HORT 281 :: Lecture 11 :: ORIGIN, AREA, PRODUCTION, VARIETIES, PACKAGE OF PRACTICES FOR BITTER GOURD

Origin, area, production, varieties, package of practices for BITTER GOURD
(Syn: Bitter cucumber, Balsam pear)
(Momordica charantia L.) (2n = 22)
(Hindi: Karela)

Bitter gourd is an important vegetable in South Indian states, particularly in Kerala and is grown for its immature tuberculate fruits which have a unique bitter taste.  Fruits are considered as a rich source of vitamins and minerals and 88 mg vitamin C per 100 g.  Fruits are used after cooking and delicious preparations are made after stuffing and frying.  During periods of glut in market, fruits are sliced, partially boiled with salt and dried under direct sunlight and stored for months.  This is used after frying.  Bitter gourd fruits have medicinal value and are used for curing diabetes, asthma, blood diseases and rheumatism.  Drinking fresh bitter gourd juice is recommended by naturopaths.  Roots and stem of wild bitter gourd are used in many ayurvedic medicines.
Origin and distribution
Bitter gourd is of old world origin and is a native of tropical Asia, particularly in the Indo Burma region.  It is widely grown in India, Indonesia, Malaysia, China and tropical Africa.
Botany
Genus Momordica, to which bitter gourd belongs, has the following four species in India.
M. charantia (cultivated bitter gourd)
M. charantia var. muricata (Highly bitter and small fruited wild bitter gourd)
M. dioica (kakrol, spine gourd)
          M. cochinchinensis (sweet gourd of Assam)
M. balsamina – Immature fruits are used as vegetable or picked.
All the species have 2n=2x=28.

       

Momordica cochinchinensis

 

M. charantia is propagated through seeds and is monoecious .M. dioica and M. cochinchinensis are propagated through underground tubers and are dioecious in nature.  Both species have small fruits covered with spines.  Ram (2002) reported main difference between the two species.

          Bitter gourd is a monoecious annual climber with duration of 100-120days.  Leaves are palmately 5-9 lobed.  Flowers are axillary with long pedicel and are yellow in colour.  Stamens are 5 in number with free filaments and united anthers.  Stigma is divided.  Fruit is pendulous, fusiform, ribbed with numerous tubercles.  Bitterness of fruit is due to the presence of an alkaloid, Momordicin.  Anthesis is from 4.00 a.m. to 7.00 a.m.  Anther dehiscence takes place in between 5.00 a.m. and 7.30 a.m.  Stigma is receptive 24 hours before and after anthesis.

  Varieties
          Consumer preferences in bitter gourd vary from region to region depending on size, colour, presence or absence of tubercles / ridges and bitterness of fruits.  Accordingly a number of varieties are developed in India and details are furnished below:

                          
Climate and soil
Bitter gourd is a warm season crop with wide adaptability.  Ideal temperature for its growth and flowering is 25-30oC.  Crop can be grown even in places of slightly lower temperature and high rainfall areas.  Production of female flowers, fruit set and growth of plant are seen affected above 35oC and will be susceptible to viral infections.  As seeds have a hard seed coat, germination is affected below 10oC.
Well drained and fertile sandy loam or silt loam is ideal for the crop.
Season
In hills, the crop is sown during April-May.  In plains where season is early, bitter gourd is sown during January-March in states like Rajasthan and Bihar.  In states where winter is late and prolonged, sowing is done in February-March.  In areas where winter is mild, crop is sown throughout the year.  In Kerala, when bitter gourd is grown in an intensive way, sowing is done during January-February for summer crop, May-June for kharif crop and September for rabi crop.
Kakrol and sweet gourd are normally grown during rainy season in fertile soil rich in humus.  Performance is better under partially shaded condition.
Land preparation and sowing
Preparation of land, sowing and other cultural practices for bitter gourd is similar to that of cucumber except that bitter gourd is trained to bower or cut branches of trees.  In Kerala, the crop is cultivated in an intensive way.  Land is ploughed to a fine tilth and pits of 60 cm diameter and 30-45 cm depth are made at a spacing of 2.0-2.5 x 2.0 – 2.5 m.  well rotten farmyard manure @ 20-25 t/ha is applied in pits and filled with top soil up to 3/4th height and 4-5 seeds are sown in each pit @ 5.0-6.0 kg/ha.
Since bitter gourd seeds have a hard seed coat, soak 2-3 months old seeds overnight in cold water.  Seeds are then stored in moist cloth and kept for one or two days for germination.  Seeds immediately after germination are sown in pits.  Mechanical scarification is effective for germination of seeds soon after harvest.
Irrigation
Bitter gourd cannot tolerate drought or water stagnation.  Frequent irrigation at   2-5 days interval especially at fruiting stage is necessary for high yield.  Under Kerala condition, crop is irrigated at 3-4 days interval during initial stage and at alternate days during fruiting.
Manures and fertilizer application
In addition to 20-25 t/ha of farmyard manure, a fertilizer dose of 70 kg N, 25 kg P2O5 and 25 kg K2O / ha is recommended by Kerala Agricultural University.  Initial dose of farmyard manure is applied in pits and incorporated with top soil.  Apply 1/3rd N and full dose of P and half dose of K either just before sowing or 10-15 days after sowing as basal dose.  ½ K can be applied 45 days after sowing.  Remaining fertilizers can be applied in several split doses (5-6) at fortnightly intervals.  Since bitter gourd is harvested frequently, fertilizer also should be applied in several splits.
Drenching pits with cow dung slurry at fortnightly intervals, top-dressing with poultry manure and organic cakes are practiced by bitter gourd farmers in Kerala.
Application of fertilizers: 
Apply 10 k of FYM per pit (20 t/ha) 100 g of NPK 6:12:12 per pit as basal and 10 g of N per pit 30 days after sowing.

 

Interculture
Being a shallow rooted crop, deep intercultural operations should be avoided.  Land, particularly pits, should be kept weed-free by frequent hand weeding, hoeing and light earthing up along with application of fertilizers.  Excess lateral branches, if any, may be pinched off for allowing plants to reach bower height at the earliest.  Erect bower when plant starts vining.  Plants may be trailed to bower by erecting small twigs in pits.  Erection of bower or pandal is a costly operation and nearly 20% of cost of production is for making bower alone.  Height of bower is adjusted as 2 m and is usually made of bamboo poles, G1 wire and thin coir or plastic wire.  Bower once erected can be utilized for raising at least three crops.
Plant growth regulators
Application of several plant growth regulators like MH (50-150 ppm), CCC    (50-100 ppm), Ethrel (150 ppm), silver nitrate (3-4 ppm), boron (3-4 mg/ha) at 2-leaf stage and 4 leaf stage increases the female flowers and yield in bitter gourd.  Soaking of seeds with Ethrel or boron (3-4 mg/kg) also increases yield in bitter gourd.
Harvesting
Harvesting starts 55-60 days after sowing.  Picking is done when fruits are fully grown but still young and tender.  Seeds should not be hard at the time of harvest.  From a good crop, 15-20 harvests are possible and harvesting is done twice a week.  If fruits are allowed to ripen on vines, further bearing is adversely affected.
Fruits after harvest are packed in thin gunny bags or directly packed in tempo and marketed.  Since keeping quality of fruits is less, fruits should be marketed without any delay to nearby markets on the same day itself.  Otherwise tubercles will be dropped and freshness and appearance of fruits will be adversely affected.
Yield: 11-25 t/ha.
Seed Production
For seed purpose, fruits are harvested when fruits turn yellow in colour.  Seeds along with red placenta are rubbed against a hard surface and washed in running water and dried under shade.  Seed yield: 200-250 kg/ha.
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1. Mode of pollination in bitter gourd

a. Self pollination	b. Cross pollination
c. Often cross pollination	d. None

1. The chromosome number of bitter gourd

a. 22	b. 24
c. 56	d. 84

1. Pusa Visesh is a variety of bitter gourd suitable for ______ season

a. Rainfall	b. Summer
c. Rabi	d. Kharif

1. First harvest in bitter gourd starts from __________

a. 20	b. 45
c. 60	d. 70

1. Total crop duration of bitter gourd is _______ days after sowing

a. 120 days	b. 140 days
c. 130 days	d. 100 days

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