A Detailed Guide to Gourd Seed Prices and Planting Methods
The gourd, also known as the bottle gourd, calabash, or white-flowered gourd, is an annual climbing herbaceous plant of the genus Lagenaria in the Cucurbitaceae family. Its unripe fruit can be eaten as a vegetable. It is widely cultivated from tropical to temperate regions around the world and is commonly grown throughout China. The vines, leaves, flowers, and fruits of different cultivated types vary. Let us take a look at gourd seed prices and planting methods below!
How much do gourd seeds cost?
The price of gourd seeds varies greatly depending on the variety. For example, large wine gourd seeds cost about 1 to 1.5 yuan per bag (5 seeds), large immortal gourd seeds about 0.8 to 1.3 yuan per bag (8 seeds), giant gourd seeds about 50 to 60 yuan per bag (10 seeds), long-handled gourd seeds about 6 to 8 yuan per bag (10 seeds), craft gourd seeds about 5 to 8 yuan per bag (10 seeds), and large waist gourd seeds about 5 to 7 yuan per bag (10 seeds). At the same time, the place of origin and the quantity purchased are also major factors affecting gourd seed prices.
Gourd Cultivation Conditions
1. Temperature: The gourd is a warmth-loving crop. Seeds begin to germinate at 15°C, the optimum growth temperature is 20 to 25°C, growth and development are hindered at 9 to 10°C, and premature aging easily occurs at 36 to 38°C.
2. Water: The gourd has strong water absorption capacity and a high transpiration rate. In case of drought, it should be irrigated promptly. It needs the most water during the flowering and fruiting period, while from the late stage of fruit development until harvest, water should not be excessive.
3. Light: The gourd tolerates weak light. To ensure high yield and good quality, a site with open terrain and full sun should be chosen for planting. Excessive shade affects the normal growth of the seedlings and fruits.
4. Soil: The gourd has strong adaptability and grows well in slightly acidic soil (pH 6.5 to 7). Choosing well-drained sandy loam for planting gives higher yields.
How to sprout gourd seeds?
1. Seed treatment: After drying the seeds in the sun for 1 to 2 days, soak them in a 500-fold carbendazim solution for 30 minutes, then wash the seeds with clean water, and then soak them in warm water at 55°C for 6 to 8 hours. During soaking, keep stirring constantly. Afterward, take out the seeds and soak them in a 10% trisodium phosphate solution for 25 minutes. After soaking, remove the seeds and wash them with clean water, and finally wipe the mucus off their surface with a dry towel.
2. Sprouting method: Moisten a towel with clean water and wring it out until it no longer drips, then spread the treated seeds on the towel, with a thickness preferably not exceeding 1.5 cm, and cover the seeds with another equally moist towel. After covering, fold up one edge of both towels and wrap them around the outside of a plastic bottle, then pour warm water at 30 to 32°C into the plastic bottle, tighten the cap, and wrap the outside of the plastic bottle with plastic film to maintain the humidity of the seeds.
3. Temperature management: When sprouting gourd seeds, to keep them warm, you can wrap the plastic bottle in a cotton blanket and then place it in a warm place. When the water temperature inside the plastic bottle drops below 28°C, you can open the cap, pour out the water inside, and add new warm water (at 30 to 32°C). Change the water every 12 hours, and after 36 to 48 hours the seeds will sprout.
How to sow gourd seeds?
1. Sowing method: The gourd's root system has weak regeneration ability, so it is generally sown directly in nutrient pots, with 1 to 2 seeds per pot, covered with 1 to 2 cm of nutrient soil, and the temperature controlled at around 25°C. Seedlings emerge in 3 to 4 days.
2. Cooling and ventilation: When one-third of the gourd seeds have emerged, the temperature needs to be lowered to around 18°C and ventilation should begin, to prevent the seedlings from becoming leggy. At the same time, let the seedlings receive as much light as possible to enhance their photosynthesis and improve their resistance.
3. Thinning and watering: After the gourd seedlings have all emerged, thin them once, removing diseased, weak, and off-type seedlings, leaving 1 seedling per pot. Watering during the seedling stage should be properly controlled; do not water if the bed soil is not dry. If watering is needed, it should be done at noon on a sunny day, and after watering, ventilate to remove moisture.
