15+Calabash Bottle Gourd Seeds(Lagenaria Siceraria) Chinese Pugua Nam Tao Yao Lauki Opo Vegetalbe USA known as White-flowered gourd and "Bottle Gourd," "Long Calabash Melon," or "Lauki / Loki," "Dhudhi," "Kaddu," or "Opo" Squash, Chinese Pugua. This edible variety is vigorous, disease-tolerant, and high yielding. Fruit has light green skin, sweet, tender and smooth. Used in sautes, stews and stir-fries. Delicious when sauteed with shrimp or meat. Fruit grows 12-14 inches and weighs approximately 2.5 pounds. Sow Bottle gourd is an annual growing vegetable, but the plant is not tolerant to low temperature. The seeds start to sprout in 59 degrees F, fastest in 86-95 degrees F. The suitable growing temperature is 68-77 degrees F. Outdoor:Soak the seeds in water overnight to give them a leg-up on germination. Plant the seeds in situ (in their permanent spot) as soon as the last frost date has passed in your area. Plant 5 seeds per composted hill about 5-in apart. When seedlings begin to take off, you'll want to thin them to one seedling per hill ideally. Indoors: You can start the seeds indoors by a few weeks (soak them first) before the last frost date, but plant them in peat pots so you can plant them directly into their permanent beds without disturbing their sensitive roots. Then go ahead and plant them outdoors after the last frost date. Grow The bottle gourds can be grown on the small “hills” that is the traditional way of growing squash or gourds. However, because they are a long-season crop, they end up sitting on the ground for long periods and could become rotten on the side touching the ground. One way to avoid this problem is to use 3 inches or so of mulch around the vines and under the fruit, however, it's just as easy to grow them up trellis's, fences or cages instead. Harvest The gourd grows rapidly and should be harvested in time. The Fruit is light green when young,the gourds harvested at this time are of the best quality and tender.Generally, the gourd can be harvested 15-20 days after flower dropping in early Spring, and 10-14 days only in Autumn. Buy Seeds Online Organic Seeds Heirloom Seeds Non-GMO Seeds Vegetable Seeds Flower Seeds Herb Seeds Fruit Seeds Garden Seeds Seed Starter Kits Rare Seeds Bulk Seeds Indoor Gardening Seeds Seed Catalog Seed Packs for Sale Sustainable Seeds Greenhouse Seeds Seed Suppliers Planting Seeds Home Garden Seeds