Tropical and subtropical vegetables (2+1)

Preparation of land

• In the riverbeds the trenches or pits are prepared as described under muskmelon. The land should be prepared to obtain the tilth desirable to facilitate rapid and better germination. As per requirement of the crop the raised beds, furrows or pits are prepared and field is kept ready for planting.

Sowing
Both the sponge and ridge gourds are propagated through seeds. The seeds of sponge gourd are white and that of ridge gourd are black. The seeds are soaked in water for 12-24 hours before sowing to hasten the germination.Seed rate for ridge gourd is 3.5-5.0kg/ha and that of sponge gourd is 2.5-3.5kg/ha. The seeds are sown in raised beds, furrows and pits.

Spacing
In Maharashtra, a spacing of 1.5x1.5m is followed. With the pit system a spacing of 1.5-2.0m between the two rows and 1.0-1.5m between the two plants is advocated.For sponge gourd and ridge gourd the row to row distance of 1.5-2.5m and hill to hill distance of 60-120cm are kept. Two seeds per hill in the case of raised beds and three to four seeds per pit are sown.

Nutrition
Under Haryana conditions, farmyard manure 10-15 tonnes/ha and 40-60kg N, 30-40kg P705 and 30kg of K,O/ha are recommended for both the crops. In addition to N 20-30kg should be top dressed at the time of vining. In Punjab, 100kg of N, 60kg of P205 and 60kg of K20/ha is recommended.Farmyard manures at the rate of 15-20 tonnes/ha should be mixed in the soil at the time of preparation of field. The super phosphate, potash and the half nitrogen should be applied as a basal dose and one-half nitrogen should be given as top dressing after one month of planting.

Irrigation
During the rainy season, irrigation may be required during the early growth period. No systematic work is done on requirement of irrigation water and its management in these crops.The summer crop must be irrigated regularly. The first irrigation should be given immediately after the sowing. Summer crops require more frequent irrigation than rainy season crops. Irrigation may be carried out according to the soil moisture status and season.

Weed control
Weeding should be done 15-20 days after the sowing. The second weeding may be done 20-25 days after the first one. The crop is kept weed free during the entire growth period.

Growth regulators
Foliar spray of NAA 200 ppm at two and four leaf stage increases the yield. In these crops, the female and male flowers are borne separately on the same plant. The sex ratio can be regulated by exogenous application of growth regulators NAA (200ppm) increases the female flower production in ridge gourd and in turn increases the yield significantly. In sponge gourd, exogenous application of Ethrel 250ppm has been found to be beneficial.

Training and pruning
The early crop can be allowed to trail on the bed itself. In northern India the crop is generally not trained and the vines are allowed to trail on the ground. Rainy season crop should be staked so that the fruits are prevented from direct contact with the soil.In small homestead gardens, ridge gourd and sponge gourd are trailed over trelises arbours or pendals at 1.5-2.0m height. Commercial crop are trained on a kniffen system. The crop is trained when the seedlings are about 10-15cm tall.

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