How to grow bitter melon to get high yield?

Bitter melon is widely distributed and is grown in both the north and the south. Unlike other melon vegetables , which have obvious taste differences between the north and the south, people's preferences for bitter melon also vary. Bitter melon has certain requirements for planting techniques. The plants sometimes grow weakly and have slender stems. If they are not pruned, the plants will appear messy, with small and few leaves, and fewer flowers and fruits. Let’s learn how to grow bitter melon to achieve high yield.

1. Bitter melon's requirements for water, fertilizer and environmental conditions

Among melon vegetables, bitter melon has relatively weak growth potential. It is not as vigorous as cucumber and loofah, nor as resistant to barrenness as pumpkin and winter melon, but bitter melon has a strong branching ability.

Environmental conditions required: Bitter melon prefers a warm and humid climate, and the suitable growth temperature is 25~30℃; it is not strict about light, but sufficient light is conducive to flowering and fruiting; it is not tolerant to barrenness or drought, and the soil needs to be kept moist during the fruit-setting period.

Planting time: Bitter melon seeds have thick seed coats and germinate slowly, so they are usually transplanted after seedling raising. Seedlings should be raised indoors or in a small shed in mid-to-late March. The seeds need to be processed before sowing, such as germination after soaking, or cracking the seeds when sowing directly.

2. Watering and fertilizing of bitter melon

Land preparation: Choose fertile land, apply more organic fertilizer as base fertilizer, apply 1000kg of decomposed chicken manure and cow manure per mu, deep plow the soil to mix the soil and fertilizer evenly. Ridge making and planting, apply 50 kg of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium compound fertilizer per mu.

Seedling stage: After transplanting, water thoroughly and allow the seedlings to grow appropriately. If the seedlings do not grow vigorously, you can apply nitrogen fertilizer when they are vine-forming, 3 to 5 kilograms per mu. After the fruits are ripe, normal water and fertilizer management will begin.

Fruit setting period: After fruit setting, more potassium fertilizer should be applied to promote fruiting and fruit enlargement. At the same time, the application of nitrogen fertilizer should not be ignored. Suitable topdressing is a triple compound fertilizer of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, or urea and potassium sulfate applied in equal proportions. When planting sparsely, apply fertilizer in holes, 10 to 15 kg of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium compound fertilizer per mu, and apply top dressing once in the early, peak and late stages of fruit setting.

3. Pruning and auxiliary pollination of bitter melon

Bitter melon has many branches, so vine pruning is needed to make the branches evenly distributed. Bitter melons grown in greenhouses are mostly pruned by single vines, while bitter melons grown in the field require reasonable pruning. Bitter melon can produce fruits on branches and vines at all levels, and the number of fruits can be reasonably controlled according to the growth of the plant. After the main vine reaches the top of the frame, pinch off the top, usually leaving 3 to 5 side vines, and pinch off the tip after each side vine produces 1 to 2 fruits. In the middle and late stages, promptly prune off weak, dense and aging branches to reduce nutrient consumption.

In general, bitter melon cultivation requires sufficient water and fertilizer, and it is not drought-resistant or barren-tolerant. First allow the plant to grow sufficiently, then guide the vines onto the shelves appropriately, and control the number of fruits according to the growth of the plant. Only then can the bitter melons produce more fruits and last longer.