4. Hardening and disease prevention: One week before transplanting, gradually increase ventilation and extend the ventilation time for the gourd seedlings, lowering the temperature to harden them and improve their stress resistance. The pests and diseases during the seedling stage are similar to those of cucumber, so attention should be paid to their control.
Gourd Planting Methods
1. Land preparation and base fertilizer: For the gourd planting plot, apply 2500 kg of farmyard manure and 150 kg of vegetable-specific fertilizer or sulfur-containing compound fertilizer per mu as base fertilizer, then form beds with a bed width of 0.67 m and a bed height of more than 0.33 m.
2. Timely transplanting: For gourd transplanting, the plant spacing is 0.67 m. Dig holes and plant a single seedling, then water to settle the roots. Before plowing, use paraquat to control weeds once, and after preparing the land, spray butachlor once, and only then carry out transplanting.
3. Fertilizer and water management: Gourd topdressing is carried out according to soil fertility combined with watering. Generally, 6 days after transplanting, apply 15 kg of soybean bran soak solution, 1.5 kg of biological phosphorus, and 1.5 kg of biological potassium per mu, mixed with manure water for drenching, applying once every 7 to 10 days.
4. Inserting poles and building trellises: 10 to 15 days after planting the gourd, insert poles and build trellises, prune branches and remove side shoots, pinch off growing tips, remove old leaves, and adjust the spacing to provide ventilation and light. You can cultivate directional soil once to make the vines lean in the downwind direction, avoiding vine turnover.
5. Hand pollination: Gourds generally do not bloom in the morning or on rainy days, so prune branches and pinch off tips every morning, and start pollination at 16:00 in the afternoon. Pollination can be stopped after the End of Heat (August 23). Generally, two main vines bear 6 to 8 fruits.
6. Timely harvest: The appropriate harvest time is when the fuzz on the young gourd has basically fallen off and the skin color has become lighter. Generally, the first batch of gourds is harvested 15 to 20 days after flowering, and the peak fruiting period is 10 to 12 days after flowering. Harvesting the fruit too late affects its edible value.
Gourd Pest and Disease Control
1. Fusarium wilt
[Damage] It damages the roots and the base of the stems and vines. The leaves wilt severely. After flowering and fruiting, the appearance of the initial disease resembles water shortage: obvious wilting at noon, partial recovery in the morning and evening, browning or rotting of the roots, and amber gummy substance exuding from the affected parts.
[Control] Use 50% carbendazim 500-fold dilution, 70% thiophanate-methyl 600-fold dilution, fulvic acid salt 800-fold dilution, special yellow wilt spirit 1500-fold dilution, 50% dexon 500-fold dilution, miebingwei 600-fold dilution, or agricultural streptomycin, etc., to drench the roots.
2. Anthracnose
[Damage] In the early stage, the lesions are light yellow and nearly round. In the later stage, the center of the lesion ruptures. In severe cases, the leaves die, light brown streaks appear on the leaf stalks, and infected fruits show light green water-soaked spots, followed by nearly round dark brown lesions with sunken centers.
[Control] Use 70% thiophanate-methyl 600-fold dilution, 75% chlorothalonil 500-fold dilution, miebingwei 600-fold dilution, kemeling 1000-fold dilution, fenghuan 1000-fold dilution, and sulfur suspension concentrate 500-fold dilution in alternating spray control.
3. Downy mildew
[Damage] Affected leaves develop small light yellow spots, and in humid conditions, light purple mold-like growth appears on the underside of the lesions.
[Control] Use 58% metalaxyl 500-fold dilution, mancozeb acetate 500-fold dilution, 60% sandofan 500-fold dilution, kemeling 1000-fold dilution, beideli 600-fold dilution, 70% mancozeb 500-fold dilution, and yishuangling 500-fold dilution for spraying.
4. Pests
[Damage] Gourd pests include melon aphids, melon flies, yellow squash beetles, and noctuid moths.
[Control] They can be controlled by deep application or broadcasting of miler, as well as by spraying pyrethroid pesticides mixed with bisultap.