The botanical name of Bitter gourd is Momordica charantia L.; it belongs to family Cucurbitaceae
Varieties: CO 1, MDU 1, COBgoH 1 (Hybrid), Arka Harit, Priya and Preethi.
Soil: Sandy loam rich in organic matter with good drainage and pH range of 6.5-7.5. The crop requires a moderate warm temperature.
Season and sowing: July and January.
Sow the seeds (5 seeds/pit) treated with Trichoderma viride 4 g or Pseudomonas fluorescens 10 g or carbendazim 10 g/kg of seeds and thin the seedlings to two per pit after 15 days.
Seed rate: 4.5 kg/ha.
Preparation of field: Plough the field to fine tilth. Dig pits of 30 cm x 30 cm x 30 cm size at 2 x 1.5 m spacing and form basins.
Irrigation: Irrigate the basins before dibbling the seeds and thereafter once in a week.
Application of fertilizers: Apply 10 kg 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.
After cultivation: Hoe and weed thrice. Provide stakes to reach the pandal (2 m). Spray Ethrel 100 ppm (1 ml dissolved in 10 lit of water) four times from 15th day after sowing at weekly intervals.
Plant protection against Pests and diseases:
Beetles, fruit flies and caterpillars: Spray malathion 50 EC 1ml/lit or dimethoate 30 EC 1ml/lit or methyl demeton 25 EC 1ml/lit or fenthion 1000 EC 1ml/lit.
Do not use DDT, lindane 1.3% dust, copper and sulphur dust, as these are phytotoxic
Powdery mildew: Spray Dinocap 1ml/lit or Carbendazim 0.5 g/lit.
Downy mildew: Spray Mancozeb or Chlorothalonil 2 g/lit twice at 10 days interval.
Yield
Varieties : 14 t/ha in 140 - 150 days.
Hybrids : 40 t/ha in 180 days
