Tropical and subtropical vegetables (2+1)

Harvesting and yield

• Fully mature fruits are lighter, fibrous, and hard and these kinds of fruits are not generally preferred in the market.Fruit set in snake gourd starts at the beginning of second month. Fruits are hand picked when they are still tender and about 1/4-1/3 their full size. A vine yields about 20-25 fruits and if it is properly managed, it can produce as many as 40-50 fruits in about 2-3 months. As the fruits have short shelf-life they should be sent to market promptly. The fruits need to be immediately packed in baskets or in other containers to protect them from injuries during transport. Average yield of snake gourd is 8-10 tonnes/ha.