How to Grow Bottle Guard from Seed to Harvest

Bottle Guard (Lagenaria siceraria L.) is widely cultivated in North India. The green and tender fruits are used as a vegetable. Bottle Guard vine is an annual crop. One of the important climber vegetables of our state.

Bottle guard vines can be cultivated either on the ground or on the climber. These fruits come in different shapes, some are elongated, some are round and some are cylindrical.

Uses:

Bottle Guard is used as a vegetable and in the preparation of sweets. Dried gourds are used as jars for storing water and as household items.

Weather:

Moist dry climate is most suitable for the crop. If the temperature is 25-30° centigrade growth will be good and flowering and fertilization will be good. Good yields are obtained if there is heavy rainfall at the time of flowering and fertilization. This crop can be grown in different types of soil. Soils with a Soil PH levels 6–7 are suitable.

Varieties:

1Kg of seeds Contains approximately 6000 seeds
Bottle Guard Seed Germination time is 3 to 7 Days

Pusa Summer Prolific Long: Fruits are 40-50 cm long and light green in color. This variety is very suitable for sowing as a summer crop. This variety was developed by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi.

Pusa Summer Prolific Round: The fruits of this variety are round and 15-18 cm in diameter, green in color. It is a high yielding variety.

Pusa Meghdoot: It is an F-1 hybrid variety. This hybrid variety was released from the pusa company. Their fruits are long.

Pusa Manjari: It is an F-1 hybrid variety. This hybrid is designed by Pusa Company, New Delhi. The fruits of this hybrid variety are round and light green in color.

Pusa Naveen: This type is designed by Pusa Company, New Delhi. Its fruits are medium light green in color.

Arkabahar: This variety was released by the Horticultural Society of India, Bangalore and the fruits are long. A variety suitable for export to foreign countries. This variety weigths about 1 kg and is light green in color. Its pulp is very soft and smells good. Its harvest period is 120 days. Yield 16-18 t/a. Suitable for summer crop.

Samrat: This variety was released from Mahatmaphule Agricultural University, Rahuri, Maharashtra. Its fruits are 30-40 cm and they are tall and green in color. Each fruit weights 700-800 g. The average yield of this crop is 18 t/a. A yield of 34 t/a can be obtained under good favorable conditions.

Punjab Komal: This variety was released by Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana. The variety has recorded a yield of 10-11 tones per acre.

Pusa Sandesh: This variety is released by Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi. The fruits of this variety are round and attractive green in color and medium in size and their seeds are 600 g. It is suitable for backyard crop and commercial cultivation with up to weight and this is a early ripening variety. The first crop can be harvested in 60-65 days after sowing. This variety yields 11.6-12.8 t/a.

Also various private hybrid varieties are available in the market. It is better to wear them seasonally. Varad, Kaveri, Swati are suitable hybrid crops for summer.

Seed Per Acre:

Seed Rate: Kharif crop: 1.0-1.2 tones/acre, Summer crop: 1.2-1.6 tones/acre
Harvesting: Harvest well-grown young fruits.
Yield: 10-18 tones per acre

Planting Distance:

The distance between rows and pit for kharif crop: 3.0 m, 90cm and for summer crop: 2.0-2.5m, 0.75-80cm

Method of Planting:

60 cm wide canals should be prepared at a distance of 3 meters for Kharif crop and 2.5 meters for summer crop. 3-4 seeds per pit should be sown at a depth of 1-2 cm. Seeds germinate in 3 to 7 days. Plant two strong plants per pit and plant the rest.