Bitter Gourd

Tamil Name: Pavakai; Scientific Name: Momordica charantia;

Expert Level

B G T

Planting/Sowing

Jul and Jan

Harvesting

Mar and Sep

First Harvest

~60 Days

General Info

Crop category	Vegetable
Life span	Perennial
Type of crop	Climber
Part(s) of the crop to harvest	Fruit
Avg. Height	13 to 16 feet if left unpruned.

Climate & Humidity

Bitter gourd does best in moderate and warm temperatures.

Planting / Sowing

When to plant / sow seeds (ideal season):
July, January

How to plant:
Direct sowing; A trellis is required at a height of 2 meters to support adult climbers. Stakes will be needed to support plants till they reach the trellis.

Soil Depth & Spacing Requirements

Sow seeds in holes about 1.25 cm deep with spacing between the holes at around 60 cm. Spacing between rows can be 2.5 metres. Sow 3 seeds per hole. After germination, maintain 2 healthy seedlings per hole.

NOTE: Please go through the Guides in the Knowledge Base for more details on topics ranging from Spacing & Lighting to Soil and Nutrients.

Irrigation

Irrigate the area before sowing the seeds and thereafter once weekly.

NOTE: Irrigation should depend on how moist / wet the soil is. Check your plants everyday to see if they require irrigation or not. Check the Watering & Irrigation guide for more info.

Pruning

When the vine grows to the top of its trellis, prune or pinch away all lateral branches from the soil up to the 10th node. This will stimulate the upper branches to grow and produce a higher yield. Prune laterals from 0.6- 0.9 meters and prune away the growing tip when it reaches the top of the trellis. As a result, the plant will produce a greater number of flowers and fruit sooner.

NOTE: See the Pruning guide for general info.

Harvesting

When to harvest
60-65 days after germination typically.

How to harvest
Harvest bitter gourd about 60-65 days after planting and 8 to 10 days after blossoms drop when the fruits are 10-15 cm long. The fruits will be a bit pear shaped, with light green skin and a few streaks of yellow. If fruits stay too long on the vine they will over-ripen, turn all yellow, grow too large, and become bitter.

NOTE: Harvest periods can vary depending on the environmental, climatic, soil conditions.

Pests & Diseases

Pests	Mites, Aphids, Spotted and striped cucumber beetles, fruit flies, caterpillars
Common Diseases/ Problems	Powdery mildew, downy mildew, Bitter gourd mosaic
Pest and Disease prevention measure(s)	Trellising, which increases air circulation around vines, can help to reduce fungal diseases; fruit flies can be prevented from reaching the fruit by covering fruits with paper bags secured with twine or rubber bands, or wrapping them with newspaper when the fruits are just an inch or two long.

NOTE: Read Pests & Diseases for more information.

Did you know?

You can reduce the bitterness of bitter gourds by deseeding, marinating in salt and then rinsing. Or soak for 30 mins in dilute yoghurt. Bonus fact: Did you know bitter gourd leaves are also edible? [Source]