (65-104F) but better to sow in 21-25C (70-77F)

Saving seeds until sowing:
Room temperature, dry place

Sowing season:
Spring (but in warm weather possible in the summer) and in cold climate start in the winter indoor

How to plant:
Better to plant it in light soil that will be well ventilated and keep the moist like vermiculite

Planting spacing – How far apart to plant:
Depend if trellising 40*50cm (16*20 inches) when crawling 1*1.25m (40-50 inches), sowing to transplanting 5*5cm (2*2 inches)

Depth of Sowing:
1-2cm (0.5-1 inch) from the top

Conditions for seeds germinate:
Moist soil, full sun

Watering requires for Seeds:
Average amount of water, don’t let it dry

Germination time:
5-20 days

Condition of seedling:
Warm weather, big amount of water, full sun, place to trellising

Scientific name:

Lagenaria siceraria

Alternative names: Lauki plant, Calabash, White-flowered gourd, Long melon, New Guinea bean